All kids, including those who are challenged with learning disabilities need to feel good about themselves, and this includes how they are dressed.

Back to school time is an opportunity to update your kid's wardrobe for school. They may be going into a new class and most kids would like to look their best in clothes that are clean, free of tears, and fit properly.

Consider that kids do have some really active play at school in physical education activities and playground time, especially. For both boys and girls shorts or pants work best depending on the climate: pants allow freedom of movement.

For girls, wearing tights under a skirt, dress or tunic offers the same freedom of movement, preserving personal modesty while tumbling or hanging upside down from the jungle gym.

The sturdiest jeans I found were those featuring double knees. This was accomplished with a large iron on patch "welded" inside the front of the pants at the knees. It really did prolong the life of the pants.

To replicate this, turn a pair of jeans inside out and iron on, then outline sew the patches made for knee repairs in jeans. That's what I did. Then you save the life of the pants without much extra cost.

The easiest pants for all kids to get on and off with the least hassle are those with at least part of the waistband made in elastic, for example, the kinds that have an elastic waistband around the back half of the waist.

Okay, now that we've talked about pull on pants or tights let's discuss shirts, sweaters, sweatshirts, coats.

Pull-on tee shirts are fine for most students, because it is unlikely they would be taking them off during the day. So, for those kids needing help getting dressed for the day there will be an adult or older helper there to assist.

But it might be best to consider short sleeve or long sleeve shirts with Velcro™ or snap closures. Buttons and zippers are much more difficult to close. Many coats now have Velcro™ closures, also. (Even my husband's winter coat has these closures over the inner zipper.)

And don't forget caps that have the sticky closures under the chin, and moving down to the other end of the body to finish dressing the kids for school, include sturdy athletic-type shoes with yes, the sticky closures!

Important note: If your child has a hooded sweatshirt, jacket or sweatpants with a drawstring pull it out - for safety reasons they're illegal now in the USA.

Article by Susan Kramer

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