Back to school question...

[coco4cloth]

So it turns out that my dd's grade level is sharing supplies brought in by everyone. They will share pencils, glue, scissors etc. I am not a germ freak but I just don't think this is a great idea with all the expected colds and such when school starts again. What do you think???

I also can't believe all the supplies a 1st grader needs. Turns out we will supply kleenex, bandaids, stickers and ziploc bags among all the normal stuff. This is a well funded school district too. Exactly what does each 1st grader do with 12 glue sticks

[Drummer's Wife]

I think the kids are going to share germs, even if they use separate supplies.

Depending on the type of projects, I could see using 12 glue sticks in 9 months.

I am happy not to have to buy school supplies, though. My kids' Montessori school asks for $30 to help pay for materials/supplies and for field trip fees. Much easier for me !

[A&A]

Originally Posted by Drummer's Wife

I think the kids are going to share germs, even if they use separate supplies.

Depending on the type of projects, I could see using 12 glue sticks in 9 months.

:

Glue sticks don't last long.

[eepster]

Originally Posted by coco4cloth

Exactly what does each 1st grader do with 12 glue sticks

Call me cynical, but I suspect that they ask for 12 from everybody, figuring that some parents will send in all twelve and some will send in none, and hope that they average 6 per/student.

[coco4cloth]

If every 1st grader brings in 12 that's 720 glue sticks. I just don't remember my son doing that many protects with glue in 1st grade. I spent 125 dollars in supplies. Had to buy 7 boxes of kleenex too.

[Smocked]

that is a crazy amount of glue sticks. I was reading another thread where the kids were expected to bring 48 pencils each. 48!?!?

[A&A]

Originally Posted by coco4cloth

If every 1st grader brings in 12 that's 720 glue sticks. I just don't remember my son doing that many protects with glue in 1st grade. I spent 125 dollars in supplies. Had to buy 7 boxes of kleenex too.

That's a ton of Kleenex.

[Storm Bride]

Originally Posted by Smocked

that is a crazy amount of glue sticks. I was reading another thread where the kids were expected to bring 48 pencils each. 48!?!?

DS1 had to bring 48 pencils each year in elementary school...at least until about grade 4 or so. That seems pretty standard.

[becoming]

I am appreciating our school today after reading a bunch of threads like this here and elsewhere. DS's 2nd grade school supplies for a public school were less than $25, and I even bought the expensive Five Star notebooks. All we had to get were three 3-subject notebooks, 2 vinyl folders, a pack of looseleaf paper, 2 boxes of crayons, 1 box of markers, 8 primary pencils, 1 roll of paper towels, and 1 box of Ziplock bags.

[gingerstar]

Originally Posted by eepster

Call me cynical, but I suspect that they ask for 12 from everybody, figuring that some parents will send in all twelve and some will send in none, and hope that they average 6 per/student.

Yes, I think so too. And we get some supplies back at the end of the school year, too, so I have been able to send pencils, scissors, etc. more than one year (I hear you on the 48 pencils! Oh, the insanity!!) but once glue sticks have been opened, they don't last long.
Lindsay, your list is amazingly short - you are lucky.

And how about the nearly $200 in registration fees I'll be paying, on top of at least $100 in school supplies, for my two public school kids? :

At least I am happy with our school system - it somehow seems less painful when my girls are getting a good education. My 11 yo is right now at a summer enrichment class on American history, 4 hours a day for the next two weeks, for free - it is an "invitation only" class for the middle schoolers. So at least I feel like I am getting a good deal....

[annethcz]

My kids have shared supplies at their school also. The school asks for a donation of $25-35 per student and uses that money to buy notebooks, crayons, markers, pencils, etc. for all of the kids to share.

The way this looks in practice is that at each table in the classroom has a container with pencils, colored pencils, and erasers. When kids sit down to do seat work, they have everything they need in front of them and don't need to carry around pencil cases or get out their own supplies. If the class is doing something that requires other supplies, the teacher distributes the supplies when needed. If kids are doing something with different stations or if the kids are sitting in different places, there's no problem with finding their own supplies.

Tissues, ziplock bags, bandaids, etc. are usually kept in a communal area to be used as needed.

After seeing this system in action, I think it works so much better than kids having to remember (and get out!) their own supplies multiple times per day. I'm not a germaphobe, but kids are going to be swapping germs regardless of whether or not they are sharing pencils.

[kmeyrick]

Originally Posted by coco4cloth

So it turns out that my dd's grade level is sharing supplies brought in by everyone. They will share pencils, glue, scissors etc. I am not a germ freak but I just don't think this is a great idea with all the expected colds and such when school starts again. What do you think???

I also can't believe all the supplies a 1st grader needs. Turns out we will supply kleenex, bandaids, stickers and ziploc bags among all the normal stuff. This is a well funded school district too. Exactly what does each 1st grader do with 12 glue sticks

Here's the reality- they share and borrow anyway and you can't stop them. An unclaimed yellow pencil on the floor belongs to the one who discovered it. They all touch the same door knob, same ball, same slide, poke each other's boo boos in the name of science, etc.

We have purell in every classroom in my school but I prefer soap. We will throw out the crayons if there is something going around and mop down pencils. But really, there's not much else to do besides wiping desks, chairs, and door knobs.

[AdinaL]

Moved this over to Learning at School!

[eclipse]

I think it would be impossible to keep 1st graders' supplies separate.

[coco4cloth]

here is a different take on shared supplies. Does it take away from them learning responsibility? Like way keep track of my supplies when I have a bucket full right next to me?

Last year the I was dropping some supplies off and the teacher opened her bottom desk and it was FULL of gluesticks. lol. I mean full. We have never had extra items returned at the end of the year.

Back on the germ thing, I think it's kind of weird that they have them wipe their desk down with a baby wipe. I don't think that's going to kill any germs.

I also find it odd they we are to supply the teachers grading pens.

[trailblazerbarbie]

I am hsing this year, but her supply list last year for PreK, which was only 2.5 ours a day included 24 glue sticks....I couldn't imagine going through more than six or seven per year, espcially with how little time they were actually there!

[CarrieMF]

Here the kids supplies are not pooled. Each kid's supplies go into a ziplock bag & if they need something it is taken out of there.

They usually request 30pencils. Most years less than 10 are used.

They request 6 LARGE glue sticks, usually 2 are unopened.

[Heavenly]

Originally Posted by A&A

That's a ton of Kleenex.

Not really, I have 3 kids and they can go through 1 box every few days when they have colds. If there are 21 kids in a class they could be going through 7 boxes every few days in the cold and flu season. I always send more kleenex than the school asks for because it's cheap and something I can give to help out.

[Heavenly]

Originally Posted by Storm Bride

DS1 had to bring 48 pencils each year in elementary school...at least until about grade 4 or so. That seems pretty standard.

My son's in 3rd grade this year and he has to bring 12 for his personal stash and 12 for the classroom stash. My daughter who is going into 2nd grade doesn't have to bring any.

[Heavenly]

I think my supply lists are reasonable for my kids. Here is my 2nd grader's list:

Personal
-2 orange duotangs
-1 box of 24 crayons
-1 package of 8 think washable markers

Communal
-2 sheets of white bristol board
-2 sheets of coloured bristol board
-12 large glue sticks
-1 package of 12 sharpened pencil crayons
-2 packages of white 20lbs photocopy paper
-1 package of 100 sheet construction paper
-3 boxes of kleenex
-2 packages of 3 tennis balls (for the bottom of chair legs)

Here is my 3rd grader's list:

Personal
-10 duotangs
-package of 24 pencil crayons
-1 package of crayola markers
-1 pencil case
-1 covered pencil sharpener
-1 inch 3 ring binder
-12 pencils
-1 30cm ruler
-1 pair of scissors
-12 exercise books

Communal
-4 large glue sticks
-1 bottle of white glue
-200 sheets of lined paper
-12 pencils
-4 sheets of bristol board
-2 packs of 20lb photocopy paper
-1 package of 100 sheet construction paper
-3 boxes of kleenex
-2 packs of 3 tennis balls