Rose's school backpack was too heavy. It looked humongous sitting on the floor of the living room and even more so on her back. She could barely zip up the assembled paraphernalia for six classes--notebooks, folders, pens, pencils, organizers, cello stop, and calculator. I just couldn't believe she needed every single thing in there, and we were worried about her back. So, tonight Rose and I went through her back pack and pulled:

a second pencil holder
all the months of the organizer calendar that had passed
cut up graph paper
half the highlighters
half the pens
loose leaf paper
ninety percent of a composition notebook of which she had used five pages; we left her another twenty
notebook dividers for sections she didn't need
old lollipops
returned homework
returned tests
sheet music for last season's concert
used tissues

Her backpack had started at 13.5 pounds.
We took out 4.25, almost a 1/3 of the weight.
9.25 plus the lunchbox is not light, but it is lighter.

We felt very satisfied.