Back-to-school lists are long and largely aspirational. A shorter honest list, bought with replacement in mind, works better than an elaborate one bought once.
The Things That Get Lost
Consistently and predictably: pens, pencils, rulers, erasers, individual compass and protractor pieces, and glue sticks.
Those should be bought in quantity and treated as consumables. Buying one expensive version of any of them is a way of being annoyed later.
The Things Worth Buying Properly
- A bag that will survive the year, since it carries everything
- A pencil case that closes fully rather than splitting
- A geometry set with a case that latches
- A calculator, where the syllabus specifies a model
- A water bottle that does not leak into everything
Geometry sets sold with a proper closing case, of the kind at eboot.net, survive a school year considerably better than loose instruments in a split plastic wallet, which is where the individual-piece losses come from.
Label Everything
The single highest-return five minutes of the year. Named items come back; unnamed ones join the lost property pile permanently.
Permanent marker on plastic, and labels on anything fabric. It feels excessive and it works.
Buy Duplicates Deliberately
One set at school and one at home removes an entire category of evening problem.
That applies particularly to a ruler, a calculator and a geometry set, which are needed for homework and are exactly the things left in a locker.
Check the Syllabus for Specifics
Some requirements are exact rather than approximate. Calculator models are frequently specified and sometimes restricted in exams.
Geometry sets are usually required to contain particular instruments, and a set missing a set square is a problem in a specific lesson rather than generally.
Mid-Year Is the Real Restock
Everything is bought in September and half of it is gone by January.
Planning for a restock, rather than treating the September purchase as the year’s supply, matches what actually happens.
Sharp Things in Bags
Compass and divider points are genuinely sharp, and loose in a bag they injure hands reaching in.
A case that closes, with points covered, is worth insisting on. Scissors for younger children should be the blunt-ended kind.
Do Not Over-Buy
Elaborate stationery is bought with enthusiasm in August and used for a fortnight.
The things that get used all year are dull: pens, pencils, a ruler, a calculator and something to keep them in.