Thursday, July 29, 2004

BACK TO SCHOOL SHOPPING

I have 4 kids to shop for this school year.  2 of the schools have graciously supplied us with shopping lists for each of the grade levels and classes.  These lists are very specific, they even state brands.  The elementary school specifies Prang watercolors, not the cheap one.. (yes, it actually says..."Not the cheap one")  I wonder if the school is being paid for product endorsements and is therefore obligated to require the use of the particular brand.  Don't laugh folks, if Pepsi can monopolize the soda vending machines at the upper level schools, is it really too far fetched to think that Crayola and Prang are taking over the multimillion dollar school supply market.  I must remember to look on the back of my crayola box to see if it says "Official Sponsor of the 2004-2005 School Year".  My high schoolers each have to have a million composition notebooks and several hundred reams of filler paper.  I still have leftovers from 2 years ago, mostly because my boys haven't done their homework in over 2 years so they never had to use any paper.

24 #2 pencils... why is that even on the list?  The kids are required to do their assignments in black ink.  And they must have a red correction pencil, this is so they can grade each other's papers instead of the teacher.  Hmmm, you'd think if they're going to have to do the teacher's job, the school should at least supply the red pencil.  But nope, these kids need 2 for all the grading they will be doing.  The kids sitting next to my boys will be getting off easy, they won't have anything to correct, if I knew who they were I'd call their parents up and just tell them to skip the red pencils.

Every year the elementary school requests that the parents send in 3 large boxes of facial tissue (Kleenex or Puffs of course), 2 rolls of Bounty papertowels, and a box of 1 gallon Ziploc bags.  One year I got a note from my son's teacher stating that I hadn't sent in the tissue.  I wrote back to her... Oh thats okay, he doesn't use tissue, he uses his teeshirt.  She did not ask for the tissue again.  Now if they asked for toilet paper, well, that I could understand.

Every year my kids force me to buy brand new backpacks and lunch boxes.  Why they can't use last years backpacks I don't know, I guess its a fashion thing, you know, sooooo last year and all!  And lunch boxes?  On the mornings that we get up with enough time to pack a lunch, they suddenly remember that they've forgetten the lunchbox at school, and we end up using papersacks, or the ever handy blue Wal-mart bag.  Last year when it was all said and done we had spent on the average $75 per child on school supplies.  We should have automatically have qualified for free lunches for at least the first month of school after that huge chunk was taken out of our monthly income.  Un-be-fricken-lievable!

12 comments:

Anonymous said...

After reading this, I'm so happy my kids are no longer children but thirty-something adults. : )

Anonymous said...

It doesn't seem to long ago that I listened to my mom saying this stuff. She never followed any of the stuff on those school supply lists. She just got the basics and if the school didn't like it, oh well. I don't ever remember the lists specifying the brands. Maybe they don't do that here or maybe they just started that. I'm sure I'll find out soon since my daughter will be starting school soon. I'm not so worried about the school supply list as much as I am worried about the teachers getting on my nerves.

Take care,
Juli

Anonymous said...

I don't have kids to school shop for , but I know what you are saying. I think it's just crazy what the schools expect the parents to buy. I don't know what they are thinking. Some people just don't have the money to buy all this stuff, expecially if they have more than one child.
Some parents would rather spend all that money on something silly, like FOOD to feed their kids. lol.
Have a great day.
R.C.

Anonymous said...

I can relate to everything you're saying....i go thru a small fortune with my 3 kids with back to school supplies...and just when you're finished paying for these supplies, home they come with the multitude of fundrasiers which I despise...I refuse to have my kids bug our neighbors to buy these over priced items so I end up having to buy stuff from all 3 kids...another small fortune...then comes school pictures which is at least $30 per kid if not more...the costs never end never!!

Anonymous said...

So true! I think the public school system thinks that all the parents are made of money! Not here! I need to start my daughters list. Bummer! God bless, Beckie

Anonymous said...

Ah...something to look forward to. LOL All I remember from the school shopping days is arguing with my mom over her hideous choices for clothes and shoes...Oh and the picky teachers who HATED spiral notebooks (despise those frilly edged assignments). I remember when Mead came out with spiral bound notebooks with perforated edges so you could tear off the frilly stuff. Great invention. LMAO

Anonymous said...

Got one in HS and a Step in 6th to shop for............you didn't even touch on the clothes.........and we have girls here.................they need new wardrobes...and shoes......it's neverending isn't it.......I can't believe they asked you to supply kleenex......sheesh!
jerseygirl

Anonymous said...

It is getting a little ridiculous what is asked for school. When I was in school we didnt have to bring anything but paper, pencils, folders and a backpack. Now you have to buy the toilet tissue and kleenex's things I think the school should supply and I am aloud to fuss because I work for an Elementary school. Hope you get everything you need Dorn and don't have to file Chapter 13 to do it. lol.
Have a great weekend.
Missy

Anonymous said...

another reason to homeschool :-)

Anonymous said...

I will be doing this in a couple of weeks.  Not looking forward to it.

Anonymous said...

My son's school wants them to bring 4 boxes of tissue.   My family doesn't even go through that in a year, and there are four of us, so how is my son going to use four boxes of tissue in the nine months of the school year.  This year they want them to bring a box of saltine crackers.  Now I have heard that pregnant women should eat crackers and drink sprite for morning sickness, but he is 1.) male and 2.) not capable of getting pregnant.  I haven't figured this one out, yet, but I have my suspicions. Last year there were at least three pregnant teachers, so maybe they are trying to stockpile the crackers for furture use.  Last, but not least, from the School Supplies Horror Stories File I bring this disturbing story.  One year my nephew's teacher required them to bring a disposable camera as part of their supplies list.  Supposedly this was to be used to take pictures of him during field trips and special occasions at school.  His mom got back exactly two photos of him at the end of the year.  Now if I've done my math right there would have been a total of 576 pictures made (24 students x 24 pictures per camera).  The whole thing stunk if you ask me.  I'm all for paying the teacher more money, but sometimes I think we are just being taken advantage of so the teachers can have free paper products for the year.  Heck half the time paper towels are a luxury item in this house.  Anyway good luck all you "school" supplies shoppers.  
                                                    Mary
http://journals.aol.com/munowe/CHAOSREIGNS

Anonymous said...

Geez!..thats crap!