School Supplies for FL Public School

Updated on July 18, 2012
M.E. asks from Bronx, NY
6 answers

Are all the supplies just gathered and then distributed as needed? Why are there items like paper towels and copy paper? Doesn't the state pay for some of these items?

What can I do next?

  • Add yourAnswer own comment
  • Ask your own question Add Question
  • Join the Mamapedia community Mamapedia
  • as inappropriate
  • this with your friends

More Answers

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

R.S.

answers from San Antonio on

The only thing that bothers me...is that none of the supplies ever come back home...what happens to all the things that are not consumable??

At the end of the year my son brought is pencil box home with one broken piece of crayon in it....

Where are the scissors (I have sent two pairs in two years)...the ruler...the left over colored pencils...the folders...the composition books (even if they are filled up shouldn't they come home with work in them?? Even a handful of used up crayons...but one broken stub of a black crayon?

I don't mind buying supplies...I would love to see some of them again...

1 mom found this helpful
Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

J.S.

answers from Tampa on

You know, this school supply thing makes me CRAZY. We have lived in other states, and Florida is the worst for what they ask the parents to provide each year, and then the worst part is that when your child actually NEEDS something, the teacher gives them something other than what you purchased for your child because your items were "pooled" for the class and given to some other child. Well, I have an issue with that. My husband and I made sure to buy nice things for our children, and good quality, and when my son who has sensory issues and a difficult time even HOLDING a pencil needs another pencil, he should get one of the ones that WE have bought for him, not some 3" long nasty mostly used one out of a box that has been chewed and has the earaser all worn or chewed off. (really gross) We bought him and his sister nice headphones for the school computers, as they asked, (not earbuds, but the kind that fit over your ear since he freaks out when anything goes in his ears), and when my daughters teacher went to give her a set for the 1st time, SHE got a red set of ear buds instead of the pink headpones that we had purchased for her. Another child was wearing her headphones. They keep the same set all year, so that other child had already written her name on the headphones. I was a little miffed.
So last year I decided to try the Florida virtual school, which is actually still considered public school, but you do it all at home. (kind of like homeschooling, except you still have a teacher assigned who you have one online "class" with every week, and you have to take all state testing and have an attendance requirement and that type of thing) Anyway, it IS public school and we (my kids) were still considered still enrolled in their county's school system. I was totally amazed and astonished by all of the supplied, textbooks, and workbooks that were sent to us by the k12 virtual school that our county's school board paid for. They sent science kits and all supplies, they sent story books, they sent graph paper, paper to learn to write in cursive, they sent all of the parent/ "learning coach books, all of the extra worksheets, and the kids both got to pick "specials. They could choose from art or music, and they supplied all of the books, CD's, DVD's, and even the instruments! They sent some clay and paper for other art projects even though art was not their "special", and this upcoming school year they can take a language. I even got pens, regular pencils, highliters, and red pencils to correct papers. I don't understand HOW THEY can afford to send all of that but the year before that my son needed a piece of paper in late April, and his teacher told him he owed her 5cents!! The only stuff we had to send back at the end of the school year was the hard cover text books and the hard cover reading books. Not any of the music stuff or science stuff, and we have rock and mineral kits, safety goggles, compasses, beakers, thermomiters, oh, and a BUNCH of math blocks too. SO many math blocks. (base 10, sorting, etc) It's CRAZY!!! SO, I do understand that the teachers spend their own money, but the district isn't spending the money well in the first place if they can afford to do this but can't afford to pay for toilet paper or paper towels in the classrooms. Just my opinion!

1 mom found this helpful
Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

V.P.

answers from Columbus on

Most schools, it seems, collect these supplies at the beginning of the year and distribute them collectively to students throughout the year. The school supplies very little nowadays -- my mother-in-law has taught first grade for 30+ years and annually spends $3000-$5000 on her classroom out of pocket. This is in addition to the hours of free tutoring she provides several days after school and the weekends she spends in her classroom preparing every friday and sunday. I can understand why they ask us to foot the bill, especially when you consider the per student per hour breakdown of their actual salary. Unfortunately, schools do not get the funding they need to compete -- they have to make choices between computers and projectors or pencils and books. If their money is going toward other things, I don't mind footing the bill for the supplies -- otherwise, it ends up coming out of the teachers' pockets.

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

D.G.

answers from Dallas on

I think each school and/or district is different in how they distribute supplies. I know here some schools pool all the supplies in the classrooms, some rooms the kids keep their individual supplies, etc. Just depends.

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

C.S.

answers from Miami on

Maria,

In FL, public schools are run by the county - not by the state. Virtually everything comes through the county - in your case Palm Beach County. You should be better off than we are in Broward County, but otherwise, our budgets are pretty bad compared to the rest of the state and also the nation! Is this for Pre-K or K? I haven't had to supply paper towels since Pre-K and we went to a private, church based Pre-K with our VPK voucher. Copy paper is probably for art / drawing type projects...at least that was our experience in kindergarten last year. My son's supply list is on the school website and it isn't bad for first grade:

Pencil sharpener
2 glue sticks
2 boxes of 16 crayons
box of tissues
box of band-aids
fat pencil with eraser top
1 loose-leaf notebook wide lined
one composition notebook
hand sanitizer
one ream of copy paper

Also, none of it is required - it specifically says they may be voluntarily purchased to aid in learning. I usually buy a bit more and give it to the teacher as a donation. To those much has been given, much is expected.

C.

K.L.

answers from Cleveland on

The state pays for very little. Most of that sort of thing comes out of the school district's budget.
I have a friend who was a preschool teacher at a pretty decent public school district up here. The teachers were actually pitching in to pay the electric bill one month. They were actually desperate to NOT have the state step in.

For Updates and Special Promotions
Follow Us

Related Questions