Color Pencils Cost How Much?

It’s back-to-school time again and you know what that means. It is time to burn money on school supplies as a price for getting rid of your kids for 7 hours a day. However, I don’t think this has to be the case and, with the right attitudes, we can all get through this shopping spree with intact wallets. The best way to address this is by focusing individually on each group involved. So that is exactly what I am going to do.

First the teachers. Ladies and gentlemen of the education professions, can we please shorten that list of back-to-school supplies “needed” for the classroom. Be honest, does each child need to bring 3 packs of crayons and 8 reams of paper. How about you sit down and really break down exactly what you need for a school year to go relatively smoothly and give that list to the parents. It has to be remembered that the original teachers had one blackboard and a piece of chalk and they did just fine.

Second, the parents. Laymen and laywomen can we please stop with the overspending on your kids. I know they are precious to you and I know that you want the best for them, but they do not need 128 Crayola color pencils and Gucci pants. A nice 12 pack of RoseArt and a pair of Levi’s will suffice. Back-to-school time for me meant the absolute necessities that I did not already have for school supplies and 2 new outfits. At least until I got old enough to buy my own stuff, but that is a different ramble. Oh, and, yes, recycling the school supplies was a big goal every year. If there was a half-used notebook at the end of one year, then the other half got used the next year. I would just buy replacement lead for the mechanical pencils instead of a new pack. Also, you would not believe how much school supplies are thrown away at the end of every year by the students. Tell your child to be on the lookout for locker cleanout day and be the trash collector. You will never buy school supplies again.

Lastly the children. Wonderful children of the world hear me. I know that childhood can be difficult and I know that new things are nice. However, you need to know that your parents are not made of money and you are a great help when you are not so needy. By the time you folks are 10 or 12, you should be making every effort to make your parents lives easier when back-to-school time comes. Your parents will appreciate it and you will become a more independent individual if you start finding creative ways to save a little dough at back-to-school time. Maybe skip out on that fancy Spider-man pencil case or that Barbie-Core backpack and get the plain Jane ones instead.

Overall, back-to-school does not have to be a massive money pit. It can, with a little effort and some ingenuity, be a simple and cost-effective process that still allows for learning to occur. Because that is the point of back-to-school. You know, to go back to school. Most cities offer it for free after all. But that is just one man’s opinion. Thanks for listening to me ramble. I appreciate it. See you next time.