Product Spotlight: Lanyards!

It’s no secret that the list of school supplies students need grows each year. Pencils, pens, notebooks, calculators, textbooks and more are necessary elements of a successful school year.

In the rush to get ready for the new semester, one small item doesn’t get much attention. Yet for all the help it gives students, faculty, administrators and parents, it should.

We’re talking about lanyards, of course. Yes, the humble pieces of cloth that hang from necks or stick out of pockets for the whole school day. They’re versatile enough to serve multiple functions in and out of the classroom. Let’s take a look at their fascinating history, and see what they can do today.

What Is a Lanyard?

A lanyard is a simple thing, just a length of cord, rope, webbing or strap that can be used to carry, attach or hold various (typically small) items. The earliest reference was from the 1400s in France. A “laniere” was defined as a “thong, lash or strap of leather.”

Lanyards originally were used as a way to keep necessary weapons close at hand. Warriors used them to tie their swords or other weapons to their wrist as a way to reach the weapons fast when they needed to.

Military Lanyards Evolve

Soldiers and sailors commonly used lanyards to hold small items such as a bosun’s pipe or small knife. Others used it to carry a whistle around the neck for signaling purposes.

By the 1800s, lanyards became a common way to carry essential equipment such as compasses.

Military lanyards evolved, particularly in the early 20th century, to become decorative items as well. Lanyards that symbolized rank and unit affiliation become part of officers’ dress uniforms. These often featured braided cords with intricate knots and tassels.

Craft Lanyards

Around the same time, children discovered lanyards too. Groups such as Scout troops (both Boy and Girl Scouts) taught young members how to make craft lanyards. In addition to the fun of creating the lanyards, the creators had something useful for – as soldiers already knew – carrying small items such as whistles, compasses and pen knives.

Modern Lanyards

With the advent of modern materials such as nylon and polyester, lanyards began to take on new roles in schools and workplaces. The new materials proved durable, comfortable to wear around the neck and easy to imprint with custom logos or messages. They became a handy way to carry small tools, I.D. cards and keys.

While lanyards were useful in some workplaces, they could prove hazardous in others. Wearers operating machinery could be at risk of having a dangling lanyard getting caught and pulling them into machines. Students might be tempted to pull each others’ lanyards, creating a choking hazard.

The Safety Breakaway – A Solution

Fortunately, there’s a simple solution to the problem. It’s easy to incorporate plastic safety breakaways into lanyards. These simple two-piece devices are designed to snap apart when the lanyard is pulled, which causes it to release from around the wearer’s neck. That greatly reduces the risk of injury.

Safety breakaways enable custom lanyards to be used in many more environments, including manufacturing, hospitals, nursing homes, correctional facilities and schools.

The Value of Lanyards For Security

In the past few decades, security concerns have become more important than ever for schools and workplaces. Lanyards can be a vital tool in maintaining security levels in many areas.

Security in schools has become a bigger issue than ever before over the past two decades. As part of overall tightening of security protocols on campuses, many schools now require students, faculty, staff and visitors to carry I.D. cards while on the premises.

But cards and badges alone are easy to lose, easy to forget at home. Lanyards worn around the neck provide a convenient way for students and faculty to keep their I.D. cards visible, keep their hands free, and make losing the cards less likely.

Lanyards help tighten security at schools in a visible way. It’s easy to see if a visitor isn’t wearing a lanyard and I.D., making it easier for school personnel to see that they’re someone who normally isn’t in the building. Stopping an unauthorized visitor before they get far into the building can make a critical difference in an emergency.

In a business environment, lanyards can serve the same purpose, even in an enhanced capacity. Lanyards are an excellent way to carry electronic access cards, and keep them conveniently at hand for opening locked doors as needed.

Other Purposes Lanyards Serve

Beyond their basic functions, lanyards have other uses as well. School lanyards can help boost student participation and school spirit, especially at the start of the year. Custom designs featuring the school mascot or logo give students a touch of flair and a sense of belonging and unity.

Your school also can use special lanyards for specific occasions, lesson plans or events. Teachers can provide special red lanyards for Red Ribbon Week, for example. They can be a fun surprise, and help remind students of the importance of making good decisions and remaining drug- and alcohol-free.

How about ordering special lanyards for homecoming week? Or if your school’s team makes the regional basketball, football or soccer tournament? They’re an effective way to increase school pride, and can even be sold to raise funds for the teams.

Zombies, Vampires and Aardvarks, Oh My!

Not every student finds wearing lanyards agreeable. Some may find them uncomfortable. Others rebel against them as what they perceive to be a form of enforced conformity.

And of course, for some, lanyards are just plain uncool. A few years ago, one high school student newspaper proclaimed that only “zombies wear lanyards.”

That led to a tongue-in-cheek review of whether zombies actually do wear lanyards. Using somewhat less than rigorous scientific methods, the author concluded that they might.

Further such “research” by the same writer later reported that mummies, vampires and aardvarks probably don’t wear lanyards at all. But it could still lead to a fun classroom discussion.

Regardless of whether aardvarks, vampires or zombies wear them, lanyards can be a fun and useful addition to your school at any grade level.