stylish backpack for first grade girl?

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Forum -> Parenting our children -> School age children

Stylish backpack for first grade girl?

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amother

Fri, Aug 15 2014, 11:34 am

I know this is a silly question but what's the style now for backpacks for a first grader? (in NY if it makes a difference). Need to get a new one for daughter.

octopus

Fri, Aug 15 2014, 11:36 am

oh great. make the lives on the rest of us just a little harder. first the shoes...now the backpacks...

DrMom

Fri, Aug 15 2014, 11:36 am

There are "styles" for backpacks?

Why don't you just go to a store with her and have her pick out something she likes (and that falls within your accepted parameters, e.g., no characters, or whatever)?

bookworm10

Fri, Aug 15 2014, 11:37 am

Kipling. Though I dont buy it, I know that many girls have them and they are "in".

My kids are still happy with their mickey mouse knapsacks.

pesek zman

Fri, Aug 15 2014, 11:42 am

Omg I can't beleive there are styles of backpacks for a first grader!! What does a 6 year old know or care about trends?!?!

PinkFridge

Fri, Aug 15 2014, 11:58 am

bookworm10 wrote:

Kipling. Though I dont buy it, I know that many girls have them and they are "in".

My kids are still happy with their mickey mouse knapsacks.

Good for you. My little ones wouldn't use a Kipling unless it was a hand me down or from a thrift shop. Please keep it real as long as you can. Now if you're asking about zippers vs. clasps, etc. that's a different story. Even then, I'd get something as practical as you can and maybe a little bigger than a first grader needs so you can use it for second, and beyond if possible. But not too big.

Frumdoc

Fri, Aug 15 2014, 12:03 pm

My Israeli nieces love hello kitty almost exclusively from the age of 3 till 8. Drives their mothers insane, they even beg for hello kitty pasta!

mommyofd1

Fri, Aug 15 2014, 2:53 pm

if you don't care about the price kipling or lesportsac is in
https://www.lesportsac.com/Voy.....olor=
http://www.kipling-usa.com/seo......html

Amelia Bedelia

Fri, Aug 15 2014, 2:58 pm

Last year the velours and corduroy backpacks in different colors and styles, and possibly prints too, were popular.

rosenbal

Fri, Aug 15 2014, 3:16 pm

If u get a Jansport they have a lifetime warrenty to fix it if anything breaks. Ur daughter may eventually get bored of it, but it's still nice to have an extra bag around for trips etc.

Mt DD got a really cute black velour and cream "leather" animal print one in TJ Maxx for $30. Very sturdy looking (not all the Jansports were though). I'm hoping that for that price she won't get bored after a year though! At least I know we won't have to toss it mid year because of broken zippers...

I'm not in Brooklyn though so not quite as tied to styles;-) This one looked really trendy and cute to us. Of course my DD wanted a messenger bag but she walks to and from school and often has a really heavy bag. So glad she ended up pragmatically choosing a bag pack! (She's very into looks so I was really happy she made such a sensible decision.)

Chayalle

Fri, Aug 15 2014, 3:37 pm

I just got my DD (6) a Lands End backpack. If it lasts as long as her big sister's did, I'm good for a few years.

I remember going to Target with oldest DD at this age and letting her choose a briefcase. The zipper broke before Chanuka. So I've found it pays to spend a little more on quality.

Honestly, my first grader is thrilled with anything in a girlish color (pink, purple, etc...) She does not need to know yet about what's in style. I'd rather keep her young and happy for now.....

acccdac

Fri, Aug 15 2014, 5:36 pm

Chayalle wrote:

I agree.

In Pre-1 bought a GAP backpack it was broken by january. I had my son choose a print he liked from Lands End. He BEGGED me for a new backpack each year. When he was in 5th grade I let him buy a new one (we got it from costco) because he needed a bigger one anyways.

That has become my new policy at home. Pre-1A you get a new one, then 4-5th grade you get a bigger one because of need. They can get a new one for high school if they want.

Deep

Fri, Aug 15 2014, 5:43 pm

http://www.shopjustice.com/gir.....t=1-3

http://www.shopjustice.com/gir.....t=1-1

My soon to be third grader is ecstatic with the one in the first link. The initial makes it really unique.

Amelia Bedelia

Fri, Aug 15 2014, 5:53 pm

Deep wrote:

http://www.shopjustice.com/girls-clothing/polka-dot-initial-backpack/7414416/650?pageSort=e30&productOrigin=category%20page&productGridPlacement=1-3
I
http://www.shopjustice.com/gir.....t=1-1

My soon to be third grader is ecstatic with the one in the first link. The initial makes it really unique.

I like them! What's the quality like? Do they guarantee their products like L.L.Bean and Lands' End?

debsey

Fri, Aug 15 2014, 6:28 pm

Style is so attached to context. You need to ask people who send to the same school as you. Personally, I keep my kids as innocent of the concept of "style" till they need to be aware. So my first grader can have Hello Kitty or Strawberry Shortcake till her heart's content........

amother

Fri, Aug 15 2014, 6:31 pm

Wow. I am the OP. Thanks for those who gave helpful responses.
The judgmental ones really bothered me. Why don't you judge favorably ?? It's for a girl with certain social issues... Maybe a stylish backpack while it won't solve her issues, will at least make her feel like she fits in some... Yes she gets therapy at school and we do other things as well... But seriously those posts did hurt and were not necessary.

debsey

Sat, Aug 16 2014, 10:31 pm

amother wrote:

You are right, OP. You have your reasons and no one should judge. However, I think the common theme is that you want the kid to fit in - and in first grade, a lot of that is having a cute Hello Kitty pink thing more than the logos and the styles. Unless you are sending to a very trendy school, in which case you need to ask mothers who send to that school. Style is too context specific for a forum like this.
I send to a "trendier" elementary school, but in first grade, it's all about the pink and the Hello Kitty. Kipling and brands and logo pressures start in fourth/fifth grade.
Case in point - this shabbos - my four year old heard me tell my son that a certain bright blue glass bowl was 'Pretty' and she said "no it is not! It doesn't have PINK." So I asked her - is my outfit pretty? She said - Yes. I said - But it is BLACK. She thinks for a minute and says "well, it's a PINKISH black!" If you want your daughter to fit in, try to see the world through the eyes of a first grader, not through the eyes of a first grader's mother!
debsey

Amelia Bedelia

Sun, Aug 17 2014, 12:03 am

Could be I'm wrong, but I think the popular backpacks are ones with prints, or the velour or corduroy ones. I don't think Strawberry Shortcake will go very well in a frum New York first grade classroom. Personally, my first grade daughter had a red and white checked Land's End backpack for first grade, and she still loves it (currently going into second grade), although she would like a messenger - style bookbag now. When I asked her, she told me only one classmate had a character backpack (Hello Kitty, in her case), and updated it to a more stylish one later on in the year.

Tablepoetry

Sun, Aug 17 2014, 12:38 am

I would guess it really depends on context. Which school in NY?

In my kids' schools, in Israel, most of the younger pupils have high quality character knapsacks (Strawberry Shortcake, Spongebob, Disney Princesses). Israeli brands like kal gav. Usually with attached wheels at that age, since many here walk to school.
The 'trendy' aspect is the theme. The character. My kids always just chose what they liked, but all the comparisons about bags centered on the character chosen. The kids have no idea what brand it is. But since the nice bags here are usually the more expensive, and the differences are obvious, then kids will notice that. IME 90% of the class buy the same two brands, and thats mainly whats on display in the stores.
The kids usually buy new ones after grade two or three because the theme is childish. I dont know how everyone manages, but thats the way most do it,at least IME in dati leumi schools in several average cities and neighbourhoods. When you think about it, it's not really extravagant - most women change their handbags once every couple of years too.
But it all depends on which school you send to. The torani type schools here like Noam don't always allow characters.

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