End of summer vacation and school reopening are often difficult concepts to accept by children. But for the parents it is real time stress.
The comforts of summer vacation are nearly over for both parents and children in the U.S. As the school reopening days are approaching, a significant number of parents are stressed up and struggling to meet the basic requirements needed for their children to kick start the new academic year, a new study says.
"Back-to-school time and the changes it brings can wreak havoc on the entire family," said Jeanette Pavini, Household Savings Expert for Coupons.com. in a news release. "From shopping for new clothes to long lists of school supplies and groceries for lunches, it's no wonder many parents find this time of year to be a strain on their schedule and their wallet."
More than 2,200 U.S. adults participated in the online survey "2012 Back-to-School shopping" conducted by Coupons.com in July.
Majority of the moms participated in the survey were concerned about preparing school lunches (50 percent)and the back-to-school shopping for pencils, backpacks and binders (55 percent).
Parents, especially young (aged between 18 and 34) were found depending up on the readymade food items and snacks as lunch options for their children than preparing food at home.
More than 73 percent depended upon sales and coupons for groceries. The study also found more men (55 percent) packing lunch for kids compared to women (43 percent).
The following are some recommendations provided by the website to help parents:
- Avoid buying costly ice packs, but freeze juice box or water bottle
- Prepare a trail mix using pantry leftovers like cereal, raisins, pretzels, fruit snacks.
- Avoid buying an item not included in the school supply list provided by the school
- Keep an eye on all the back-to-school ads that appear in mails and visit the shops providing the lowest prices
