Current youngster ('23) confirming that at least as of last year -- absolutely ***no*** watches or flashlights permitted during plebe summer up and until Reform.
If you do want to bring a watch with you, it can of course be kept your backpack that gets stored.
But in my case (as well as overwhelmingly with most of my friends and company mates,) their parents simply brought their watches with them to PPW (mine gave me mine then, but I still couldn't use it until after Reform (of the Brigade) and the Academic Year started. With PPW up in the air at this point, the other option, which was also popular last year, was for parents to mail/ship the watch to their Plebe right as the Academic Year began.
For parents who don't know, having a watch at the Academy when the Academic Year begins is important for students -- for a multitude of reasons. Like most kids my age (just turned 19,) I never wore a watch day-to-day before this past year. Up until the Academy, I only wore a watch for running and timing intervals, distance and tracking my heart rate when working out. For the rest of the day, I simply used my cell phone as a watch. At the Academy, because of rules around cell phone use -- when and where you can use/not use them - having a watch on can make a potentially big difference. I bring this up because I distinctly remember telling my parents that I didn't want or need a watch before I left for I-Day; that I wasn't interested in getting a new watch for a graduation present etc. Thankfully, my parents didn't listen to me and brought my watch with them for PPW
This summer is likely to be different (in terms of time disorientation, clocks covered in Bancroft) because laptops are likely scheduled to be being issued on/near I-Day (versus just a few days before Reform) so that they can be used by the Plebes for the ROM-centric, in-room briefings and book work they'll be doing for the first two weeks.
Since this year's 2024 Plebes will have immediate access to the internet and laptops, the whole "disorienting" time thing won't be the same which is strange to even think about compared to last year's Plebe Summer.
Please let your incoming plebes know that the class ahead of them (2023) is empathetic to their situation -- in so many ways, their experience will be just different and unique from all those that have come before. That said, they will get through it, thrive and the resiliency that they develop and refine because of it, will help make them even better leaders in the years to come! Finally, tell them that the youngsters genuinely can't wait to meet them at Hello Night!