Mommy Poppins NYC Back to School Guide

For me, back to school time is all about the promise and hope of fresh beginnings. Will this be the year I finally get the kids up early enough to eat a real breakfast before school? Can we make the piano lessons stick this time around? Most likely...no, but I still love the exercise of planning and dreaming about it all and know we make a little progress along the way.

This Back to School Guide is like a giant brain dump of every Fall fetish we've indulged. You'll find the results of rabid searches for cool back to school shopping, school resources, plus all the info we've gathered on making healthier snacks, lunches and dinners.

We can't make you more organized, but we hope our Back to School Guide will make your crazy life a little easier and a lot more fun.

Back to School Shopping

Back to School Fashion Finds for NYC Kids
We had the experts at some of our favorite New York clothing stores for kids, tell us what the hottest items are this Fall for NYC kids. Here's what they said:

Cool Messenger Bags for Boys and Girls
Get with the program, Oldie Square Pants, backpacks are for babies. Cool kids today carry messenger bags. We scoured the net for the coolest little messenger bags for our mini trendsetters and have gathered them here for you (after clearing them through our own pint-sized coolness testing dept., of course.)

Best Kids and Baby Clothes Shopping Sites
These sites will keep your kids looking cool and you don't even have to schlep to Williamsburg to buy anything.

Best Name Labels for Camp and School
Nothing's going to make this job fun, but we've rounded up the whole range of different ways you can label your kid's clothing from the beautiful embroidered labels to fun, colorful ones, to ones you can make at home.

Books to Help Get Ready for the First Day of School
These books can help ease the anxiety of your little pint-sized student before his first day of schol...and your anxiety too.

Back to School Organizing Tips

Part of my back to school routine every year is trying to get a fresh start on the whole meal thing, whether it's lunches, healthy snacks or easy dinners, I like to get organized and, at least, start the year off with lots of healthy meal ideas.

Snacks

Granola Bar Recipe
Many granola bars aren't much better than candy bars; loaded with sugar, fat, trans fats and high fructose corn syrup. Here's a super easy, recipe to make your own healthier version.

Sensory Savvy Snacks
What kids eat is very important and having the right snack can actually improve a child's ability to learn. Our school occupational therapy consultant, Casey Halper, put together a list of sensory smart snacks.

Snack Ideas from Our Readers
Sometimes it just seems too easy to give in to giving treats for after school snack; it's what your kids want and it's convenient. But we got many great suggestions from your comments that are sure inspire healthier and fun after school snacking.

Lunches and Lunch Boxes

Laptop Lunches
This great little lunch box system makes it easy to make better, healthier school lunches your kids will love.

Lunch Box Ideas
Resources, services, tips and ideas to help NYC parents make making lunches for school easier.

Dinners and Dinner Planning

101 Easy 10 Minute Recipes For Family Meals
Inspired by a great New York Times article, we put together our list of super easy meals that kids and adults will like. Check it out. Then add your own to our growing list.

Menu Planners
It may sound dorky, but menu planning services can take be a lifesaver and help you keep those take-out menus in the drawer.

How to Get Your Kids to Eat More Vegetables
These five handy food hacks will help you get more vegetable matter into those little mouths.

School Information

Useful Links for NYC School Admissions
Find out about public and private schools, what zone you live in and everything else with these helpful online resources.

Looking for preschools? Check out our Preschool Guide with preschool reviews, Savvy Source Listings and our overview of the Preschool Admissions Process.

Clara Hemphill on NYC Public Midldle Schools
I recently had the opportunity to talk to Clara Hemphill and ask her some questions. Read on to hear her tips for the one thing you should check out on a school tour, the most important way to be involved in your child's education, and some great schools that don't require top test scores to get in.

Middle School Muddle Blog
Education writer, Liz Willen, is tracking her own experience as she searches, tours and applies for middle school with her son.