Can I gripe about School Supplies?

[Colleen27]

I know, right???!!! They have to apply for a fee waiver. It's the same federal/state form that is used to determine free/reduced lunch eligibility. So, if they get their fees waived, they also get free/reduced lunch, free pay-to-play, and do not have to pay for field trips or other mandatory activities/supplies like PE uniforms.

I personally think that this system is terrible, because then the teachers know that a family has applied for free lunch. Some people can afford to buy groceries (even if they have food stamps, they can still pay a lot less for groceries to make their kids lunch than buy school hot lunch), but not be able to budget that extra $300 for registration fees.

Yeah, I think that's a lousy system. So someone who makes too much for food assistance but who has massive medical bills or is living paycheck to paycheck because of student loan debt just has to scrape together a big up-front sum to avail themselves of a "free" public education for their kids? And those who have fallen on hard times have to "out" themselves as poor to the teachers and staff? Ick. This anti-tax, anti-government stuff really is going too far.

 

[dhardawa]

OP, I would be ticked as well.

And another poster writing about having to pay money to register their kid for public school, holy dang that truly is crazy.

We're in Indiana and have paid registration fees since I was a kid. I paid $125 for my kindergartener and $175 for my 8th grader and was told they would be sending another bill later for the 8th grader because that wasn't everything. On top of that, they need money in their cafeteria account and a huge list of supplies. It's very expensive have kids getting a "free public education".

 

[MacDalt]

We're in Indiana and have paid registration fees since I was a kid. I paid $125 for my kindergartener and $175 for my 8th grader and was told they would be sending another bill later for the 8th grader because that wasn't everything. On top of that, they need money in their cafeteria account and a huge list of supplies. It's very expensive have kids getting a "free public education".

I'm in Indiana too. Is the PP saying that some areas DON'T pay registration fees?! I've paid them all of my life! I didn't know other places didn't pay them. My sophomore just cost me $300 for registration alone. Doesn't count supplies or lunch or extras.

 

[angierae]

We're in Michigan and through 13 years of school my DD never had "registration" fees.

 

[Mrs.Malone]

OMG I never had even the slightest idea that some states have people paying public school registration fees! We're military, have lived in many different states and I never heard of this. Wow.

 

[NYCDiane]

"Registration Fees" for public school????? What the heck????? I've never heard of such a thing! Paying for lunches, yes. Paying a reg fee? No!

 

[aprilgail2]

I'm in Indiana too. Is the PP saying that some areas DON'T pay registration fees?! I've paid them all of my life! I didn't know other places didn't pay them. My sophomore just cost me $300 for registration alone. Doesn't count supplies or lunch or extras.

Registration fees for PUBLIC SCHOOLS?? Never heard of that done anyplace until on these boards! I don't see how that is even legal! That's as odd to me as reading about people that have to pay book rental for public school books!! Those things would NEVER happen around here!

 

[powellrj]

I have lived in Indiana my whole life and we have always had book/registration fees and I graduated in 77 and my DH in 73 so I know they have had them for over 40 years!

If you are eligible for free/reduced lunch you are also eligible for free/reduced book fees.

My DD is a senior and her fee were only $181 which was a huge bargain compared with what her brothers paid when they were in HS. I had no idea there was such a difference in prices of fees until we changed districts. Indiana has open enrollment which means you child can go to any school in the state that will accept them if you are willing to provide transportation. They wanted to bus my DD to a school 25 minutes away that was failing and so we sent her to a school that was 5 minutes away, but in a different county that while much smaller was a better school. I was shocked how much cheaper her fees have been compared to the other school system.

 

[Minnie_me]

I love how they now give parents specific BRANDS to buy - ummm....I can figure that out on my own!!!

I'm a teacher, and I'll tell you why we request name-brands. Thanks to Wal*Mart and the Dollar Stores, ridiculously cheap school supplies are now everywhere. Parents were sending in no-name, or RoseArt supplies, and they are usually terribly inferior.

I won't even use RoseArt supplies, if they're sent in. We do community supplies, so the kids don't know that I'm not using what they brought in, believe me. I donate them to the Playground/Lunchroom monitors. The RoseArt markers dry out within a day of opening them. RoseArt crayons are nothing more than wax. No-name glue sticks don't stick, and the children's art projects fall apart while hanging in the hallway. Fancy, cheap pencils ruin our pencil sharpeners, and they don't sharpen evenly.

What usually ended up happening, is that I would purchase the brand name items myself. And it was just another added expense on top of all of the other things I buy for my classroom.

We still have some parents send in off-brand items, but not as many now that we specify.

 

[KayW]

I'm a teacher, and I'll tell you why we request name-brands. Thanks to Wal*Mart and the Dollar Stores, ridiculously cheap school supplies are now everywhere. Parents were sending in no-name, or RoseArt supplies, and they are usually terribly inferior.

I won't even use RoseArt supplies, if they're sent in. We do community supplies, so the kids don't know that I'm not using what they brought in, believe me. I donate them to the Playground/Lunchroom monitors. The RoseArt markers dry out within a day of opening them. RoseArt crayons are nothing more than wax. No-name glue sticks don't stick, and the children's art projects fall apart while hanging in the hallway. Fancy, cheap pencils ruin our pencil sharpeners, and they don't sharpen evenly.

What usually ended up happening, is that I would purchase the brand name items myself. And it was just another added expense on top of all of the other things I buy for my classroom.

We still have some parents send in off-brand items, but not as many now that we specify.

I use/have Rose Art markers and crayons that are just fine. As a teacher I am grateful that my students even bring in the items half the time. I have just supplied my soon to be 3rd grader with more school supplies then my team asks our 6th graders to have. Why would a 3rd grader need 8 composition books.

While I know that Ticonderoga pencils are the best, I am supplying my child with 2 boxes of no name pencils that are just as good.

 

[dhardawa]

I'm in Indiana too. Is the PP saying that some areas DON'T pay registration fees?! I've paid them all of my life! I didn't know other places didn't pay them. My sophomore just cost me $300 for registration alone. Doesn't count supplies or lunch or extras.

I'm pretty sure most states don't pay registration, or as it used to be called until recently, "book rental", which is actually what it is.

 

[dhardawa]

Registration fees for PUBLIC SCHOOLS?? Never heard of that done anyplace until on these boards! I don't see how that is even legal! That's as odd to me as reading about people that have to pay book rental for public school books!! Those things would NEVER happen around here!

That's essentially what registration fees are in Indiana. I pay for workbooks, art supplies, and a portion of the cost of textbooks (they figure how many years they'll get out of the books and divide it out).

 

[4HppyCamprs]

I'm pretty sure most states don't pay registration, or as it used to be called until recently, "book rental", which is actually what it is.

I never even heard of public school tuition until I moved to the Midwest. It is required for k-12

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[4HppyCamprs]

We didn't pay "book rental" fees either on the west coast unless the book was too damaged for use. I now have stacks of textbooks from k-2 that are practically brand new and useless.

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[hereyago]

I live in Virginia and we don't pay registration fees for public school, at least not in my area.
We have small fees: in elementary and middle schools pay a few dollars for agenda planner book so kids can write down their homework. Middle and high school have fee for art, drivers ed class segment is free, but hands on is like 200.00

 

[4HppyCamprs]

Registration fees for PUBLIC SCHOOLS?? Never heard of that done anyplace until on these boards! I don't see how that is even legal! That's as odd to me as reading about people that have to pay book rental for public school books!! Those things would NEVER happen around here!

Several states have had lawsuits filed for this practice as we are supposed to have access to free education and in those states the fee has been removed. Indiana still has this practice in place.

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[acebatonfan]

Trust me, OP. Back-to-school shopping is going to be a lot more painful (and expensive) as your child gets older. Too bad none of my HS teachers have thought up of creating supply boxes for that class. I would have bought them in an instant if it meant that I wouldn't have to be spending time guessing on which teachers I might get for which classes and finding out what supplies are listed on the syllabus (if it is posted).

I just do not understand why teachers make me purchase more than what I really need for the class; a pre-calc teacher last year wanted me to buy a five-subject notebook, and my friend who had him said that they only used one subject in it. It is also fairly annoying when they get super picky on the types of things, like binders instead of folders (particularly when it's at this level and won't really matter), but I have enough recycled/rejected school supplies to cover a lot of what I now need for senior year, even if it is not the 1" binder they want.

Be lucky you do not have to find a new graphing calculator. I bought one last year at Wal*Mart for my pre-calc class (about $20 cheaper than the other stores but still over $100); I just finished moving from PA, and my calculator, backpack, and other school supplies are nowhere to be found (and likely thrown into some random, incorrectly-marked box, I will not find for another three years). If I cannot find it before the last week of my break, I might have to go out and waste another $100 on a calculator I question I will be using in calculus.

 

[MacDalt]

Several states have had lawsuits filed for this practice as we are supposed to have access to free education and in those states the fee has been removed. Indiana still has this practice in place.

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Wow, I had no idea! I guess technically it is "book rental" but this year all students will have iPads. They are eliminating text books so I'm paying $.51 for an electronic version of A Midsummer Nights Dream. It's still adding up to $300 even without textbooks. I have a friend with 5 kids, paying $1500 just to register. And you have to be below poverty level to be approved for reduced fees/lunches. Most people around here make too much money to qualify but are still struggling.

 

[aprilgail2]

Several states have had lawsuits filed for this practice as we are supposed to have access to free education and in those states the fee has been removed. Indiana still has this practice in place.

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Years back our schools had the kids buy scientific calculators that they needed for class until they were sued and now the school is required to provide them to each student. If they lose them they have to pay 89.00.

 

[AZMermaid]

I'm a teacher, and I'll tell you why we request name-brands. Thanks to Wal*Mart and the Dollar Stores, ridiculously cheap school supplies are now everywhere. Parents were sending in no-name, or RoseArt supplies, and they are usually terribly inferior.

I won't even use RoseArt supplies, if they're sent in. We do community supplies, so the kids don't know that I'm not using what they brought in, believe me. I donate them to the Playground/Lunchroom monitors. The RoseArt markers dry out within a day of opening them. RoseArt crayons are nothing more than wax. No-name glue sticks don't stick, and the children's art projects fall apart while hanging in the hallway. Fancy, cheap pencils ruin our pencil sharpeners, and they don't sharpen evenly.

What usually ended up happening, is that I would purchase the brand name items myself. And it was just another added expense on top of all of the other things I buy for my classroom.

We still have some parents send in off-brand items, but not as many now that we specify.

Yep- first grade teacher here and totally agree! I actually think we have brand specific because of the supply kits and that is what is listed, but the brand name stuff is WAY better. I don't collect the scissors or crayons, so they are stuck with them. But I do collect the majority of the glue sticks (we ask for 24... which seems crazy, but yes, we use most of them). I feel like our list is pretty fair and we do use everything on it. But, it is a grade level list, so it might not be my ideal list. But, I don't then request other stuff- that's crazy! I just have a mental list for when a parent asks me if there is something else I need, eg- index cards, highlighters, extra Expo markers etc.