It’s the time of year again when I mourn the passing of my school days. (I did it last year, too). Wasn’t it just yesterday that I was carrying my red Dalmatian backpack and Lisa Frank pencil pouch?
As I do, because I’m STILL a weirdo, I collected two School Supplies lists from the local Target and leafed through them just to see what’s still hip with kids these days. (Are iPads a requirement yet?)
- The brand game has gotten stronger. ELMER’S glue sticks, FISKAR’S scissors, CRAYOLA crayons. This doesn’t bother me that much because these are classic school brands that I’d buy for my (someday) kids.
- BUT I did see “no target brand please” on one list. REALLY? I’m not sending my kid to any school that doesn’t accept Target brand anything.
- Stretchable book covers are still a thing. And backpacks with wheels are stilled banned.
- Sharing supplies (everyone bring a box of pencils that we’ll share) and girls bring this, boys bring that are both still things.
- Some schools now require a pair of headphones, presumably for tablets or laptop use in class. (Remember the days where an old t-shirt for gym was required?)
But overall, to my complete satisfaction, not much has changed in the school supply world since I was a kid. At least there’s been one constant through the changing years! I’m sure by the time I get around to having kids it probably will but it’s my hope that it won’t. It’s my hope that while the world changes and evolves that the simple ways of learning remain while the content and subjects may change. We had computers in school when I was a kid but we went to the computer lab or the library to use them. We didn’t haven’t to type our homework. We had to write it out…in cursive.
Perhaps I’m just aging myself though. Perhaps I’m best to keep my nose out of places I don’t belong and when it gets back to point where I have to think of such things again, I will.
(But seriously, until then, I’m still going to keep pushing for cursive to be taught in schools.)
