School Supplies About This Page:

[scrappyjae]

With school starting for some and just around the corner for others, I was wondering what the most expensive items are that you had to buy for school.

Here, we have to buy a certain Texas Instruments calculator that costs over $100 for math classes. Having 2 kids needing one, that is quite a pretty penny for me.

I wait a little before we buy back to school clothes as it is so hot around here that my kids still can wear some of their summer clothes for about a month.

[Carousel96]

DD is in 5th grade, so expensive isn't much of an issue. Our biggest single item is, I think, the silly 7 pocket expanding file folder. The hardest to find, though -- a sketchbook for art, which has to be 8 1/2 by 11, spiral bound, with pockets. The whole neighborhood was on the hunt; whoever found them was to buy 7 and sell them off to the other moms.
My vent -- they mailed an "early" shopper list with report cards in June. Which doesn't look much like the final list that arrived with schedules this weekend. And the website still has last year's supply list, which is dramatically different! The local stores printed out the ones from the website, so we all bought the wrong stuff.

[llgmommy]

An electronic Dictionary.....I was just amazed these kids need to leard how to use a good ole' fashioned Webster....they will never be able to do a research paper....

[iamgrumpy]

130 for my Graphing Calculator, $155 for my College Algebra book, and this semesters books so far $326.

[guitardiva]

Of course mine and DD18s books (college). It is a real racket I tell ya. I think I am studying for the wrong field. We are both full time. My books were the cheapest I have spent so far, due to the fact that I get to use my Anatomy book for part II of the class. Still yet the total was close to $500! DD18 is not done yet but her books look like they will be around the 8-900 dollar mark.

For my other kids the most expensive thing has been a Graphing Calculator.

[Teresa]

For the kids: this year will be easy. Lauren doesn't need the almost $200 calculator yet (will next year), and Kathryn has everything. So, in our house, for the kids it's just the basics: paper, coloring pencils, green, red, blue and black ink pens, etc.

For me: One of my books costs $300! I have one class that requires 9 books between $4 and $150 each.

When we went on our tour of Ball State University for DD Kathryn, the bookstore there is trying something different this year: book RENTAL!! Pay about 1/3 the cost of the book, and just RENT it for the semester! Seems like a much better solution. Unfortunately, my university isn't doing that.

[JoanneS]

Yes! The graphing calculator! I bought the silly thing and then my DD found an app for her ipod touch that she uses instead. Rrrrrrgh.

[Chrissi]

My son's cyber charter provides everything he'll need except printer paper and pencils. This year, I might get to buy a few notebooks since he'll be in 3rd grade and it looks like we didn't get a ream of writing paper in our box of supplies this year. The school provides one printer cartridge per year, so I'll probably have to pay to refill at least one cartridge for $5-10 at Walgreens. That's it.

In kindergarten, they set us up with a PC, flat screen monitor, printer/scanner/copier, webcam, headphones, microphone, and thumb drive and we still have them. (We did replace the webcam last school year as it was getting quirky half-way through 2nd grade.) The school even reimburses us for our ISP bills.

Every year, they send supplies via UPS at the beginning of the year: software updates, course books, additional children's literature for every subject, print-outs, art supplies, science supplies, and phys ed supplies. So there's very little for me to purchase and it takes us forever to go through a single pack of pencils. It's not like they can get lost between home and school since we do school work in our living room.

[Huntermom]

Through high school the most expensive item was a graphing calculator. Two of the three used the same one though college so it wasn't a great expensive if you look at how much use it got. My DD's first one broke after a few years, so she had two through school.

The most expensive class was my DD's organic chemistry (much more expensive than both her brothers' and she used a different book). $350.00 for the text alone and I don't know how much more for the model kit, lab book and all the other extras. It was over $500.00 total. My nephew's Organic chem class, however, was over $800.00 for supplies.

[dejavu]

I'm looking back fondly at the days when the graphing calculator was the big expense. DS's required laptop for his college major was $1800 plus $700 of required software.

[guitardiva]

Originally Posted by dejavu

I'm looking back fondly at the days when the graphing calculator was the big expense. DS's required laptop for his college major was $1800 plus $700 of required software.

Wow what kind of laptop? Must be a Mac
DD is starting at U of M in the Fall. The sent info about discounts on many computer programs. You may want to see if they have discounts like that at you r son's school. We have to go get her laptop loaded up.

[Colexis Mom]

No real expenses here this year. I don't think anything was over $3. I'm not complaining!

[magic mickey]

My DS needs the graphing calc. this year but luckily I just got one for DD 2 yrs ago and it works perfectly, so DS will be using that one. My DD, just spent $700 on books for her classes this semester and just found out from a friend that the one we just paid $170 for wasn't used for the whole class. DD is going to ask the professor on the first day and if not then she can get a full refund. I remember last year we bought 2 books that she never used in class, luckily they weren't too expensive

[chillepepa]

The calculator for math. but it will last them forever. I still have mine from high school. But I learned long ago, to buy school supplies when they go on clearance. I would buy what they needed for the school year. Then watch for the stores to put supplies on clearance. Kids will always need notebook and loose leaf paper, pencils, erasers. Depending on grade/classes - rulers, protactors, compass, crayons, markers. I would start stocking up what I can. This year, the girls last year in school. All I need to buy is engineering graph paper. It is great!

[scrappyjae]

Ok, don't feel so bad about the calculator anymore. But...the class ring this year is going to be a killer. Two years ago I had to talk my DS into getting one...this year my DD Princess (she acts like one, believe me) loves jewelry and it won't be so easy to talk her down to a simple one.

I did luck out with college for the DS, so far I only have had to pay $2 for him, he has paid the rest. We will see how that goes once classes start next month.