Guess What was on my Kid's School Shopping List

A lot of kids already don't pay attention in school. The artificial dyes in the candies is just going to make it worse.

I ate candy all the time when I went to school. I also was in the top 5 percent of my graduating class with a GPA better than a 4.0.

Not to diminish your scholastic achievement but 'better than a 4.0' just means your grades were wildly inflated and means nothing.

I guess ignorance is bliss. Because there's no way in hell that you could know a single damn thing about my education.

No way in hell? I beg to differ, sir. Oh, there's a way. It might be improbable but it exists. I could know you. Maybe I was one of your teachers or an uncle. Never use absolutes, never.

We'll round off the1 in 100 million odds to zero.

You just gave me another reason to doubt your earlier claims.

Sense, do you make it?

I wonder what the graph looks like if we compared how many supplies parents send to school vs performance. I wonder if candy improves performance or maybe it improves self esteem, something else very important.

Facts we know:

Sugar causes cavities. (not poor dental hygiene like many people mistakenly believe)
Teachers are underpaid (hence the need for parents to provide everything despite the fact that they already pay taxes)
There are too many students in each class (which is why kids aren't doing as well even though classroom size is at an all time low)

Any other facts we need be aware of as well informed parents?

I dont think you understand what a fact is.

Please explain.

Well, the second two are opinions, not facts. The first one is simply inaccurate. Bacteria consume simple sugars in your mouth and produce an acid that erodes tooth enamel. So sugar indirectly encourages cavities. Also, your dental hygiene plays a large role in tooth decay. For example, using a toothpaste with fluoride causes your enamel to harden, making it less susceptible to decay.

I got over a 4.0 is school and I've never heard of these bacteria of which you speak. And flouride is poisonous if you consume more than 450 ml in a one week timeframe. No way I'm putting that in my mouth. Also, toothbrushes are just a fad.

All facts.

Why you trollin' me bro?

A lot of kids already don't pay attention in school. The artificial dyes in the candies is just going to make it worse.

I ate candy all the time when I went to school. I also was in the top 5 percent of my graduating class with a GPA better than a 4.0.

Not to diminish your scholastic achievement but 'better than a 4.0' just means your grades were wildly inflated and means nothing.

I guess ignorance is bliss. Because there's no way in hell that you could know a single damn thing about my education.

No way in hell? I beg to differ, sir. Oh, there's a way. It might be improbable but it exists. I could know you. Maybe I was one of your teachers or an uncle. Never use absolutes, never.

We'll round off the1 in 100 million odds to zero.

You just gave me another reason to doubt your earlier claims.

Sense, do you make it?

A 1 in 100 million chance means that there is less than a .00000001 percent chance that you know me. And, if you're rounding to whole numbers, you'd round that to zero. In fact, if you were rounding to the nearest one-millionth of a percent, you'd still round to zero. If this is too complicated for you, I suggest college.

A lot of kids already don't pay attention in school. The artificial dyes in the candies is just going to make it worse.

I ate candy all the time when I went to school. I also was in the top 5 percent of my graduating class with a GPA better than a 4.0.

Not to diminish your scholastic achievement but 'better than a 4.0' just means your grades were wildly inflated and means nothing.

I guess ignorance is bliss. Because there's no way in hell that you could know a single damn thing about my education.

No way in hell? I beg to differ, sir. Oh, there's a way. It might be improbable but it exists. I could know you. Maybe I was one of your teachers or an uncle. Never use absolutes, never.

We'll round off the1 in 100 million odds to zero.

You just gave me another reason to doubt your earlier claims.

Sense, do you make it?

A 1 in 100 million chance means that there is less than a .00000001 percent chance that you know me. And, if you're rounding to whole numbers, you'd round that to zero. In fact, if you were rounding to the nearest one-millionth of a percent, you'd still round to zero. If this is too complicated for you, I suggest college.

If you'd stated it like that instead of how you did in your first attempt, you would not have needed to clarify. Best to do it right the first time.

My attending college would not have made your first attempt any clearer.

Stickers!

Our district allows for small sweets (one gummy bear) as rewards for young students whose behaviors are severe. It seems counter-intuitive, but seems to work. They gradually phase out the food treats for toys and privileges. But for the rest of us, giving food is a huge no no. Even at last year's class parties, for 'winter holidays' or 'friendship parties', there was only a juice box and half dozen donut holes. The kids had dance parties together in the gym instead of classroom parties. End of year celebrations were held specifically with NO food allowed.

As a classroom aide, making a fraction of what a teacher makes, I spend alot of money every year on classroom supplies. I know I shouldn't but there is so much complaining early in the year over all the costs of going back to school, that we are so conscious of not burdening them any further. So I purchase lots of incidentals, glue sticks, mostly, also tissues, hand sanitizer, lysol wipes and spray, baby wipes for messy hands, band-aids, etc. As to the poster who listed that INSANE list for her child, I would ask the teacher if she sent out her classroom list instead of her individual student list by mistake! Crazy. OH, and being in a district with several Title 1 schools, and having worked at one several years ago, I can say that even, maybe especially in those schools, are closets, sometimes entire rooms full of school supplies. Construction paper stacked to the ceiling, boxes of glue, reams of paper and tons of pencils. That's why when I see all these 'stuff the bus' and 'fill the backpack' school supply drives I think what a waste. People should spend that time and money on food or clothing for food banks. Very rarely will a kid end up in a class with no supplies. I've never seen it happen.

Oh. You're "that mom."

Nothing to see here and nothing to say here, other than that I feel sorry for your kid, and your kid's teachers.

What's "That Mom"????

The definition is somewhat elastic, but generally "That Mom" is someone difficult to be around because she exudes that unpleasant combination of constant, usually unwarranted, worry about not being a good parent, and harsh judgment of other parents (to assuage the constant worry). Anything that happens that isn't absolutely optimal in her mind for her child elicits over-reaction, because they parent from a place of negativity and fear. Kid eats a cupcake at school = won't get into Vassar. That's hyperbole but you get me. That whole Mommy Wars garbage a few years back was a result of this mindset.

Sad thing is, having a kid can be a total blast a great deal of the time if people would just stop freaking out about whether or not every single thing is absolutely perfect to completely ensure their child's total success. We're giving a bunch of kids anxiety issues by the time they reach second grade because...

...nevermind. People either already see what I mean or they don't. I'm not going to change anyone's mind.

BOOM! Many time you hear this from some parents who rant and rave, yet they don't volunteer nor get involved in PTA, etc. They want to just voice and worry, but take no steps to be involved. Symbolism over substance.

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness industry for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

As a teacher, this makes me sad on a couple of levels:

1. I don't see a problem with putting a "wish list" at the bottom of the required school supplies, so that parents who are able and willing can help supply the classroom with extras. Making it required though... I don't like that. Not everybody has the money for that kind of thing. If people can, that relieves some of the financial burden from me and that's great, but I don't want to put a strain on families who are stretching just to buy pens and pencils and shoes that fit each kid. Buying stuff for a classroom incentive system can get expensive for the teacher, and I see wanting to spread it around, but I think there should be an indicator of what each kid really NEEDS and what items are just "it would be great if you could help out with this" things. Even if it's not required, a lot of parents will choose to help out anyway, and they'll feel a lot better about it than if they felt like they were forced into it. Either way, I think it's better to just ask for reward items and let parents choose rather than requiring candy - kids like to feel like they have options anyway, and some might prefer other items - you'd be surprised how far a kid will go for a scratch-and-sniff sticker or a sparkly pencil.

2. Positive reinforcement/rewards systems are pretty popular now in education, and are generally encouraged by school administrations. I know I've been encouraged by my department chair to use one. People believe it creates a more positive and cooperative classroom environment than a more negative punishment-based system. Realistically, in my experience, the problem with the punishment based system is that, at least in my school, our hands are tied on what kind of discipline we can offer. The best "punishment" I can give as a teacher is a 30 minute detention after school and a phone call home. Honestly, 30 minutes of sitting still isn't really a big enough punishment to be enough of a deterrent, and the phone call home is only useful if the parents actually bother to do anything about it, which is pretty much a 50/50 chance at best. When I was in high school, a detention meant coming in on a Saturday and raking leaves or washing windows all morning - a much bigger deal than 30 minutes after school before sports practice. We can't have punishments like that now because parents complain, kids are too overscheduled to be forced to give up their Saturday to discipline, and we'd have to pay a teacher to supervise. I'm not a big fan of giving out candy to make kids behave (and I teach older students anyway, so it's a bit different), but I can absolutely see why teachers resort to this when it so often feels like our hands are tied and there's a lot more we can offer as incentive than as punishment.

3. I always laugh at some of these supply lists anyway. I get that it's a bit different in elementary school than secondary, but some of it I just don't get, especially some of the middle school and high school lists. I don't even give a list. By high school, I expect students to know what school supplies are necessary - pens, pencils, paper, folders, highlighters. The only thing I ask for that might be considered "special" is post-its (we use them to annotate in books since the books belong to the school and kids can't write directly on the pages). The teachers who ask for things like tissues, paper towels, lysol wipes, etc., clearly have the luxury of actually having a single classroom where they can keep such supplies. I'd love that - I basically teach every class in a different classroom. I spend as much time running up and down the stairs and across the building as the kids do. As far as I'm concerned, less is more - otherwise I'd have to find a place to store it all.

4. I'm not much of a vodka drinker, but a nice hard cider or a good bottle of wine wouldn't go amiss ;-)

so this thread got me to wondering what public school would cost us.
For my 9th grader: 12 - #2 Pencils ($10)
2 - Glue Sticks ($2)
1 - White Glue ($3)
1 - Pink Eraser ($1)
1 - White Eraser ($1)
1 - Pkg. Washable Felt Markers ($8)
1 - sharpies Black ($4)
1 - Pair Scissors ($1)
1 - Pencil Case ($2)
10 - Pocket Folders ($10)
2 - Pkg. Lined Paper ($15)
1 - Pkg. Plain Paper ($10)
10 - Blue Pens ($5)
3 - Red Pens ($3)
1 - Ruler ($1)
1 - Pkg. Pencil Crayons ($1)
2 - 1" Binders ($5)
8 - Subject Dividers ($14)
1 - Scientific Calculator ($15)
1 - Geometry Set ($3)
1 - Pocket Dictionary ($2)
1 - Thesaurus ($2)
1 - Pencil Sharpener ($1)
3 - Highlighter Pens ($5)
1 - Agenda Book/Student Planner ($3)
2 - packs Lined index cards ($2)
4 - Composition notebooks ($8)
1 - Stapler ($2)
1 - Staple Remover ($1)
1 - backpack ($15)
total: $155
extra curricular activities fee: $150+
Uniforms: $20 (if I only get one set)
Total: $325 + (not including school lunches and science or P.E. fees)

for my 7th grader:
12 - #2 Pencils ($ 10)
2 - Glue Sticks ($2)
1 - White Glue ($3)
1 - Pink Erasers ($1)
1 - White Eraser ($1)
1 - Pkg. Washable Felt Markers ($8)
1 - Pair Scissors ($1)
1 - Pencil Case ($1)
10 - Pocket Folders ($10)
2 - Pkg. Lined Paper ($15)
1 - Pkg. Plain Paper ($10)
4 - Lined Notebooks ($10)
10 - Blue Pens ($5)
3 - Red Pens ($3)
1 - Ruler ($1)
1 - Pkg. Pencil Crayons ($1)
2 - 1" Binders ($5)
8 - Subject Dividers ($14)
1 - Scientific Calculator ($15)
1 - Geometry Set ($3)
1 - Pocket Dictionary ($2)
1 - Pencil Sharpener ($1)
3 - Highlighter Pens ($5)
1 - backpack ($15)
total: $171
extra curricular activities fee: $150+
Uniforms: $20
total: $341 +

for the 5th grader:
12 - #2 Pencils ($10)
2 - Glue Sticks ($2)
1 - White Glue ($3)
1 - Pink Erasers ($1)
1 - White Eraser ($1)
1 - Pkg. Washable Felt Markers ($8)
1 - Pair Scissors ($1)
1 - Pencil Case ($1)
10 - Pocket Folders ($10)
2 - Pkg. Lined Paper ($15)
1 - Pkg. Plain Paper ($10)
4 - Lined Notebooks ($10)
5 - Blue Pens ($2.50)
2 - Red Pens ($2)
1 - Ruler ($1)
1 - Pkg. Pencil Crayons ($1)
2 - 1" Binders ($2.50)
8 - Subject Dividers ($14)
1 - Scientific Calculator ($15)
1 - Geometry Set ($3)
1 - Pocket Dictionary ($2)
1 - Pencil Sharpener ($1)
3 - Highlighter Pens ($5)
1 - backpack ($15)
total: $136
extra curricular activities fee: $100+
Uniforms: $20
total: $256 +

4th grader:
12 - #2 Pencils ($10)
2 - Glue Sticks ($2)
2 - Pink Erasers ($2)
1 - Pkg. Washable Felt Markers ($8)
1 - Pair Scissors ($1)
1 - Pencil Case ($1)
10 - Pocket Folders ($10)
1 - Pkg. Lined Paper ($7)
1 - Pkg. Plain Paper ($10)
8 - Lined Notebooks ($18)
2 - Blue Pens ($2)
1 - Red Pen ($1)
1 - Ruler ($1)
1 - Pkg. Pencil Crayons ($1)
1 - backpack ($15)
total: $139
extra curricular activities fee: $100+
Uniforms: $20
total: $259 +

3rd grade:
12 - #2 Pencils ($10)
2 - Glue Sticks ($2)
1 - Box of Tissues ($1)
1 - Pink Eraser ($1)
8 - Broad Tip Markers ($5)
1 - Pair of Fiskar Scissors ($1)
1 - Pencil Case ($1)
2 - Wide-Ruled Spiral Bound Notebooks ($5)
4 - Pocket Folders ($4)
12 - Pencil Crayons ($1)
2 - Pkg Wide Ruled Loose Leaf Paper ($7)
1 - backpack ($10)
total: $48
extra curricular activities fee: $100+
Uniforms: $20
Total: 168 +

Kindergarten:
12 - # 2 Pencils ($10)
24 - Crayons ($2)
2 - Glue Sticks ($2)
1 - Box of Tissues ($1)
1 - Pink Eraser ($1)
8 - Broad Tip Markers ($5)
1 - Pair of Fiskar Scissors ($1)
1 - Pencil Case ($1)
1 - Wide-Ruled Spiral Bound Notebook ($2.50)
3 - Pocket Folders ($3)
1 - backpack ($10)
total: $38.50
uniforms: $20
total: $58.50

total for our family (for the kids currently school aged): $1460
Not terrible for our large family but a lot to shell out. I think the list our school requires is appropriate but of course that does not take into account the specialized list certain teachers have.
This was interesting to research.

That $1450 would pay one year fee for hockey for my kid (excluding equipment, uniform, etc...)

Wanna trade?