Help Kids Kick Off 2021 School Year With Back to School Buys

From colored pencils to bright nail polish, take a look at the best back to school products for children — details

The start of something new! With children going back to hit the books soon, help them kick off the 2021 school year with a variety of fun — and practical — products.

Fill a backpack with the best of the best, from Welly’s Handy Bandy Veggies bandages to Crayola’s Colors of the World Skin Tone Colored Pencils.

Whether the little ones are attending school virtually or in person amid the coronavirus pandemic, they can start in style with Piggy Paint nail polish, Bunnies by the Bay masks and InchBug clothing labels.

Many celebrity parents have been forced to get creative with their back-to-school buys since quarantine in 2020, sharing their experiences via social media.

“I went online and I got workbooks, so we’ve been doing school for my practice and to give them some sort of structure to their day,” Hilaria Baldwin exclusively told Us Weekly in March 2020 of teaching her and Alec Baldwin’s brood. “I mix it up between pencil and paper work, then also get apps that are educational. What I’m learning is that the more I vary it, the better it works for them.”

As for Alanis Morissette, the singer lets her daughter’s interests lead the way.

“If there’s some agenda like, ‘Let’s play with these magnet tiles,’ and my daughter is like, ‘F–k those tiles. I want to put glitter on that thing and cut the tree,’ boom — we do that,” the Grammy winner explained to Health magazine in April 2020. “I basically get inside their eyeballs. I’m constantly watching their eyes and what they’re pulled toward, and then we do the deep dive.”

Whether you’re embracing workbooks like Hilaria, 37, or crafting like Morissette, 47, spoil the little ones in your life with fun finds. With so many tricky transitions surrounding their school years, kids deserve all the goodies they can get.

Don’t forget to pamper the parents in their lives as well. Rachel Bilson spoke candidly about how “thin” her patience levels were in an April 2021 “Betches Moms” podcast episode.

“She’s on the computer all day,” the actress, 39, said of daughter Briar, 6. “It was a really hard transition, and I’ve been a kindergarten teacher this whole school year. You just have such a greater appreciation for teachers and what they do because it is not easy, especially at this age.”

From sweet snacks to page-turning books, check out Us’ roundup to help families ease into the upcoming milestone.