Time for Back to School Shopping - Let's #BagItForward

July is flying by and you might have noticed School Supplies are now lining the shelves!

My local Walmart is still putting up displays for eager students, teachers and parents, but it isn't too early to tell you about a great way to give back this time of year and a fabulous app to use while getting your little ones school ready.

Elmer's is again putting on the #BagItForward Program. I wasn't part of it last year, but my oldest is now Preschool age. I have blogged about the great Champions for Kids SIMPLE Service Projects before and this another great one to get involved with.

I remember how excited I was to go school supply shopping as a child, but not all children's families can afford to buy their students supplies. Elmer's Bag It Forward asks parents who can to buy 2 when they are out shopping this year and donate the extra to children in need.

I grabbed my little shoppers and we headed out in search of the quality school supplies they needed as well as items to donate. This project couldn't have been easier!

Our Walmart was full of requested school supplies at amazingly low prices! Towards the back of our store we found these bargain bins set up with most of the items being under $1!

You really can't beat glue sticks for 10 cents each.

My children adore any craft project that involves using glue, and at 50 cents each I grabbed some extra to stock up at home.

Elmer's also has a fun (and FREE) new app available called 1st Day app. Look for the QR code to download the app and more information at the display where you find your student's school supply lists. Our store had just finished setting up the display and they weren't stocked yet, but the QR code was there.

This is a really fun app because not only can you use it to arrange and share pictures of your child's 1st day of school, but for every photo uploaded Elmer's will donate one product to the Kids in Need Foundation.

It doesn't take long to download and you can begin snapping pics right through the app right away. You can also upload other images already on your phone to create albums to share with friends and family.

Available for both the iPhone and Android, it is a great way to save the moment and give back at the same time!

So we collected a variety of items needed for the upcoming school year for our "Bag it Forward Buddy". We also found a nice collapsible basket to put the items in. I thought his Mom might enjoy it. My son was so excited about the gift.

And if you are keeping track, we included Elmer's School Glue, Elmer's Glue Sticks, Elmer's Folding Foam Board (for our card) and Elmer's 3D Glitter Colors among the other supplies. You can catch our entire shopping trip in my Google+ album.

Then we went to work on a card to accompany our gift. I love that the #BagItForward Program encourages people to keep bagging it forward. I already spoke with our recipients Mom and what they don't need she will be passing on to her Mother-in-Law, who is a teacher always collecting supplies for her classes.

Our card said, You are our Hero for going back to super School! We decorated it with superhero stickers, crayon and put a "You've Been Bagged" page on the front.

Unfortunately our friends were away for the weekend, but it was a great chance to drop off our basket and leave them with a big surprise.

It is so easy to make some else's day, but this project also helped us. This was a real blessing for my son who has been having fears about going to school. By sharing supplies with an older student, a friend, he was able to replace those fears with anticipation and excitement.

What good could you spread if you also Bagged it Forward?

Stay in the loop andqconneb: with Elmer’s on Twitter  or on their Facebook page.

Get more #BagItForward ideas and inspiration on the Bag It Forward Pinterest Board.

*Disclaimer - I am a member of the Collective Bias™ Social Fabric® Community.  This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias™ and Elmer’s #BagItForward #CBias All opinions are my own.