Hey teachers

[TinkPirateMom]

Teacher assignments arrived last Friday. I checked her website this week looking for a list of additional required supplies. Since I couldn't find a list, I emailed yesterday and asked what additional supplies she required. The teacher responded that she did require additional materials and that she would go over the list in class.

I could respond with a sob story but have chosen not to because I don't think it will accomplish anything. She said they'll go over it in class and I suspect she means exactly what she says.

I did not see this response. My apologies as I see now you did email her. I would agree then that that response is strange!

 

[Bella the Ball 360]

I doubt that any teacher was being "cute" by witholding the school supply list, but there are a variety of reasons why a list would not be given last day of school. For example, a change in program, a change in administration, a change in staffing or a change in policy would result in not passing out information at the end of the year. All of these situations happened in my school sytem and let me assure eveyone, no one was trying to be CUTE! It would be great if all the students showed up first day ready to hit the ground running, but things happen both inside and outside the classroom which might interfere with the ideal beginning.

Contrary to popular belief, teachers are you friends not your enemies.

This should read YOUR not YOU friends. Teachers, while not enemies, are often not good at keyboarding...stated in my signature!

 

[Southernmiss]

I am another who just buys supplies as I am out and they are on sale. I usually have a well stocked cabinet and the kids pull their supplies from the cabinet and let me know abt supplies they need I don't have. This year, out of four kids, it was just legal pads and whiteout for ds who is a junior and has an English term paper. When the kids all grow up, I will donate whatever is left.

I pick up hand sanitizer and other basics and store them for next time. I also buy Kleenex and paper towels in bulk for the house so they just get what they need.

 

[aprilgail2]

Oh please, teacher teaching the same grade as last year. School starts Monday. She knows exactly what size binder she wants the kids to have and what color folder for each subject. It's probably the exact same as last year.

I suspect when her daughter is in school she understand that running around looking for orange folders after school starts sucks.

This year bought 1 1/2" binders in blue since that is my daughters favorite color- and as they used to say in grade school "you get what you get and you don't get upset"! They are lucky half these kids even bring in any school supplies nevermind blue, green, red and yellow binders! One year they wanted all these different colored binders so I bought 2 white ones and on one side my daughter wrote "blue binder" flip it over and on the other side she wrote "green binder" and the other one was labeled Red and Yellow--no teacher ever said a word about it.

I would be ticked at not having a list before school started too. Don't blame you a bit.

Plus all the sales end before school starts so you are paying twice the amount if they wait until after school starts and a lot of things that you need are all sold out!

 

[deedeetoo]

I also wish we could have the list but understand why not. My kids start school next week. For my middle schooler, I have the supply list and will go shopping this weekend. But, my high schooler will get individual lists from each of her teachers over the first couple days. We will spend the following weekend trying to track down every thing on all her sheets, along with every other high school student in the area. Last year we were in line at Staples for about an hour. The line snaked back through the aisles to the back of the store. Its hard when so many people are forced to shop in such a limited time frame. On the other hand, her schedule isn't finalized yet and each teacher has their own list so its hard to distribute it ahead of time. Its just one of those annoying things about going back to school.

 

[Bella the Ball 360]

I don't think the OP dislikes the teacher, only that she is put out at the moment. Seriously, have you never felt that way toward a teacher? I've been on both sides and I can tell you that some teachers are a PITA from day one, as are some parents. Has the DIS become so politically correct that we aren't allowed to express feelings of exasperation from time to time?

Expressing frustration is okay, addressing it to a whole profession as if it is common or deliberate practice IMHO is not. Had the op expressed frustration at the individual situation and not put it out there as if all teachers need to know this, it would not have been ofensive.

We cannot make political statements or bash government policy and even Cheerios commercials need to be politically correct but it is okay to single out one profession for bashing. Sometimes, the need to respond becomes overwhelming.

 

[Nancy]

In all the years my kids went to school...3 kids, now all graduated high school and into college and grad school and done, we have never had a list of school supplies prior to the first day of school. We always knew what the basic supplies were going to be but some teachers did want specific items. Usually had a few days to get them but we just went out right after school and got them. The only bad year was the year of the black pocket folder, I almost got to the point where I was going to buy a white one and use a sharpie to color it black.

High school was the worst, each teacher had their own lists. Made each kid take the list and a basket and go for it...meet me at the big cart and 150.00 later time to check out. LOL.

I never got the big deal over school supply shopping. Parents have been getting supply lists since I've been in school and I'm ancient.

 

[MichelleVW]

My kids never really had a list in high school, and they went to 3 different ones. I remember the elementary lists were a pain, but not that much of a stress-er.

In high school other than one or two random request they just used what they liked to keep organized...really helped when they went to college and didn't have a list at all.

 

[jrmasm]

This year bought 1 1/2" binders in blue since that is my daughters favorite color- and as they used to say in grade school "you get what you get and you don't get upset"! They are lucky half these kids even bring in any school supplies nevermind blue, green, red and yellow binders! One year they wanted all these different colored binders so I bought 2 white ones and on one side my daughter wrote "blue binder" flip it over and on the other side she wrote "green binder" and the other one was labeled Red and Yellow--no teacher ever said a word about it.



Plus all the sales end before school starts so you are paying twice the amount if they wait until after school starts and a lot of things that you need are all sold out!

I'd love to pull that one out but I'm actually not looking to tick off the teacher.

Expressing frustration is okay, addressing it to a whole profession as if it is common or deliberate practice IMHO is not. Had the op expressed frustration at the individual situation and not put it out there as if all teachers need to know this, it would not have been ofensive.

We cannot make political statements or bash government policy and even Cheerios commercials need to be politically correct but it is okay to single out one profession for bashing. Sometimes, the need to respond becomes overwhelming.

If you prefer I can change the title to "Hey teachers who do this!" But based on many of the responses, it sounds like this is pretty common practice. So maybe addressing teachers as a group isn't so ridiculous.

 

[Turn the Page]

:
If you prefer I can change the title to "Hey teachers who do this!" But based on many of the responses, it sounds like this is pretty common practice. So maybe addressing teachers as a group isn't so ridiculous.

I think a lot of the time it's the administration that is tying teachers hands. Yes, it's true, sometimes you get a teacher that is simply a PITA but I know in my case this year I haven't been mad at the teacher I have been incredibly frustrated with the administration.

On a separate note, when I was in school the supply lists ended, for the most part, with elementary school. I think in middle school they wanted us to have a Trapper Keeper (do they even make those anymore?) and in 8th grade we needed a separate binder for English but other than that we just needed whatever pencils and stuff like that we wanted. In high school the only requirement was a graphing calculator for certain math classes.

 

[BCDisneyFanatic]

If I understand your posts correctly, you've already been given a list of the basic supplies that you need, and you are asking what extras you might be required to buy. How many extra items are you expecting? If it's just a case of the teacher asking you to pick up an extra orange notebook or a red binder sometime in the first week of school, then I don't think that's a big deal. If you're given a list of ten or twelve items then I could certainly see where you might be coming from.

Since you've already gotten a list of the basics, I would assume that there is no real urgency for picking up the additional materials (again, if they are truly just a few items). I'm sure you'll be by a store sometime that week...I don't think it's something to get too worked up about getting immediately!

I teach high school, and I won't even know who my students are until a couple of days before classes start (and they find out on the first day). There is nothing on my supply list, though, that would be unexpected for math class (binder, graph paper, pencils, ruler, scientific calculator). As long as my students show up with paper and a pencil the first week, I'm happy (and I always have a supply of both for those who 'forget').

 

[Mkrop]

If I understand your posts correctly, you've already been given a list of the basic supplies that you need, and you are asking what extras you might be required to buy. How many extra items are you expecting? If it's just a case of the teacher asking you to pick up an extra orange notebook or a red binder sometime in the first week of school, then I don't think that's a big deal. If you're given a list of ten or twelve items then I could certainly see where you might be coming from.

Since you've already gotten a list of the basics, I would assume that there is no real urgency for picking up the additional materials (again, if they are truly just a few items). I'm sure you'll be by a store sometime that week...I don't think it's something to get too worked up about getting immediately!

I teach high school, and I won't even know who my students are until a couple of days before classes start (and they find out on the first day). There is nothing on my supply list, though, that would be unexpected for math class (binder, graph paper, pencils, ruler, scientific calculator). As long as my students show up with paper and a pencil the first week, I'm happy (and I always have a supply of both for those who 'forget').

Not the OP...but it never fails it is the hardest items to find that some teachers spring on you that first day of school...like the orange folder that is no where to be found in Sept but I saw some back in the beg of Aug. And at my kids' grade school they will get marks if they dont have all their supplies. The teachers MIGHT give them until the following Monday some want it the next day. But even with the extra time I really dont feel like going to a bunch of different stores looking for the last orange folder.

And even something like graph paper is not a simple thing to buy, over the years we have had teachers who required it in a bound notebook (not easy to find on day one of school) to others who wanted it loose in a binder. So yes my high schooler is taking math, he may or may not need graph paper but I am not buying it until I know for sure what the teacher wants. I wish I knew know instead of the first day of school, when the only graph notebooks left in Staples are the pink camaflaogue ones.

 

[MrsDuck]

I teach high school. My students had a 4 days to get a binder with 13 dividers. I guess I'm that "horrible teacher" who told them on Monday and wanted it by today.

I can understand the frustrations of those on the prowl for very specific things on short notice. On the whole, I'm grateful to not be an elementary school parent - those supply lists are massive.

However, as PPs have said - things change at the LAST minute. Some teachers have actual REASONS for not getting you supply info ASAP (like their schedule is still changing). I'm not sure why other teachers do it. I definitely feel that being grumpy with a teacher about something as minuscule as this at the beginning of the year isn't a very optimistic way to begin (remember: I said I understand your frustration! Vent it out and then hopefully let it go?).

I hope everyone has a great year! (and can find all the stuff they need)

 

[jrmasm]

If I understand your posts correctly, you've already been given a list of the basic supplies that you need, and you are asking what extras you might be required to buy. How many extra items are you expecting? If it's just a case of the teacher asking you to pick up an extra orange notebook or a red binder sometime in the first week of school, then I don't think that's a big deal. If you're given a list of ten or twelve items then I could certainly see where you might be coming from.

Since you've already gotten a list of the basics, I would assume that there is no real urgency for picking up the additional materials (again, if they are truly just a few items). I'm sure you'll be by a store sometime that week...I don't think it's something to get too worked up about getting immediately!

I teach high school, and I won't even know who my students are until a couple of days before classes start (and they find out on the first day). There is nothing on my supply list, though, that would be unexpected for math class (binder, graph paper, pencils, ruler, scientific calculator). As long as my students show up with paper and a pencil the first week, I'm happy (and I always have a supply of both for those who 'forget').

This is for an elementary class. Her older sister attended the same school and didn't have a supply list until middle school. Thankfully by high school there were no lists.

I don't know how many more items are required because the teacher wouldn't tell me. I'm guessing at a minimum: at least one specific width binder and probably 4 specific colored folders. I've already purchased the glue sticks, crayons, colored pencils, scissors, highlighters, pens, pencils, pencil box etc etc etc.

As to whether it's worth getting worked up about or not, I agree this is not the end of the world. But can't you see how it would be easier and cheaper for parents to have this information before school starts?

 

[MrsDuck]

As to whether it's worth getting worked up about or not, I agree this is not the end of the world. But can't you see how it would be easier and cheaper for parents to have this information before school starts?

Oh heck yes! Easier on you, your student, and the teacher - you're ready, they're ready, we're ready! That's ideal.

 

[Feralpeg]

My daughter just started teaching at a new school. The school sent out a list of generic supplies before she took the position. She did not get a copy of that list until the day before school started. In fact, she didn't get to see the textbooks she would be using until two days before school began.

Believe me, she would have loved to see these things way in advance, but that wasn't possible. She is still trying to decide what her students will need since she only found out the day before school started that she would be teaching a class that she had not been told about prior. As soon as she can, she'll be requesting necessary supplies. Much of it, she intends to buy herself just to prevent inconveniencing parents.

 

[spacemountainmom]

What is the deal with graph paper? If so many math teachers request it, why is it so hard to find??

Thank goodness the youngest is now in HS. Our pretty much asks for pens, paper, folders and a graphing calculator. Certain science and shop classes require safety glasses and they sell them through school.

 

[MrsDuck]

What is the deal with graph paper? If so many math teachers request it, why is it so hard to find??

Thank goodness the youngest is now in HS. Our pretty much asks for pens, paper, folders and a graphing calculator. Certain science and shop classes require safety glasses and they sell them through school.

We sell a lot of supplies at our school store. Funnily enough, I think students get the majority of their required items on campus. That school store BANKS!

 

[Colleen27]

Oh, I couldn't possibly agree more. We live in a small town with exactly three places to buy school supplies - Kmart, Dollar General, and CVS. Two of the three have already started clearancing out their school supplies to make room for Halloween, and of course we've missed all the great sales which were in late July/early August. So when I get my son's list on the day after Labor Day I'll end up paying jacked-up small-town retail prices for supplies I could have gotten for half the price or less if I'd had the list a month earlier, and invariably I also end up having to drive the 30 miles into suburbia for some random thing that I didn't accurately forecast that one teacher decides he has to have.

Fortunately only one of my kids goes to public school so I only have to deal with this for 1 of 3. The other two got their (generic grade-by-grade) supply list with their registration packet in May, and a mailed-home update with any additional requests from their specific teachers in July.

 

[garada3]

I am a middle school teacher. Our principal requires each grade level at the school to publish a general supplies list in June. We have been directed to only release teacher specific item lists when students receive their schedule just before the first day.

I require a $10 five subject notebook for my class. I provide (out of my pocket, not school money) all the glue, colored pencils and markers the kids will need for the rest of the year.

If my notebook was on the general supply list, then all 7th grade students would purchase the notebook rather than just the third of the grade level that are assigned to my class. In numbers, only 150 out of 450 kids need my specific item.

I give families two weeks to obtain the notebook and I make that clear verbally to students on the first day, in the syllabus, on my website and in any communication with parents. If the parents/ students run around from store to store that is on them, I give plenty of time.