I feel like I'm jumping in late, but I'm subbing! I have a DD going into 1st grade and teach 7th & 8th English.
I've already hit
Walmart for 1 subject notebooks. I am currently riding around with 200 notebooks in my trunk until I can get to the school, retreive my key, and unload them. (If only it weren't 30 miles away....) I'll probably buy some more. Every year, I give each student a notebook, two wooden pencils, a cap eraser and a pen on the first day of school (and again on the first day after Christmas break, since we're on block and I'm starting with a whole new lot of kids.) I do this simply because they will tell me "Momma hasn't been to the store to get me supplies yet" for the first TWO WEEKS of school. I tell them right off that I'm super selfish and want my work done -- no excuses!
BTW, I buy pens from forteachersonly.com, which is not actually for teachers only. I get 100 "misprinted" clicky pens for, like, $5.99. While I don't always get the best pens, I have gotten some really nice ones that you would normally get $3+ per pen in the store, and a variety of others...the other teachers in my building always come raid my pen stash when they need one because they l-o-v-e the last set I got. They were sold as "misprints" but had nothing printed on them...and were in school colors! How cool! You do have to buy at least $25 worth of stuff from them, but I also buy a box of pencils that say "Welcome To Our School" for the incoming 7th graders, cap erasers (some nifty stars for a reasonable price or get a "barrel" of like 520 of the regular wedge caps at 2 cents per eraser), and "loaner" (aka golf misprint) pencils for $3.99 for a gross. (One set even had some that were printed Walt Disney World!!!)
I will admit that, after the initial gifting, I sell what's left for no more than a quarter. (Pens & notebooks for a quarter, wooden pencils for a dime, erasers for a nickel.) The kids have no issue with this and take better care of stuff they spent their own money on as opposed to someone giving it to them. (But, you know, what works for me may not work for others. I love a friend's idea of having her Juniors leave something -- like a shoe -- as collateral to make sure she gets her stuff back.)
I hit TRU yesterday for a LPS backpack and lunch tote. Sounded like a great deal. Wasn't quite convinced on the thermos or treat keeper (or whatever you'd like to call the smaller one), but I want to look around a little more before I commit to those. Anyone know if they are likely to go on sale again if I don't find something else? (Although, I'm really asking myself...WHY? The lunch box will carry DD's snack. She likes the cafeteria food. I'm not convinced she'll want me to make a real lunch for her.)
My DD had to have disposable cameras for K last year. I think they should just ask each parent to donate the $10 they would use to buy two or three (or however many cameras they'd asked for per student) and invest in a decent digital camera. $10 per student with 12 students = $120. With their tax-exempt number, they could get a fairly decent camera PER CLASSROOM (and some classrooms had 15). They'd still need money to develop pictures, but I'd feel a lot better about them investing towards a digital camera than continuing to throw $$ towards disposables. I'm not sure yet what she'll need for 1st grade. Her school's website is seriously lacking.
Of course, when the 6th graders came in to visit the school, I saddled them with a supply list for my class and summer assignments. (Which were: [1] read something...pretty much anything will do, [2] spend a little time playing on the computer and getting familiar with where the keys are, and [3] keep a journal and *try* to write SOMETHING every day...even if it's one word or a sentence.) I hope they'll at least hand the supply list to their parents. I'm not betting on anything, though. I heard they weren't thrilled I asked them to "work" over the summer.
I wish my DD's school would also do this. I think it would help with retention.
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