“Communal” school supply lists are rattling parents on TikTok, with some asking, “Why should I buy scissors and highlighters for other children?”
For many families, back-to-school shopping includes notebooks, markers and folders, not just for their kids but for their peers as well. While certain states require schools to provide basic supplies, classroom budgets are tight. To ensure that all children have enough supplies — we’ve seen how kids treat pencils, right? — teachers often have two options: pay for a portion of supplies themselves, usually without reimbursement, or create “wish lists” requesting families to contribute bulk items once or twice a year.
If you’re asked to buy two dozen glue sticks, it’s either because teachers expect your child to use every single one this year or they benefit students whose families can’t afford to buy supplies. Extras are also handy when items go missing or break. Teachers may ask parents to buy specific brands or basic, nondescript supplies without branding or flourishes. Sometimes teachers request bigger items, too, like whiteboard markers, disinfecting wipes and tissues.
Each teacher has their own system but most agree that no one wants to snatch Billy’s favorite Spider-Man eraser and give it to his mortal enemy. While specific guidelines vary by classroom, the purpose of general supplies is that they all look the same and are there for the taking as needed.
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Some parents contribute, others cannot. And some have complicated feelings about the responsibility.
One mom on TikTok wrote, “I spent upwards of $400 on school stuff for seven kids a year. I am not buying for a whole class” while another simply said, “Some parents don’t like to share apparently.”
Frances Chie, a mom in Ohio, wants to buy personalized supplies for her 3-year-old daughter who is entering preschool this year, but not necessarily her peers. While their school only asks families to buy supplies for their own children, Chie suspects that communal supplies are in her future.
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“If my baby wants Disney Princess pencils, a pencil case (and) erasers and I go and buy them, why wouldn’t she be using them?” Chie said in a TikTok video.
Parents and teachers responded:
- “I will label each crayon individually with my child’s name, a whole 128 pack. I don’t care.”
- “What I buy for my children is THEIRS. And I will be telling their teachers the same.”
- “As a teacher, I understand this but also, we have to pay for so much of it.”
- “First grade teacher here. The only supplies I use as community supplies are pencils and glue sticks, only because they need help managing supplies at this age. They will need 24 pencils, just not on Day One.”
- “I don’t think most parents understand how much little kids lose or break pencils and crayons.”
- “Teachers have to handle 18 to 25 children. Please just do whatever your teacher wants you to do.”
Chie tells TODAY.com that she and her daughter are excited to find supplies branded with Disney, Bluey and unicorns.
“If parents are going school shopping with their little ones, and picking out things that (reflect) their special interests ... those kids should use those supplies,” she says.
Chie says she was surprised to learn that many teachers pay for classroom decorations and supplies with their own money and she would be happy to donate more communal items, like paper towels, hand sanitizer and tissues to the classroom, but draws the line at more personal items.
Sarah Spikeston of Texas pays a flat fee to her daughter’s private school to purchase communal supplies while her son’s private Montessori preschool allows for both personal and shared items.
“As someone who was chronically poor growing up and homeless for parts of (my youth), meeting the needs of all kids, regardless of their circumstances, is really important to me,” Spikeston, a community college professor in Texas, tells TODAY.com via email.
She adds: “I know what it’s like to be the kid that’s left without and that classrooms run more efficiently when they are fully stocked and there’s some level of uniformity in supplies.”
Spikeston says some parents dislike buying generic brands but kids don’t care about sharing supplies, especially when they’re expressing their individuality elsewhere.
“We have to remember that any of us could begin to struggle in the blink of an eye,” says Spikeston. “Those of us that are blessed to be able to afford school supplies have a duty to the community because the community in turn funds our public schools.”
Todd Bloch, a middle school science teacher in Michigan, understands that supplies are expensive and that families may have brand favorites or want to label their children’s supplies.
Supply lists are a “balancing act” for teachers, too.
“It’s difficult to know exactly what we need going into the school year, especially when store sales usually happen in June,” Bloch tells TODAY.com.
When parents can afford to buy supplies, says Bloch, it saves teachers from diving into their classroom budgets so they can spend that money elsewhere — like baking soda and vinegar to demonstrate chemical reactions with a “cool” fizz, he says.
With experience, Bloch has fine-tuned his supply list: kids trace perfect circles using cheap paper coffee cups instead of compasses, technological information can be stored in the cloud versus flash drives, and standard pencils trump refillable mechanical tools. When Bloch’s students built solar ovens with aluminum foil and cardboard, they brought in their family’s used pizza boxes. It helps that Bloch’s school reimburses him a portion of what he spends. If Bloch wants to do something special, like reward his students with Jolly Ranchers, he pays out of his own pocket.
Bloch communicates his recommendations for supplies to parents and reassures students they will be fully prepared, one way or another.
“Teachers just want to create an equitable experience for students,” says Bloch. “If parents can’t help make that happen, most teachers totally understand.”
This story first appeared on TODAY.com. More from TODAY:
