NEW YORK—Believe it or not, August is almost here, which means the back to school season really is upon us. Stores around the country are already stocking up their back to school sections, and both parents and kids are starting to think about the academic year ahead. Even though there’s still plenty of summer left, it’s never too early to start encouraging parents to begin planning their children’s back to school eye exams—in fact, it might even be beneficial to get ahead of the game now, before parents get overwhelmed with back to school necessities and when eye exams could fall through the cracks.

This week, we’re taking a look at how some independent ECPs are putting out their back to school messaging, and some things you can do, too.

At Eyes of Cresta Bella in San Antonio, August appointments are beginning to fill up. Angela Garza Offoegbu, OD, filmed a fun video to remind parents to book back to school appointments as soon as possible, and to show some new styles. Image via eyesofcrestabella on Instagram.

The team at Doublevision Eye Care in Midland, Georgia is gearing up for back to school by hosting a backpack drive. For every five book bags donated, a child in need will receive a free eye exam. Image via doublevision_eyecare on Instagram.

Also in San Antonio, the In Focus Eyecare team showed off part of their back to school display and new arrivals. Image via in_focus_eyecare on Instagram.

Crown Point, Indiana-based practice Elite Vision Consultants posted a cute graphic to remind parents that back to school is almost here. Image via elite.vision.consultants on Instagram.

The team at Ziggy’s Optometry in Newport Beach, California, shared a snippet of what a back to school eye exam can look like. Image via ziggys.opto on Instagram.

At Texas State Optical Stone Oak, in Stone Oak, Texas, the team shared some of the important pillars of a back to school eye exam, including having a backup pair of glasses handy, and mentioned their same day glasses program for parents and students running out of time. Image via tsostoneoak on Instagram.