School Supplies

[treeluva]

Even with shopping sales and couponing, I have spent $75 on school supplies so far, and still haven't gotten everything on the list! I am really irked about this! Why in the heck does a 1st grader have a school supply list that is THREE PAGES LONG?

[joyofsix]

I soooo feel your pain. I have five in school and one in pre-school. I spend more in August on required school stuff than on Christmas. I only buy the bare minimum too. What happened to showing up with a pencil and paper?

[frugalbabe]

I feel your pain!

[cheles2kids]

I'm wondering for those of you who have several children if you notice having to spend more for the earlier grades that the older ones?

I ask this because when my two were in kindergarten, first, second, third & fourth grades our school supply list was just down right crazy.
Then I homeschooled for 6 years, this year they both went back to school and I'm noticing a HUGE difference in the amount of things that they needed.

Seriously all I had to buy this year was; poster board, notebooks, pencils, binders with loose leaf paper, a protractor, some coloring pencils and some of those prong folders.

That's it. For TWO kids. I have one in 8th grade this year and one that went into 10th grade.

I also wonder if it has to do with the area you live in?
When the kids attended school at younger ages, we lived in a larger city, as opposed to now, we live more out in the country?

Can you tell I've been giving this some thought lately?

[GM97]

I know, I know......I have a 2nd grade and they need 2 boxes each of gallon size and quart size ziplog bags? They asked for the same thing last year whey DD was on 1st grade but I saw 1 piece of gallon size when she took it home. They have at least 20 in a class, that seems a lot of ziploc bags. Then 5 plastic pocket folders? They only use 1 (red last year), what happen with the other 4? Their assessments were given to us separately and not filed in one of those colored plastics. Oh well, I'm glad I included this in my budget and I only have one in school...........and 4 packs of #2 pencils.

[Izzy0906]

That's horrible! I can't believe they want you to buy that much! My daughter is starting first grade this year also, her list is as follows. I bought a littlest pets backpack ($6) and a littlest pets school supply kit ($5 bucks woohoo!) :

1 box tissues (have)
1 art smock (DBF's old t-shirt)
Back Pack (have $6)
2 #2 pencils (4 in supply kit)
Marble Composition book ($1)
Eraser ( 3 came with kit)
Box of crayons, no larger then 16/box ($1 crayola at $1 store)
School box ($1)
Small elmer's glue ($.50)
Glue Stick (came with kit)
Sneakers for gym (have)

for a total of $14.50 and extra things even came with the kit such as sharperner, pencil pouch, notepads, scissors, ruler etc...

[Missourimom]

My senior hardly needed anything this year other than a couple of binders, paper and pens. We bought the expensive calculators (for both high schoolers) last year, so that's out of the way. We definitely feel that more money is spent on supplies for younger children....however, it's cheaper to buy clothes for our 7 yr old than our seniors.

This whole school supply thing really, really hurts this year, but what can you do? We have to buy them.

[Cricketlegs]

I got mine early in the summer. I wasn't interested in crowds and last minute panic lol.

DD in 7th won't get her list until the first day of school but I pretty much know what she needs.

Dd in college just got what she needed.

I spent a little over 100 for both but that included a few fun items for them like fun spirals, better mechanical pencils they like etc.

They did good keeping it down so I like to get them a few fun things.

[DJ1972]

I thought I was finished.........then we went to open house last night. DD, who will be a freshman this year, has to have a few extra things, scientific calculator, 2 three ring binders, and some dividers. I definitely spent more on the 6th grader than I did on the high schooler.

[SaucyCranberry]

Wow, I feel for you all. And I homeschool!

I know for me its usually easier to shop at one-stop places (like WalMart & Target) and they've had some pretty good back-to-school deals, but this time of year I look at all the office supply fliers in the paper (OfficeMax Office Depot, Staples) and they've had some great sales. For example this week I got two bottles of FREE 4oz Elmer's Glue and .01 pencil boxes (limit 2), and a ream of paper for 1.99 at Staples, .25 and .50 cent deals at the other "Office" stores, too. I stock up for our whole school year, since my kids can burn through a ream of paper in a day with art projects if I let them, LOL.

[mommymath]

you can get a pretty good quality Sharp scientific calculator free after rebate at Office Depot this week (until Saturday(?)) ...

This is an expensive time of year for us, too. DS is going half-time to school (that of course has a supply list), half-time homeschool (he's still technically a homeschooler) and DH and I both teach and tend to get a lot of our own supplies for the students. I'm always stocking up on the freebies at Staples and Office Max.

[angelbumpkin]

Oour school list was crazy. I have 2 1st graders and a 3rd grader. My 1st graders need everything under the sun. My 3rd grader most likely nothing. He is special needs to the school supplies most of his supplies.

[treeluva]

My 1st grader needed twice as much as my 4th grader.

The first grader needed quart AND gallon sized ziplocks. For what? What in the world do they need ziplocks for? I never needed ziplocks and I got through 1st grade just fine...

She needed SIX 3 pronged pocket folders. Again, for what? Because she also needed 2 3 ring 1" binders.

She "needed" a whole bunch more than that, but those are some of the things I am wondering "What for?"

Both children also had on the list dry erase markers. Now, tell me, what does a 6 year old and a 9 year old need dry erase markers for in a classroom? THEY DON'T. Those dry erase markers are for the teachers to use to write on the board. My children are going to a public school, and we pay taxes to supply these schools. I am not against helping teachers with the cost of supplies for their classrooms, but I am against having dry erase markers on my children's school supply list when it seems as though the school district should supply those to the teachers.

And today, when they got home, I got TWO more supply lists... for art class. The colors, markers, watercolors, and colored pencils I already bought are not for art class, but regular class. So they have ANOTHER list for ART CLASS SUPPLIES. Are you KIDDING ME?

I'm just waiting for the PE list to come so I can supply the soccer balls, baseballs, footballs, jump ropes, and orange cones for the school. (I am being sarcastic here - I HOPE!)

It doesn't take that much to educate anyone, much less a 6 year old.

I think the problem stems from the fact that this year my 6 year old has two teachers in the same classroom - one for the "arts" and one for the "sciences". One teaches in the mornings and the other in the afternoons. My 4th grader has one teacher for everything except for art, music, and PE.

I am sorry for ranting. I am just getting annoyed with getting lists of things that I am sure my children do not NEED to get their education.

[Scattymum]

ugh tell me about it!

My middle DS starts school this september

I have a DD thats going into 4th class.

In Ireland you have to buy textbooks, workbooks and copybooks - thats just for a public national school not private.

here is the tally to date...

Textbooks, workbooks and copy books - €152
Bags x2 € 18.98
Pens, Pencils, crayons, Parers,Erasers € 21.32
DD School Tracksuit € 45 ( thank goodness her last years main school uniform fits!)
DS School Tracksuit € 45
DS School pullover and Tie € 35
DS trousers and shirt € 10

Thats a grand total of € 327.3

and i still have to get shoes and trainers
and the school request a *voluntary* € 40 per child to help towards arts and crafts, its voluntary but if you dont pay they keep on harassing you!