Back-to-School Gear List Roundup

Truth be told, 'tweens don't need a ton of tech gear for school. After buying all the school supplies and clothes to get the school year off to a good start, there have to be compelling reasons to add tech into the back-to-school mix.

But even young kids, who are learning keyboarding and doing work on computers at younger and younger ages, do need a good computer. In our back-to-school gear lists, I recommend the HP Pavilion Slimline s3100y as a well-priced, capable PC that that will handle a family's homework needs and more. For older kids who are eager to bring out their creativity while pouring through the standard homework assignments, consider an Apple iMac. They are pricier, yes, but reliable and full of easy-to-use tools for creative students.

For more tech ideas, check out my full gear lists for homework help and for grade-school kids. Take a look at kajeet phones if you're thinking of giving a cell phone to your 'tween this school year; it's a pay-as-you-go service with online tools to help kids keep track of and take responsibility for how they spend their cell phone dollars.

I also made gave some additional back-to-school tech picks for the readers of Family Circle, which you can find on the magazine's web site, Parents.com. Keep clicking and you'll see picks for teens from Gina Hughes and for college kids from Becky Worley, too. My 10-year-old insists the Clocky alarm clock that rolls around the room once it sounds is just the ticket to get her up and dressed for fifth grade. I'm pretty desperate after a summer of late nights and later mornings sleeping in, so I may just go for it.

 LINK: Gearing Up for School [Family Circle]

Related: Gear for Grade Schoolers
Tech Homework Helpers