Ridiculous school supplies thread!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I can't think of anything. I order our school supplies through the PTA. It's amazing!

What is ridiculous about a pencil sharpener and some play doh?

Why can't the classroom have a pencil sharpener that the whole class uses? That worked for my kindergarten class in 1990; it should work now.

You have no idea what actually went on in that class when you were a student.

+1. The pencil sharpener is the proverbial water cooler of elementary classrooms. Plus the electric ones break really quickly after only a bit of misuse. They cost about $35 through the MCPS warehouse. I have $200 of school money to spend on supplies for my classroom for the entire year. I need my pencil sharpener to last for at least 2 years. Individual pencil sharpeners, plus keeping the class sharpener behind my desk, help ensure that can happen.

Who said anything about an electric sharpener? How freaking lazy do you want kids to be that they can't hand crank a pencil sharpener nailed to the wall for DECADES? Those things are workhorses, and last forever.

PP you quoted. The sharpeners nailed to the walls were removed from the walls the year my school underwent a renovation/addition. I don't know why, but they were. So that's not an option in my school.

[Anonymous]

There are crank sharpeners that suction to a surface. So electric is not the only option, besides that they are insanely noisy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I can't think of anything. I order our school supplies through the PTA. It's amazing!

What is ridiculous about a pencil sharpener and some play doh?

Why can't the classroom have a pencil sharpener that the whole class uses? That worked for my kindergarten class in 1990; it should work now.

You have no idea what actually went on in that class when you were a student.

+1. The pencil sharpener is the proverbial water cooler of elementary classrooms. Plus the electric ones break really quickly after only a bit of misuse. They cost about $35 through the MCPS warehouse. I have $200 of school money to spend on supplies for my classroom for the entire year. I need my pencil sharpener to last for at least 2 years. Individual pencil sharpeners, plus keeping the class sharpener behind my desk, help ensure that can happen.

Who said anything about an electric sharpener? How freaking lazy do you want kids to be that they can't hand crank a pencil sharpener nailed to the wall for DECADES? Those things are workhorses, and last forever.

My parents have one in the basement of their house where they have lived since 1970. It's in the workshop. For years when we kids needed to sharpen a pencil, we got up from the dining room table where we were doing our homework, walked downstairs, sharpened the pencils, and then walked back upstairs. It still works fine.

Of course, it might not have lasted thought that many years of classroom use.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

My parents have one in the basement of their house where they have lived since 1970. It's in the workshop. For years when we kids needed to sharpen a pencil, we got up from the dining room table where we were doing our homework, walked downstairs, sharpened the pencils, and then walked back upstairs. It still works fine.

Of course, it might not have lasted thought that many years of classroom use.

There is also the issue of every time a child gets up to sharpen a pencil, it disrupts the whole class.

I am speaking from my years of experience as an elementary school student in classrooms with metal pencil sharpeners bolted to the wall.

[Anonymous]

My child's school doesn't allow any sharpeners. Guess they are worried they'll get turned into to shanks.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I can't think of anything. I order our school supplies through the PTA. It's amazing!

What is ridiculous about a pencil sharpener and some play doh?

Why can't the classroom have a pencil sharpener that the whole class uses? That worked for my kindergarten class in 1990; it should work now.

You have no idea what actually went on in that class when you were a student.

+1. The pencil sharpener is the proverbial water cooler of elementary classrooms. Plus the electric ones break really quickly after only a bit of misuse. They cost about $35 through the MCPS warehouse. I have $200 of school money to spend on supplies for my classroom for the entire year. I need my pencil sharpener to last for at least 2 years. Individual pencil sharpeners, plus keeping the class sharpener behind my desk, help ensure that can happen.

Who said anything about an electric sharpener? How freaking lazy do you want kids to be that they can't hand crank a pencil sharpener nailed to the wall for DECADES? Those things are workhorses, and last forever.

I went through three of those "work horses" in my 8th grade class this year. Maybe they aren't made like they used to, maybe my students were exceedingly rough, or...? Anyway, the kids couldn't use it when it worked anyway. I'd give them a brand new pencil and it would be a nub. These were good kids who just couldn't figure it out.

I bought a zillion of the little sharpeners for the kids to use instead. Sanity, restored.

[Anonymous]

Have our kids really become that incompetent and stupid?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I can't think of anything. I order our school supplies through the PTA. It's amazing!

What is ridiculous about a pencil sharpener and some play doh?

Why can't the classroom have a pencil sharpener that the whole class uses? That worked for my kindergarten class in 1990; it should work now.

You have no idea what actually went on in that class when you were a student.

+1. The pencil sharpener is the proverbial water cooler of elementary classrooms. Plus the electric ones break really quickly after only a bit of misuse. They cost about $35 through the MCPS warehouse. I have $200 of school money to spend on supplies for my classroom for the entire year. I need my pencil sharpener to last for at least 2 years. Individual pencil sharpeners, plus keeping the class sharpener behind my desk, help ensure that can happen.

So true! Sharpening your pencil was never just about getting a sharp pencil.

[Anonymous]

Those classroom sharpeners can "eat" pencils. As a first grade teacher, I sharpened them for the kids. It was better for the pencils and cut down on wasted time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Those classroom sharpeners can "eat" pencils. As a first grade teacher, I sharpened them for the kids. It was better for the pencils and cut down on wasted time.

Please, won't someone think of the pencils?!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There are crank sharpeners that suction to a surface. So electric is not the only option, besides that they are insanely noisy.

We had a teacher that tried it. 3-4 times it just ended up exploding because the kid yanked it and then it fell. We bought an electric one as a class it burned out a week later. You want the dome on the sharpener because otherwise it becomes a mess in the class.

Maybe we should give teachers a little credit that they have figured out some of thse problems.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Maybe we should give teachers a little credit that they have figured out some of these problems.

Thank you! I sometimes feel as though people just assume that teachers can't possibly have thought about anything. The tone of these posts is never "I bet she has some good reasons, let me ask what they are", it's "She didn't do what I expected, or what I remember from 30 years ago, so it must be wrong/ridiculous/thoughtless/stupid."

If your teacher asks for a 69 cent item, why not just assume she has a reason and buy it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Maybe we should give teachers a little credit that they have figured out some of these problems.

Thank you! I sometimes feel as though people just assume that teachers can't possibly have thought about anything. The tone of these posts is never "I bet she has some good reasons, let me ask what they are", it's "She didn't do what I expected, or what I remember from 30 years ago, so it must be wrong/ridiculous/thoughtless/stupid."

If your teacher asks for a [b]69 cent item, why not just assume she has a reason and buy it. [/b][b]

This.

[Anonymous]

OP -- here's my take on the very specific supply request... it is quite likely that the school/PTA arranged for pre-ordering school suppply kits from Staples. When they pre-order, they want the teachers to be VERY specific about the item that Staples has to put into the kit otherwise, Staples can put the lowest quality product into it. So, the teachers probably don't care if your child gets a pencil sharpener from Staples... they just want him/her to have a small pencil sharpener.

As for crazy things I cannot find... plastic two-pocket folders NO Brads, but must have three-hole punch! (and orange, red, yellow, blue and green are needed). I understand the colors b/c they use different ones for different subjects. But, I am pretty certain these do not exist (at least not at Target or Walmart). I ended up finding plastic 2-pocket folders with no brads at Target and I used my paperpunch (at home) to punch three holes in each one. (not entirely easy b/c paper punches don't like plastic!).

Anyway -- there is no way most of the kids at an AAP center are going to have what was listed in the supply list.

Other ridiculous requests from previous years --- 18 (!!!) glue sticks (large). Seriously -- what in god's name are these kids doing by going through TWO large glue sticks PER MONTH??? That's like $20 in glue sticks ALONE for ONE kid! Plus, those glue sticks don't even work. Why can't they just learn to use Elmers glue like the rest of us did so that it actually STICKS. And maybe they should spend less time glue-ing and more time learning to write words/sentences?

[Anonymous]

Post 07/30/2014 14:09 Subject: Ridiculous school supplies thread!

OP -- here's my take on the very specific supply request... it is quite likely that the school/PTA arranged for pre-ordering school suppply kits from Staples. When they pre-order, they want the teachers to be VERY specific about the item that Staples has to put into the kit otherwise, Staples can put the lowest quality product into it. So, the teachers probably don't care if your child gets a pencil sharpener from Staples... they just want him/her to have a small pencil sharpener.

As for crazy things I cannot find... plastic two-pocket folders NO Brads, but must have three-hole punch! (and orange, red, yellow, blue and green are needed). I understand the colors b/c they use different ones for different subjects. But, I am pretty certain these do not exist (at least not at Target or Walmart). I ended up finding plastic 2-pocket folders with no brads at Target and I used my paperpunch (at home) to punch three holes in each one. (not entirely easy b/c paper punches don't like plastic!).

Anyway -- there is no way most of the kids at an AAP center are going to have what was listed in the supply list.

Other ridiculous requests from previous years --- 18 (!!!) glue sticks (large). Seriously -- what in god's name are these kids doing by going through TWO large glue sticks PER MONTH??? That's like $20 in glue sticks ALONE for ONE kid! Plus, those glue sticks don't even work. Why can't they just learn to use Elmers glue like the rest of us did so that it actually STICKS. And maybe they should spend less time glue-ing and more time learning to write words/sentences?

PP--did you bother to read your PP's post before writing this? If not, please read it again--SLOWLY.
Teachers know what works and what doesn't in their classrooms. Please buy what they ask for. If you can't find it before school starts, have your child ask the teacher where they found it.