(Creating) Creative Confidence

The first thing I have done to prepare my child for independence and school (day care) is to love him.

This sounds beyond basic, but what I mean is that showing love in the forms of hugging, cuddling, spending quality time reading and playing, and responding to my son when he needs me has turned him into a confident, caring child.

I have no worries that he will excel when I take him to day care this fall, or to school in future years. Already, I have found that I can leave him with babysitters and the play room at the gym with no incident. He knows he will be fine and have a good time, and he knows I will be back.

The second thing I will do is talk to him. Children don't get enough credit for understanding and intelligence; it's amazing what a little talk will do to boost even a preverbal child's confidence. Even if they don't understand everything, they will pick up on your calm confidence.

The third thing is to make the transition from the familiar to the unfamiliar, well, more familiar.

You can't change every aspect of school, teachers, the bus or other kids to fit your child's needs, but sometimes it's the little things that can help start out the year right or help your little one take more confident steps toward independence.

Look for back to school items that not only fit the bill for the teacher's list but also your child's tastes/needs. If she is nervous about losing her lunch money, get her something that will keep it safe and put a smile on her face, like our giraffe penny pal ($4). Or if he doesn't know who he will sit by at lunch, give him a built-in lunch buddy with our insulated monkey snack sack ($14.50), which comes with note cards for mom or dad to write a midday pick-me-up.

You also may want to consider getting a list of students in his class and find one or two kids to have a playdate with before school starts. This way, your child will start the year off with at least one familiar face in the crowd.

Especially for the younger crowd, a little something to cuddle may be in order. Even if it has to be left in a cubby or backpack during the day, your child will know that it's always there. Growlgearstore.com's cozys ($7.50) are perfect--they're just cuddly enough and small enough to ball into the palm of your hand, or a pocket.

Our back-to-school items will engage even the most reluctant lunchbox toter, (Click here to see all our lunchboxes) and hopefully, help make those first few days in unfamiliar territory a little more comfortable.