Heavy school bags carried by children (a massive future problem!)

Its a tale as old as time....I'm 59 and carried a heavy bag with books, pe kit, swim kit, and I carried it all on my back whilst cycling to school...my 3 kids did too....even my 3 GD at primary school now, carry heavy water bottles, bag with reading books, swim kit and a lunch bag .....no kid I know is going to pull along a bag......totalky uncool.....when the girls hit high school, ice found they often opt for shoulder bags , so even worse strain on their backs....but they are young they are strong.....don't know anyone who has had a long term back issue from carrying a school bag as a child

Have those advocating pull along packs ever watched a group of teenage boys? As a weapon for flooring your friends nothing could be more effective!

I understand your concerns and feel you are a lovely caring nanny. Having read the other comments I’m
Sure they’ll be ok. You could always ask if they’d like to try a different bag that can be pulled along? I can guess their answer though. Us grandparents worry about things that our own children think is daft but I think it’s because we are older and have that life experience and we try to protect our loved ones from things that we know could affect their future life. There’s nothing wrong with loving and caring ♥️

My DGC , at secondary school, don’t even have lockers so they are carrying the weight around all day.

Schools should provide lockers.

Some days we had a satchel, PE kit case and a cookery basket to manoeuvre on the same day, getting on and off buses.

I suppose the weight was more evenly distributed though.

JTH65

I understand your concerns and feel you are a lovely caring nanny. Having read the other comments I’m
Sure they’ll be ok. You could always ask if they’d like to try a different bag that can be pulled along? I can guess their answer though. Us grandparents worry about things that our own children think is daft but I think it’s because we are older and have that life experience and we try to protect our loved ones from things that we know could affect their future life. There’s nothing wrong with loving and caring ♥️

I agree with this comment. I have worried about heavy school bags whereas it seems most people think it's okay. We might think there should be a weight limit above which it is unacceptable, but how would you weigh the bag before school?

You're in a difficult situation as grandparent because any attempt to discuss school policy may need to go through the parents. They may need to engage with other concerned parents about this. Maybe a WhatsApp group?

You say the school has its own school bag, so I hope this is a good design suitable for heavy weights. If the weight is too much on certain days then maybe carry another bag to spread the weight. Musial instruments and sport equipment usually have to be carried separately anyway. I'm a bit surprised they have to carry a laptop as well because these are sometimes quite heavy, and rather a valuable item for children to be walking around with.

The most important thing I would be campaigning for are lockers at school. There is no excuse for not having these, room must be found. They are so important. I think it's crazy making children carry all this stuff around.

NotSpaghetti

Would you be seen dead with a roll-along sort as a teen?

If it was requested by enough schools it would fast become the new norm.
Kids are sheep where fashions are concerned.

Heavy school bags, insufficient lockers for the number of pupils, insufficient time to dash between classrooms at lesson change, all were problems when my DC were at school and continue today with the DGC.

When I was at school aeons ago, the teacher came to our classroom, apart from for certain lessons eg Science which were held in the laboratory. Books etc remained in our own desks apart from those we carried ome for homework.

Our GP called it "Paperboy's Back".
Children can have growth spurts which can mean the bones have not fully developed from cartilage, cartilage can be bent resulting in pain and sometimes permanent damage to hips, shins and backs.

don't know anyone who has had a long term back issue from carrying a school bag as a child

Well, I do, LOUISA1523

Mine wouldn't have been seen with a pull-along trolley.

No wonder one of my DD constantly 'firgot' to take her cookery ingredients, but it was me who got into trouble with the Home Economics teacher.

Callistemon213

^don't know anyone who has had a long term back issue from carrying a school bag as a child^

Well, I do, LOUISA1523

Me too Callistemon! Me!
In DGD’s school lockers have to be paid for. Full disclosure - we’re in Scotland and education is devolved.

How would anyone know their back problem was caused by carrying heavy school bags? It could be any number of reasons or just genetic.

They lug laptops around in their school bags as well. I couldn’t even lift the bags my grandchildren tote around. My Mum used to say you would get a dropped womb if you carried heavy loads like that. She did get one herself,too - never learnt to drive so she used to lug it on and off buses.

LOUISA1523
Actually you do know now, and you can add me to your list.
I was referred for treatment for scoliosis as a teen, the cause given as carrying a heavy school bag on one shoulder.
Later, as a teacher, a physiotherapist recommended that I get a pull along like those mentioned earlier to help with my shoulder/back problems or at least balance the bags on both sides.
Strangely enough I found an excellent one in the school section in France. Perhaps they recognise the problems caused by heavy bags.

Do schoolchildren wear the backpacks with both straps over their shoulders; this considerably lightens the strain by distributing the load? I discovered this after years of carrying heavy loads hanging from one shoulder.
Have you ever been in a school at lesson change-over time, and can you imagine hundreds of children dragging tartan trollies behind them like grannies in the supermarket?
Your grandson needs to grow up; nearly crippled my foot.

I'm more concerned about their necks , they walk along heads bent over mobile phones. I 've lost count over the amount of young people I've nearly collided with , school bags are ridiculously heavy though. I remember carrying a picnic basket home , with my cauliflower cheese from school. It was nearly 2 miles

I can’t see that pulling a load on wheels can be better than carrying it in a backpack with both straps worn properly. The pull-along bag will need the puller to twist a bit and the load will be on one side or the other, while on the backpack the load will be balanced. I have used a backpack for shopping, including heavy items, since I had an episode of sciatica in 2001 and, touch wood, not had problems. I do always use both straps though.

I remember carrying a picnic basket home , with my cauliflower cheese from school. It was nearly 2 miles

Debbi 😂

I never saw what my children produced in Home Economics, they always ate it before they got home.

Yes, they've always got their heads bent over phones.

Can you imagine 500 or more children pulling along wheeled trolleys in school. Imagine the chaos at lesson change time. There would inevitably be accidents with children falling over other children’s trolleys. It would be a recipe for chaos and accidents.

I thought work/ text books were all going online so there would be no need for back breaking loads.

No wonder so many DC are driven to school.

One of my sons used to come home at lunchtime to dump his morning books.

Interesting about fashions and changes in attitudes.

I guess when prams were first invented, women who carried their bairns in shawls thought it very odd to see babies being pushed around in vehicles .

We used to keep our books in our desks in our classroom. That wouldn't work these days, but lockable lockers like the Americans have should be possible. Kids would have to learn to organise themselves so that they only carry what they really need that day, and sort out what they don't need leaving just their books for homework.

And if they're carrying laptops with them why do they need books at all? Can't they just download the necessary materials onto the laptops?

My DB was until his recent retirement, a teacher in a Gymnasium (a 6th form college) in Denmark .
He brought a group of his students to England and they visited a couple of schools including Manchester Grammar school.
The things that surprised the Danes most were
A) single sex school
B) uniforms
C) writing everything in exercise books and not laptops.

My grandson was very premature and in year 7 he’s still very small. He has constant back pain from carrying his school backpack. I can’t lift it. He leaves as much as possible in his locker and it’s still far too heavy for him.

My grandson has just completed the silver Duke of Edinburgh. His rucksack was the same weight as the marines carry, first day walking 19 km second day 20km and 3rd 18km. I don't know how he did it . The girls had to carry the same. Very proud of him though.