Back to School Resources

Back to School

With August 10 just around the corner, is your family ready for school?

You can support your children through activities and experiences that help develop their ability to think, problem-solve, and communicate effectively in and out of the classroom with:

  • a healthy lifestyle (adequate rest, proper brain-friendly nutrition, and emotional comfort)
  • a safe learning environment at home
  • opportunities for enjoyable and mentally stimulating learning activities such as reading, creative writing, model-building, puzzles, gaming (problem-solving) and exposure to the arts and culture.

Here are some great community and library resources to make sure you and your children are ready for school. 

Alachua County Public Schools Enrollment and Registration
Get information on everything needed to enroll your child in one of Alachua County's public schools. You can find everything you need, including the online registration form, all necessary health records and documentation needed for each age, an interactive zoning map, and much more. 

Back-to-School Sales Tax Holiday

You will have fourteen days without having to pay sales tax (7% in Alachua County) on school supplies from July 25 - Aug. 7. What is considered school supplies? 

  • Clothing and footwear less than $100 each
  • School uniforms less than $100 per item
  • Wallets and bags including handbags, backpacks, fanny packs, and diaper bags. Excludes briefcases, suitcases, and other garment bags
  • School supplies selling for $50 or less per item such as: pencils, erasers, crayons, notebooks, notebook filler paper, legal pads, binders, lunch boxes, construction paper, markers, folders, poster board, composition books, poster paper, scissors, cellophane tape, glue or paste, rulers, computer disks, staplers and staples used to secure paper products, protractors, compasses, and calculators
  • Learning aids and jigsaw puzzles that cost $30 or less per item including: flashcards or other learning cards, matching or other memory games, puzzle books and search-and find books, interactive or electronic books and toys intended to teach reading or math skills, and stacking or nesting blocks or sets.
  • Computers: the first $1,500 of the sales price of personal computers or personal computer-related accessories purchased for noncommercial home or personal use

You can also view the Florida Department of Revenue's full list of acceptable items on their 2022 Back to School Sale Tax Holiday publication. 

Community Events & Resources

For more events check out Fun4GatorKids' Back to School page.

Library Resources
  • SSYRA (Sunshine State Young Readers Awards) books
    Often assigned by teachers as part of their summer reading lists, the library buys extra copies of all these books and eBooks. Many of these books are always available for checkout via Libby or OverDrive. Check out more information about the SSYRA books on the 2022-23 SSYRA and Florida Teens Read Nominees blog.
  • Student Library Cards
    In partnership with Alachua County Public Schools, student library cards are offered to all registered students of Alachua County Public Schools and P.K. Yonge. Each year students receive a new student library card number and account. Cards given out for the 2021-2022 school year will remain active until October 31, 2022. The 2022-2023 school year cards should be available through your school long before the old ones expire. To learn more about the Student Library Cards check out the Student Library Cards page. 
  • Databases
    Free library databases are a great resource for back to school because of the wide variety of information and services they provide.

 

By SamanthaN on August 27, 2024