School supply rant! Too much $$$

[grlpwrd]

It's interesting how so many people will complain about buying school supplies, yet they don't bat an eye staying at a resort for $300+ per night for 10 nights, 10 day park hoppers, have nice meals each day, ect... (Even if you stay at a value resort, that's still $100 per night!). It just blows my mind. Where have our priorities gone? No wonder teachers hardly get paid squat compared to the work and responsiblities they have.

If there's a deal to be had, many people on this board will jump at it, even though the item wasn't even in their radar before they logged on. They will be sooo happy they just spent $50 on a whatamacallit, but don't want to spend that same $50 on supplies. I just don't get it. So what if you have to shell out a little extra for the kids in the class who will show up with nothing. I guess you have to be a teacher to know what it's like to have kids show up without proper clothing, no money for field trips, no supplies to speak of, come from a home where education is not valued, get no help with homework, no books in the house... Yes, we can get mad at the adults who raise these kids but it doesn't solve the problem and it's the kids who suffer.

If you feel that a request is above and beyond, then just say no and offer to pick up a few extra bottles of glue. Many people may not realize this, but lots of the art projects your kids bring home are paid for by the teacher, not the school. So, if you are wondering why the teacher is requesting so much, maybe she/he needs some help buying these materials. If I ever wanted to do an art project besides using contruction paper, I had to scavage for the 20% off Michael's coupons and make several trips into the store to buy what I need for the class. I easily spend $40 for a cute project (more for holidays and Mother's Day stuff).

So everyone says the schools "should" be paying for this stuff. Well, they don't. You can thank our country's leader(s) for implementing laws like "No Child Left Behind," but not providing adequate funding to meet the schools and students' needs to make this even remotely possible. Don't blame the teachers, administrators or the kids. Just pitch in and do your part. You will feel much better about yourself.

Okay, I'm off my soapbox. (The Dis needs a soapbox icon!)

MTE, too.

I cannot grumble about investing in my and my kids' education. If it weren't for my love for school and getting ahead in life, I would have never been able to better myself. My parents never graduated from college and they struggled to survive for years.

Now they are doing better, but it was education that got my brothers, sister, and I to achieve some success. Education really opens the door to many opportunities.

 

[mom2mykids]

I thought I'd post my 5th grader's list. I haven't received my 6th grader's yet (middle school) I know he will need a graphing calculator though.

Backpack (nonrolling) - he needs a new one, ugh!
2 doz # 2 pencils, 1 doz for media
1 box of 12 colored pencils
1 pair scissors
3 glue sticks
2 boxes tissues - 1 for media
1 bottle waterless sanitizer
2 red pencils or pens
2 packs of 1 3/8 x 1 7/8 inch post it notes
1 soft pencil pouch
2 highlighters
1 2 1/2 inch binder, zippered
1 composition notebook
fee for agenda book
3packages of wide ruled notebook paper
1 pocket foldr
2 sets of dividers, 5 each
1 box quart size zip lock bags

6th grade: from the website 2006/2007 year

1 School Agenda Planner (purchase at school during first week of school)
1 Lock for locker (combination or key)
1 Lock for Physical Education (prefer combination lock)
1 Physical Education uniform, athletic shoes, athletic socks
(Purchase uniform at school during first week of school)

Shirt: $7.00 Shorts: $9.00 (XXL additional $2.00 per item)

4 1" three ring binders (science, math, language arts, social studies)
4 Notebook divider sets (for 3-ring binder)
1 pkg. Ruled notebook paper (wide rule)
2 Spiral notebooks (social studies, technology education)
3 Black/White composition notebooks (language arts, science, social studies)
2 pkg. Index cards (3x5 or 4x6) (science and social studies)
1 Post-It Notes (language arts)
1 Sketchbook
8 #2 pencils
4 Pens (black or blue ink)
1 Eraser
1 Pen (red ink)
1 set Colored pencils
1 set Colored markers (non-permanent)
1 Calculator - 4 function (home use for science)
1 Protractor and compass (science)
1 Metric/Standard 12: ruler (science and technology education)
1 Goggles (technology education)
1 Diskette (technology education)
1 Hole punch (to fit in notebook)
1 Scissors
1 Box of tissues
6th grade
5 Pocket folders with clips for 3 hole paper (language arts, FACS, world languages, art, physical education)
1 Glue stick
1 TI83+ or TI84+ Calculator (Algebra, Pre-Algebra) Bring the UPC label to school). Calculator will be needed for the next 3-4 years in math courses.

 

[GJM]

I can't complain my DS list wasn't too bad. It was actually a pretty short list, unless I get another list after he starts school.

I find it so funny when I see kids need "red" pens - when I went to school only the teachers used the "red" pen.

My DS is going into 2nd. grade and he needs 2 yellow highlighters - I am just wondering what is he going to be highlighting!

 

[mom2mykids]

I can't complain my DS list wasn't too bad. It was actually a pretty short list, unless I get another list after he starts school.

I find it so funny when I see kids need "red" pens - when I went to school only the teachers used the "red" pen.

My DS is going into 2nd. grade and he needs 2 yellow highlighters - I am just wondering what is he going to be highlighting!

I know there were time where the kids corrected each others work...not tests or anything but classwork. The elementary school where my kids go to do not use "scantron" tests and I think this year they will be able to use those. My neighbor is a principal at another elm. school in this county and she said they get to use them this year. so now the teachers will only need to read and correct all the essay parts. Our county executive gave the school system less than half of what they asked for so we will see how that impacts everything over the next few years. So I can see the need to ask for so many supplies!

 

[mum4jenn]

I think sometimes the kids grade papers (check the answers of classmates) I know last year my dd needed green pens and a few times during the year when going over homework and such the class graded each others homework all together. The teacher still went over the papers and put the grade on them though. I am not sure why...I did not ever ask. As long as the teacher was still going over the work it was ok with me.

 

[mum4jenn]

Sorry...I tried to copy our Middle School list and a bunch of font and color junk came with it. Anyway..our MIddle school list ar not bad at all. They dont even have the expensive calculator on them!!

 

[mytwotinks]

I do not mind donating extra school supplies. I really don't. I guess my gripe is that the list I get for my kid should be just that though. It should be a list of what MY kid needs for class. I think a better solution would be to add a note at the bottom of the page with a list of things that the teacher would like donated for the use of the kids who don't have what they need. I would much rather donate a few packs of dry erase markers than 2 of this and 1 of that etc. It is much cheaper and easier to just buy a whole pack of something to donate than to have little bits and pieces added to my dd's list. Plus, I might not have a lot this week, but maybe next week I'll have some extra money and I could send some extras in. The way it is done now, I have no idea what the teacher could really use extra of.

 

[mommytobug]

1) I too am thankful to have a child.
2) I too am thankful to have a child who can attend school.
3) I am grateful that I can afford for her to have a private school education in a situation that would make me cringe if I could not.
4) I will provide any and all school supplies she needs and usually donate more than needed.
5)We just left wal mart and donated to the Junior Ax fill the van school supply drive-dd understood and was so excited to help.


It makes me sad to know that so many teachers spend OOP to get the things they need. My friend is a public school high school teacher and has already spent 200 of her own money. I want her to have the $$ from my taxes that I pay toward a school system I would never send my child to.

 

[HeatherAnn23]

Bleach is used in daycare and preschool settings, so I would assume bleach mixture can be used in a school classroom.

At my school district bleach isn't allowed due to it's corrosive properties. Over time it causes a lot of damage to tile floors and desktops. They stopped the use of it in all of their buildings almost ten years ago. Even the kitchens use a product called Ster-Bac Blue (?) for sanitizing. The chlorox wipes are good because there is no actual bleach in them.

 

[powellrj]

to get my kids into the first week of school this is what its going to cost me:

$1004

This is to put 2 children in public school.

This year our school board voted for school uniforms so I have shopped all summer and the cheapest I could get 5 pair of pants, 5 shirts, 1 belt and 1 pair of plain shoes for each child was $114 for DD who is 11 and $195 for DS who is 16. This is not counting socks and underwear, gym clothes and shoes plus jackets and coats which I will have to get at a later date.

School book fees for DD $100
supply fees $125
(used total from when DS was in middle school so it maybe more) this includes the swiffers, bleach wipes and normal supplies, doesn't include calculator because I don't think she needs a grafting one yet.

Book Fees for DS $285 (total from last year won't know until registration what the actual total is).
supply fees $125 once again this is from last year
year book picture taken at registration $45
Parking pass $15

Not included $1800 performance fees for show choir, drama club fees, sports fees which I don't know what they are yet.

I HATE going back to school this year. I use to love going back to school shopping with the kids and getting a couple of cute outfits on sale. I found a great buy on pants for DS for $4.xx at the Gap. Of course because they weren't the right color, we couldn't get the green and grey ones that were on sale,we had to get the black, blue and khaki ones that were $20 a pair. We also found nice polos at American Eagle for $9.xx each, but because these had stripes, we had to get the plan ones at the sporting good store. I could have had a weeks worth of clothes he really liked for $13 dollars a day or $65 for the whole week instead of a weeks worth of clothes he hates at $30 an outfit or $150 for the week.

I found lots of cute limited 2 tops for DD that she loved for $4.99 then I had a 25% off coupon so they were $3.75, but I had to buy her plain ugly polos for $6.00, not to mention ill fitting uniform pants at $12 a pair that make her look chunky. Instead of the cute shoes, she is wearing a pair of plain black oxfords that cost much more than the cute ones she wanted. I keep hearing how much cheaper uniforms are, but they are so limited I am just not seeing the savings not to mention they still need regular clothes for the weekends and after school. They both ususally just start the school year with the things they wore in the spring, but since DS wears cargo and striped polos and DD wears skirts with leggings and longer tees, dresses and bermuda shorts we had to get all new things.

Even taking the uniform cost off its still going to cost me $695 and thats just to get them in the front door. There will still be gym clothes, backpacks, lunch passes and all the extra class fees we will get at a later date.

OK, vent over, I just needed to get depressed to see what I am looking at this year for back to school.

Most of the teachers at our school while they may use some of their own money, most use grade points to get supplies. While you have to bring your original list items, you get so many extra grade points for every extra item you bring in.

 

[WendyisDarling]

Sorry...I tried to copy our Middle School list and a bunch of font and color junk came with it. Anyway..our MIddle school list ar not bad at all. They dont even have the expensive calculator on them!!

DS started MS last year and the list was pretty basic UNTIL back to school night. Then, every teacher had a specific list posted by their door.
This was really a pain because some items were very specific and by the last few days of August a lot of supplies are gone. The weekend before school started, I and 1/2 dozen other parents were scrounging through the pile of notebooks at Office Max trying to find the few 5 subject wide ruled notebooks that were left. A couple moms were fairly sure their sons entering 6th grade were not going to be happy about the purple notebooks

One thing our PTA does that is great is supply the agenda books, which are really nice. Part of fundraising money is used for this purpose. Makes me feel a little better about buying those magazines.

 

[MM27]

I easily spend $40 for a cute project (more for holidays and Mother's Day stuff).

Thank You for that. I usually do something for holidays and other teachers in my school tell me not to spend my own money on that stuff. This year for mother's day I bought each child a terracotta pot that they painted (I bought the paint too) and then I bought a couple of flats of flowers and dirt so the kids could plant something for mom. I wonder if those same mothers that I bought a mother's day present for are complaining about my request for tissues.

I don't know about every school but in my school if you don't send in tissues, your child will not blow their nose because tissues are not supplied. My class, which is on the third floor doesn't have a bathroom or sink anywhere near it, so kids would have to walk down to the first floor to blow their nose in the bathroom. That's the reason for the hand sanitizer too. Can you imagine during cold season? We can't just walk down to the bathroom each time. I buy my own hand sanitizer and clorox wipes, but you should appreciate why they are being used in classrooms. I have the kids wipe down their desks once a week (more during the winter months). Your child might be the cleanest little thing, but when the little one that sits next to him/her sneezes without covering nose/mouth, your child's desk is no longer the germ free area you think it is. And most kids are very open to sharing their supplies with their classmates, which makes them also share those germs.

Everyone keeps bringing up the property tax thing, so let me explain this:
Property taxes are not ALL going to schools. The money that does go into education does not end up in the teachers hand. Think about all the costs involved in running a school:
Salaries of the Administrators (superintendent/principals/assistants)
Salaries of Staff (teachers/custodians/support staff)
Transportation (School bus costs)
Heating/Electricity/Water/Etc. (I did a Saturday academy where they refused to turn the heat on because it would cost too much since we were only in the school from 9-12)
Furnishing the classrooms (one child's desk ranges in price between $100-300) If you go for the $100 ones then you also need to buy chairs). My school bought new desks for our sixth graders last year. $300 a piece X 150 kids $45,000 on desks. And that's only one school in the district.
Textbooks/computers/workbooks (that need to be purchased every year)
I could go on and on.
The high property tax complaint is really not justifiable. Go to your board of education office and ask to see their budgets. They will show you how the money is divided. You have every right to see this stuff, they are public documents.

 

[PudgetteD]

You know, it peeves me that I have to send in paper towels, tissues, zip loc baggies (what do they use these for anyway?!) How come the school isn't paying for this stuff? I mean, geez, the taxes around here are ASTROMICAL. You would think they could supply this kind of stuff.

That is my biggest pet peeve about school supplies! I have no problem buying crayons, pencils, paper, etc., but WHY do I have to buy kleenex, red pens for the teachers to grade papers, dry erase pens for the teachers to use, etc. We end up buying more teacher supplies than kid supplies. We even have to pay a "writing supplies fee" in addition to buying pencils and paper.

 

[Teacher03]

That is my biggest pet peeve about school supplies! I have no problem buying crayons, pencils, paper, etc., but WHY do I have to buy kleenex, red pens for the teachers to grade papers, dry erase pens for the teachers to use, etc. We end up buying more teacher supplies than kid supplies. We even have to pay a "writing supplies fee" in addition to buying pencils and paper.

Excuse me, but I don't go through over 100 boxes of tissue a year, but my students do. If I had to buy them myself, I would spend over $100. Would you like me to have them use their sleeve? I don't use anything for myself that my families supply, and I am sure this is the same for the majority of the teachers. It all goes to the kids.

 

[PudgetteD]

Excuse me, but I don't go through over 100 boxes of tissue a year, but my students do. If I had to buy them myself, I would spend over $100. Would you like me to have them use their sleeve? I don't use anything for myself that my families supply, and I am sure this is the same for the majority of the teachers. It all goes to the kids.

Excuse ME. I didn't mean to imply that teachers should have to buy these items. As a former teacher in the Augusta-Richmond Co. GA school system, I fully understand how difficult and expensive it is to be a teacher. I merely meant that the school system should supply basic things, like Kleenex, paper towels, liquid soap (yes, that's on our list), etc. After all, every tax increase in Clarksville-Montgomery Co. TN is prefaced with ". . .our schools will benefit and costs should decrease for parents..."). DH and I crunched some numbers one night and after the money I spent on classroom supplies, I was making only a few dollars more than minimum wage at the time! Now, as a nurse, it's not much better. Insurance won't pay, patients can't pay, so most nurses spend out of pocket for patients as well. I'm sorry if I offended you, that was not the intent.

 

[livndisney]

Well if you weren't one of those people on that thread (about buying lots of extra KA appliances) then that "reference" has nothing to do with you.


Yes there were a few out of the ordinary lists...such a 100 pencils (even though if they were purchased at Staples sale that would only be 10 cents total) and the 40 dry erase markers...stuff like that. I see nothing wrong with buying and sending 2-4 or everything.
.

You will note my DD list was the list for 100 pencils! And not the sale pencils, but brand specifc pencils. I have no problem buying what my child needs. I will even "help" provide supplies for other children. But shouldn't that be left up to me? Should't the list just contain what my child needs and then if I choose to send in more that is up to me? I would think the list could also include teacher requests. I would have no problem with that.

 

[mum4jenn]

Sounds like we all need to address these list at the next PTO meeting or maybe a school counsel meeting. Yhe list at my school is not out of hand but I have agreed that some are way off. Those parents really ought to address this with the school to see if maybe the next school year things will be better

 

[IDoDis]

That is my biggest pet peeve about school supplies! I have no problem buying crayons, pencils, paper, etc., but WHY do I have to buy kleenex, red pens for the teachers to grade papers, dry erase pens for the teachers to use, etc. We end up buying more teacher supplies than kid supplies. We even have to pay a "writing supplies fee" in addition to buying pencils and paper.

In my classroom, the students use those tissues and pens, not me. I supply my own tissue because I have sensitive skin and can only use Puffs Plus when I have a cold. Usually though, the students end up using all of my tissue, as well.

I have them edit their work (I actually have them use any color pen besides red), so those are their pens. I keep them in a basket. They may also use them periodically for grading things that I don't want them changing the answers on. The school does provide me with all the pens I need, but does not purchase 1000 pens for the students.

When I was in school I remember the bathrooms had these cloth towels that you pulled from a machine to dry your hands with. Then, the dirty part of the towel rolled back up into the machine and when the cloth towel was all used up, it just didn't pull anymore. Ninety percent of the time, there wasn't any clean towel left and we either used the dirty part of the towel that was still hanging, or we dried our hands on our clothes. As a parent, I would not be happy with my child coming home with paint, marker, glue residue, dirt, and food on their clothes every day because there wasn't enough cloth towels. Nor would I want them using dirty gross towels. I'm sure those were expensive to have someone come and change out, wash, and resupply the machines with.

Once I had a student with really bad allergies. His parents were really thoughtful though. They brought in 6 boxes of tissue each semester because they knew their child used a lot of tissue. Those little things are really appreciated! When a child comes to school with a cold, that child can easily go through 1/2 of a box in just one day. Then, they leave their dirty tisses around their table or desk, in their desk and on the floor. Out come the wipes so others don't get sick.

I was in a portable outside classroom for years with no sink (We had a nice hike to the building to wash up). A box of baby wipes was on the supply list. Since we had no water, I also asked each parent to chip in $10 for the class to have a Culligan water cooler in the classroom. They all thought that was a great idea. Yes, the kids could have used water bottles, but the condensation was always getting their tables and papers wet and kids were always asking to go to the building to fill up their bottles. Many of the parents commented that they'd spend more than $10 buying the kids water bottles at the store. I had a few parents that didn't or couldn't pay the $10, so I covered the difference. We had nice cold water all year. The kids used to love when the Culligan guy showed up. They'd all say in unison, "HEY, CULLIGAN MAN!"

 

[mum4jenn]

You sound like a GREAT teacher!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Toby'sFriend]

just got back from Target - total for 3 kids, $38.

THAT is totally reasonable and I don't mind paying it. Nobody needs a new expensive calculator this year! Of course, they'll need more notebook paper etc throughout the year but we got the bulk of everything.

However I well remember a 2nd Grade Year when, after running thru Target, WalMart, Kmart, Office Depot, Michaels and Best Buy my total bill for one child was over $100. We had specialty clay for art, cassettes to record himself reading out loud, and on and on. Oh yes, and a roll of quarters, dimes, nickels and pennies so he could practice counting money. Come to think of it, I wonder if I ever got that money back? I don't remember. Oh I remember another one, a stack of 10 old magazines to use for picture cutting. I never sent that in because we don't subscribe to magazines!

THAT year was completely ridiculous and a good portion of it was esoteric off the wall items that only got used once or twice at the most. I did not feel bad at all griping about it, and yes I occasionally buy kitchen appliances.

Not surprisingly, that was a fairly new teacher (and yeah she was still living with her parents), who really did seem shocked at parent night when some parents brought the cost subject up with her. Like --- what, you mean you guys care about how much this costs??!!! Well yes, when you have 3 or 4 kids like some families do, we care very much.