Kindergarten isn't what it used to be. No longer is kindergarten a place for learning the social skills needed for success at school and sprinkled with a few letters, numbers, shapes and sizes. Today, kindergartners are expected to head to first grade as beginning readers with basic skills in place to ensure their success in core content areas. To be successful with such rigorous standards, children must come to school ready to learn. In an effort to educate families who remember the way kindergarten used to be to best prepare their children for school, the authors devised a unique way of partnering with families before the beginning of the kindergarten school year. Teachers had the idea of creating backpacks full of educational materials for families to use at home with their children during the summer prior to the start of kindergarten. In addition to providing families with materials, teachers wanted to have workshops with families to discuss the specific expectations of kindergarten and demonstrate how to use the materials in the same manner the teachers would once school opened. The results were impressive. For schools looking to effectively engage parents as partners in their children's education, the authors offer eight tips: (1) decide on specific materials you want to include in your backpacks; (2) secure funding; (3) market your program; (4) remind parents; (5) provide food and babysitting; (6) make the training user-friendly; (7) follow up; and (8) prepare to be impressed.