Reams of paper greet school days

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July 25, 2008

By JERIANNE STRANGE The Glasgow Daily Times Fri Jul 25, 2008, 10:14 AM CDT

Way back when dinosaurs roamed the Earth and I was in elementary, then junior high, then high school, getting ready to go back to school seemed fairly simple.

There was no supply list. You knew you would need pencils, maybe some pens, a notebook or binder and some paper. There were extras you could add – a calculator or a new backpack.

My brothers and I always got at least one new pair of shoes. They usually just got sneakers of some sort (Oh, my ... I’ve just dated myself; no one calls them sneakers anymore. The fashionable terms – “tennis shoes” or “running shoes” came along later.)

I usually picked out a pair of “dressy shoes” to go along with my sneakers. In seventh grade, I had to have a pair of black-and-white saddle shoes. Had to have them and wore them just about every day, as did most of my friends.

Then there were the shopping excursions for school clothes – surely there is someone else still living and breathing who remembers when ripped blue jeans and grungy T-shirts were not OK for everyday school attire. No, we didn’t have to wear knee-length skirts and dresses and the boys were not required to have collared shirts or ties, but my mother wouldn’t let us leave the house if we didn’t pass her muster. (I’m sure it didn’t help that my dad, after retiring from a career in the Air Force, taught at the high school we attended.)

School clothes usually involved a few pairs of pants – usually jeans – for my brothers and myself, some new shirts, a skirt or two and a dress for me and new socks if needed.

That was pretty much it for back-to-school shopping.

When my son went to kindergarten, I was bowled over by the list of supplies we were required to provide. Many of the items were listed as “community supplies” – meaning the class would share the lot. That explains why, among many other things, he needed to bring four boxes of 24-count crayons, four glue sticks, three rolls of paper towels, a few boxes of tissues, two containers of wet wipes and everyone was required to bring an 8-ounce bottle of hand sanitizer.

When my daughter started school the following year, I had to sit down with both supply lists and make a detailed accounting of items I needed to get. Over the years, it’s gotten worse: Three blue folders (not paper) with pockets and prongs; one red pocket folder with no prongs; one yellow vinyl-type folder with prongs but no pockets; two dry erase markers and an eraser; two boxes of 12-count No. 2 pencils, one package 3-by-5 yellow sticky notes, one package 3-by-5 orange sticky notes and one package 3-by-5 blue sticky notes. And the list went on. And that was just for one of my kids.

The son’s school supply list came home this week after middle-school orientation. Imagine my surprise when I read that I will need to supply some reams of copy paper. What?

Some other items he’ll need: 1,000 sheets of wide or college-ruled paper; 15 folders (two pockets with three prongs); five dozen No. 2 pencils (yes, five dozen – 60 pencils); three boxes of tissues and four rolls of paper towels. Optional items include a USB flash drive.

My daughter’s list isn’t nearly as stressful. Some things she needs: two 3-subject notebooks; one package of ink pens (any color); two highlighters (any color); two glue sticks; four folders for binder rings (two yellow, two blue); four packages wide-rule loose-leaf paper and five 2-pocket folders with fasteners.

So as I get ready for my annual back-to-school shopping trek, I’m making a detailed list of what each child is required to have. Maybe with some luck I’ll even be able to get them each a package of new socks and slip in a pair of sneakers.

Jerianne Strange is news editor at the Glasgow Daily Times. She can be reached at jstrange @glasgowdailytimes.com.

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