What will I buy for back to school supplies?

What school supplies should I buy?

• Answer:

  BASICS - No. 2 pencils - Mechanical pencils - Colored pencils - Pencil sharpener (hand-held with a top to collect shavings) - A large pink eraser - Ballpoint pens (Get a few red ink ones too, because some teachers have students do peer editing.) - Highlighters - Spiral-bound or composition notebooks - Loose-leaf notebook paper (Teachers can be picky about paper. Some middle schools ask that students use the college-ruled variety.) - A ruler with English and metric measurements ORGANIZATIONAL HELPERS - Several three-ring binders (Some teachers require that a binder be used exclusively for their class.) - A three-hole punch (a regular one or one that fits in a three-ring binder) - A pencil case that fits in a binder - Binder dividers (The kinds with pockets are good for loose papers.) - Pocket folders - Folders that fit in binders - A small notebook to record assignments - A calendar for scheduling assignments - A sturdy, supportive backpack (Some schools do not permit rolling backpacks because of space considerations, so check with your school before considering this option.) - Two combination locks (If the school lockers do not have built-in locks, you might need one for the hallway and one for the gym.) - Flash Drive to save any important documents STUDY AIDS - Index cards, ruled and unruled (These are great for making flash cards.) - Highlighters - A calculator (Check with the math teacher first before investing in an expensive one. Graphing calculators, for example, are required in many high school math classes. Teachers advise parents not to buy a calculator with more functions than students will use.)