70 pencils (a school supply rant)

They have is a ridiculous list of supplies needed, plus a list of optional things. Then the dump it all in a pile to distribute it. Don't the needy kids get theirs free anyway? Then today we get another list plus a $10 art fee. Course that jumbotron sure does look good down at the stadium.

Rant over, as you were...

Yes the needy kids get theirs free----from you.

don't forget all the fundraisers you have to do also. School has become one big scam for money.

As an old I resent paying school taxes so little urchins that won�t stay off my grass can learn to color in the lines

I said the exact same damn thing!!!

Then I watched this and literally changed my mind haha

WWJD?


Whoever oppresses the poor shows contempt for their Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honors God.

� Proverbs 14:31


Whoever is kind to the poor lends to the Lord, and he will reward them for what they have done.

� Proverbs 19:17


Those who give to the poor will lack nothing, but those who close their eyes to them receive many curses.

� Proverbs 28:27

Sorry but your wrong

Please elaborate.


And it's you're, not your.

My daughter is an 8th grade English teacher. There are no Jumbotrons at her school. My empathy and support go to her.

If one of her students needs a pencil, she will give them one that she bought with her own money. Even if they are one of your children.

The poor kids are taken care of and I have no problem with that, but I do have a problem with me supplying it when you have a multimillion dollar stadium. I've already paid taxes and I'm by no means well off.

just cause we are asked to help the poor does not mean that we have to do it every time they stick their hand out. I choose to help them through the outreach at my church. That doesn't mean I have to help them at my kids school, at the homeless shelter, and every other way there is to help them. I also am not anywhere near rich, so my ability to help is not the same as someone who is wealthy.

well said. Arlington ISD just spent millions building an indoor practice facility for football at each of the high schools (6).

Thank you for the English lesson! Much appreciated.

It�s about money, not poor people....do I need to say more?? Or should I go into everything that our taxes pay for?? Cause if the poor get the �free carp� it�s our taxes bit if we just buy what�s on the list then taxes could be lower......

I thought the Texas State Lottery was going to solve all school funding issues
Would like to see where all those millions and millions go

FYI!! I bought the 72 pencils, 12 glue sticks, Lysol wipes, Kleenex, markers and whatever you want to throw in there because it�s what the school asked! Grow up cause it�s not what your think

The football field is completely separate from the education funds.

General fund. Same place the money for your fishing license goes.

First day of school this morning, daughter started 5th grade, got to her class with the required 200 bucks worth of supplies, bins setup all over the classroom labeled for all the items, about half brought what was on the list, so I assume the other half gets what's in there, what happened to the days were they were your supplies and had to be responsible for your own sh*t, naw, that half that didn't bring any gets your stuff, lame!!!

Did you know that our underpaid teachers, on average, spend $500 a year out of their own pockets on school supplies for kids???

And really, $200 for one kid?? I seriously doubt it cause I have a senior, 6th grader, 7th grader, and 1st!! I know the cost

Idk if it was 200, it was close though, when I went to school you were responsible for your own supplies, if you ran out parents bought more, it wasn't a go fund me for the whole class

I spent $120 for three kids this year on supplies and bought what was on the list. Some of it is still in my house cause it was to much. Not sure where you shopped but Walmart is your friend

holy cow , Mine already had a fundraiser. Thier goal was to raise 150 per kid,, I just wrote a check. Good lord .

When I was a kid, if I forgot my pencil, I was allowed to buy one for a dime. The same with other supplies. If I couldn�t do that, I would fail for the day. Why can�t we still do that?

Point is it's not my responsibility to provide supplies for the whole class, I provide for my child, as well should the other parents, take for instance the meth heads across the street, they would rather blow their money on speed instead of providing the supplies for their kids knowing that the list is over providing so their kids have the same amount of supplies, easy way out, ain't down with that

I don't mind it. I buy what's on the list and then some and try to dominate the fund raisers. I knew this going into it.

nailed it. I learned real quick not to buy the cool stuff my daughter wanted after I found out it all goes into a class pile and is split up. So no more buying the nice pencils or binders for my kid when she won't get it.

We dominate the science fair projects, it's a big deal

Is this post about school supplies or health care premiums? It�s the same isn�t it?

I hate fundraisers. Why can't we just give an extra $20 rather than sending our kids (or the parents at work) around trying to sell bad chocolate bars, or cookie dough.

Of all the things to get upset about. Just be glad you were able to have kids. Some people were born with a narrow urethrae and will never have the experience of buying their kids school supplies so they can learn.

Same issue, the teacher should not spend a dime.

Yep.

That is BS... Bradford spelled gimmedats wrong FYI. Typical of him though.

I worked in the school system for 12 and 1/2 years and I retired in February. Hope you are sitting down because I'm going to lay it on the line. The list for supplies given to the parents is a joke. The waste of $$$ in todays school system is unbelievable. It makes me so mad to see the amount of taxpayer $$$ thrown into a dumpster year after year. That's right, everything you bought went to a landfill. I have thrown away unopened boxes of new textbooks, pens, pencils, markers, glue, construction paper, and the list goes on into a dumpster at the end of each year for 12 and 1/2 years. Cafeteria tables (new), student desk, office furniture, and more has gone to auction and sold for pennies on the dollar. I have seen tens of thousands of dollars thrown away year after year. I get sick just writing this. The school system waste more money then you can imagine. I wish I could do something about it but it's going to take someone in Austin to step up to the plate and say enough is enough. I don't know what else to say. PIZZED OFF!!!

I don�t mind buying supplies for under privledged kids. But I have always had a problem with the money spent on big sports in schools. When questioning the school boards about this their pat answer is that sports stuff is funded by boosters and private donors so it can�t be used for education.

......drops mic!

wow

My boy got a math book this year we have been duct taping together,

But sportsball is more important than education. I've always been dismayed by the amount of funding and focus athletics receive over academics. Not to mention the preferential treatment athletes get. I get down to the school board meetings I suppose.

Sportsball trains them in group rivalries so they can be good consumers of sports the rest of their lives.

Public school sports provides trained athletes for college ball and college ball provides trained athletes for pro ball.

If you don't participate in sports at the public school level the billionaire team owners won't have the players to make more money.

I think somewhere in Proverbs it also says, Forsake foolishness.

Interpret however you like.

Sorry, no sympathy from me.

Yes, the poor kids, and those who forget, and those who parents are to lazy....all get taken care of by the TEACHER. Not the school. The teacher is buying the supplies that the parents don't bring.

My wife is a teacher and we typically spend around $500 for supplies for her students every year. We added it up the other night and we are just under $1000 for this year. Its ridiculous, and no, there is no reimbursement from the school.

A much different experience than my wife or my mother who were teachers for 25 years. They threw nothing away. As I said previously, they spent their own money to make sure the kids had what they needed.

believe me, I don't think that's right either.

This situation presents an excellent learning opportunity for the urchins. If the students had to pay for the supplies out of summer earnings or allowance or whatever, and then the supplies they purchased were dumped into a pile and the "wealth" was redistributed to all the students, including a few you contributed nothing, those kids would be a lot less susceptible to the mind control attempts of the socialist re-education camps called colleges they will deal with later in life.

My wife used to do this too. I told her to stop because it's stupid, and they figure out how to make it work and we're not out 100s of dollars a year. She can eventually get stuff from the school to fill in what they don't have.

I know the waste is not in all school districts but the one I worked in was very wasteful. The district is very well off and as for many of the teachers as well. The money the teachers spend is to decorate their classrooms. I worked in a ritzy district and neighborhood.

Why try when free is readily available?

Proverbs 31:6 6Give strong drink unto him that is ready to perish, and wine unto those that be of heavy hearts.

So has everything else.

About half the kids that come to my class don't have supplies and I teach elementary school. I make them line up and face the other direction from the class. If school supplies are not important enough for them to bring, their not important enough to teach! I figure it will just get them ready for real life... line up and get your lone star card, wic voucher, section 8 voucher, etc.. I'm tired of wasting my time with these dummies! Just serve them lunch and send them home!

You might want to consider a new profession, for your sake and the sake of the kids. Also, "their" should be "they're".

I'm an educator, English III.

Being in the education system is hard, but of course, it's all about "choice."

Reading and listening to people talk about teachers and the education system is also hard, and it's all about "choice" as well.

I try not to complain about education much, or my job. I can read enough about it in forums.

"Purchased school supplies" is a mainstay in elementary and even into middle/junior high, not high school. If my students don't have supplies, a pencil and a piece of paper, they don't care. They are too busy on their phones anyway.

Addendum: Nobody pays to see a teacher "teach," but they will pay to go watch a ball game! You've all heard that before.

...no wisdom

So a 2nd grader should be punished for their parents decision. I've had a lot of kids that were in this situation that went on to big things because someone got supplies for them and were given the opportunity to he successfull. The poverty cycle and poor choice cycle will continue.

no a 2nd grader should not be punished for the bad decisions of their parents, but my child and I should not be forced to pick up their parents slack either. Nor should the teacher. Give those kids some basic supplies, and let them be the ones to do the fundraisers to help cover the cost. Don't make it where my kid can't have the binders, folders, pencils they want because they will all be put in a classroom supply bucket where the kid who doesn't bring supplies gets the mechanical pencils they want and my kid ends up with the basic #2 yellow pencil.

I don't think you have to pay for school supplies here.

LOL

I always thought I would send my kids to private school. I must have been on crack. LOL

http://www.popschool.net/admissions/tuition__rates

Its almost football season where even the carpiest teams have state of the art equipment and stadiums. But god forbid I have to pay for dang pencils for these trash children. for the love, buncha real Christians on here.

How many times does it have to be stated the school building itself, athletic facilities, athletic equipment, band hall, band instruments, etc have NOTHING to do with the funds used for education?

well, we got the art list yesterday. more pencils, more glue, more markers. Even if only half the kids bring the required amount, that's 144,000 pencils.

Teachers spending their own money on classroom supplies is their choice. My ex whined about it every year then she would run out and buy things to make the classroom pretty. Then write it off on her taxes.
As far as underpaid, it was their career choice and they knew the pay going in, if not they should of researched their career path better.

I didn't bring my own supplies as a kid either... No pencils no grammar lessons...

Not money, it's a pencil scam.

I think most understand that they come from different funds, but it's the fact that those things are so well funded still from tax dollars, and the actual education part of schools are not funded as well.

I've dubbed it pencilgate.

I think you�d be very surprised at how many have no clue they come from different funds. Just read back through this thread.

New $5 million scoreboard!!! passes easy. Lunches for poor kids!! nope, not on my dime. denied. There is only so much you can tax a community so if a large portion is being spent however way it still comes from the same pot.

How do you go through that many pencils ?

Seems like it all comes from tax money one way or another.

Isn't that the number of the "remnant" in the book of Revelation? Hmmm?

I meant that this thread if read educates us about the different funds. I agree the average person doesn't know that it comes from different funds. Like it has been stated it does all come from school taxes so before it is split up is where the problem is, that sports gets multi-millions while the actual education part of a districts budget struggles to feed and supply students with the needed books, computers, ect.

it's all a JW thing!

Another thing that gets to me is we bought everything on THE list that the school district says my daughter needs before school, and every afternoon this week she has come home stating she needs colored pencils, book covers, and other stuff. Why wasn't this on the required list to start with.

What happened to the free book covers we used to get? They had big ads for the local State Farm agent or something else that I assumed paid to have them printed. From some of the post on here the duct tape that holds the book together should be enough. Again books held together by duct tape in the class, but new jumbo trons and stadiums for the football team.

Yeah...that part too.

I bet each one of those kids who doesn't bring their own supplies has a parent who has an Iphone or some other phone that cost several hundred bucks, and drives a car made in the past 3-4 years.

The school my wife teaches at provides all supplies for all the students PK-12. Which includes an I-pad for certain grades. She also gets an annual budget for her classroom.

It should never be my responsibility to pay for others school supplies or meals. I don�t know where you guys are located that has subpar books, but you may want to discuss that with your school board. My kids have never complained about the quality of their school books. That may have something to do with them being issued iPads from the district. When we moved to this area, the schools and school district were a major factor in our decision. It sounds like we made a good choice.

Yeah for what my property school taxes are I feel confident they are well taken care of. It seems there are construction type projects going on non-stop at the FM schools. They spend money like they have a printing machine and still want more and properly taxes are out of sight.

Very few schools use text books because they arent aligned to the TEKS, I haven't worked for a district in years that use a textbook.

Buy some school supplies, they watch your kids for 9 months out of the year and can't even beat em when they are bad.

They do have a printing machine it's called property owner.

I think that's what this whole thread is about. No one should have to buy supplies for other peoples kids. Yet, while this is happening districts are building $60+M football stadiums, multi-million dollar indoor practice facilities, new weight rooms, ect. Why isn't the massive amount of tax dollars collected used for books and supplies, so teachers and parents aren't supplying other peoples kids with supplies, as opposed to new athletic equipment and facilities?

I came up through LISD so you know it can�t be that great.

Do you think that we would have these ridiculous supply list year after year if we did away with the Robin Hood Plan?
Are these not the kind of expenses what the Robin Hood Plan is for anyways?

This topic came up again late last night with the wife, she told me last month at daughter's cheer camp a group of moms were standing around chatting/gossiping more likely, but anywho school supply shopping came up, she said one mother chimed in with "oh I don't buy supplies, I get my kids backpacks, shoes, and clothes of their choice, the school provides supplies anyway", this is not true, the responsible parents that buy everything on the list provide for them, that mentality drives me crazy, and my wife was really disheartened by it because this lady is not poor, druggie, or anything, pretty well off actually, so it sux when you buy all this stuff you assume is for your child only to see it dumped in bins and laid out buffet style, and damn Bob that's alot of friggn pencils

I'm betting they never even use the pencils.

Not one single athletic department is taking food or school supply money from little Johnny.

Now, let me explain. Thousands of people will fill those stadiums on Friday evenings to cheer on their local team. You see those thousands of people pay money for those seats and money for the food and drinks they buy, which goes back into the very athletic department they are there to see. You know what else those thousands of people do before and after the games? They go out to eat, shop, etc which then brings in restaurants and other shops, which in turn is a boost to the local economy. He�s something else to consider, those new businesses have become what? They have now become local taxpayers!!! There is your free economics lesson for today.

That may be the case with a hand full of schools but I have yet to work in one single high school athletic department that totally funded itself, in fact everyone I have worked for lost money. The facts are taxes are collected and divided up into different funds. I will say this, it makes me upset when people agree to that bond or pay those prices for football games but won't participate in fundraising that does help contribute to classroom supplies. It just shows where priorities are.

so according to your example there is lots of money generated but no money for school supplies?

I�ll type it slower so maybe you can understand.T H E Y....A R E ......N O T ..... F R O M ..... T H E.... S A M E .... F U N D I N G

We have to do the same thing here. The list was longer this year. Many kids showed up with multiple bags of supplies that were "required". Some showed up with nothing.

My wife and I just shook our heads and helped our granddaughter carry her bags of supplies to her assigned desk. We were instructed to lay them out on top of the desk and leave them.

It is what it is. Better us that one of the poor teachers spending their own money.

That is correct coach, I should have been more clear.

Doesn't this subject come up every August? And nothing ever changes....even our opinions.

Redistribution.

My oldest is going to kindergarten next week. They offered some sort of package you just pay for that include all the supplies. I think it was $70. I�m sure not every kid will buy one so they�ll have to share. Whatever, not worth my time to worry about it.

We do the same thing. The supplies will be on their desk the first day of school. I believe we go through the PTA to buy them.

Yeah that's the same argument they used to fund the soccer stadium in Frisco. And the argument for the baseball park. It didn't work out that way. Any restaurant owner in the area will tell you they don't get extra business from the games. The ones that are still in business anyway.

I just thought of a solution. Yesterday I got a phone call and an email from the City of Houston basically informing me that it�s hot outside. That service must cost the city something. Let�s take those funds next year and apply them to buying school supplies for poor kids. No one needs to be told it�s hot outside. It�s Texas, it�s August, it�s going to be hot.

Have you seen that area lately?!?!

I make sure my kids get perfect attendance so the school make extra dolla dolla bills.

Yes, it is the teachers choice to buy supplies for their students. It is also a sign of their dedication to the EDUCATION part of being a teacher and their dedication to those kids. The tax write-off is limited to $250 or $500, its not much.

Not in a while, but for the first 5-6 years it went downhill - before it started rebounding. The point is, the businesses in those areas don't get business from the stadium like you're claiming they do. If they did, it wouldn't have taken years to rebound. What it's like now is not due to the stadiums. It's due to general economic progress.

What you also are wrong about is the money does not always go directly back into athletics, it goes into facilities. It costs a lot of money to put on an athletic event, especially football. Electricity, water, paying crews to clean up after the game, security, and the list goes on and on. Many times the concession stands are run by other organizations as a fundraiser for their groups.

Businesses pay a flat rate just like homeowners for property taxes, so it doesn't matter if 5 or 100 people eat in their restaurant.

There's an economics lesson for you.

They do collect sales tax...which I'm sure everyone is paying (Joe T's not withstanding).

No money went back into our facilities. Water and electric were paid from the utilities account, clean up was done by custodial and maintenance night crew. Schools had paid police officers and yes, some paid deputies at games, and a few volunteers. Our Facility Director had a budget and when that budget was gone, it was gone. There was no robbing Peter to pay Paul.

But they are all figured into your tax bill.

I realize that but the athletic funding and educational funding are not from the same. They are completely separate.

everyone understands that, but its ALL tax dollars from the same area. Does a homeowner care when his taxes go up that the funding for athletics and education are separate?

Then why do you keep implying the athletic department is taking away education funds? It�s ok that you didn�t get picked for the team, bud. Time to move on.

Not all schools have a police department. Custodians do clean up in some districts but they are hourly employees, so they are either paid overtime or they are paid through extra duty pay to cover those hours which comes from facilities.

Jay, I get what you are saying, but at the end of the day if a school raises $100 through taxes and that money is split into different funds and coded as such, say $50 educational, $50 athletics. You can sit it anyway you want but at the end of the day that money comes from taxes and if taxpayers actually took the time to see that they could go to the school board and say why isn't $75 going to educational and $25 to athletics? However you split it you have tax dollars going into a school district that their job is to educate, not field a football team. So they are taking from the educational setting.

Why do you need a year's supply on day one?

Does anyone check the dumpsters on the last day of school ? I'll bet they
are full of unused supplies.

Mo

Der, the night staff custodians work 4:00 to 12:00, no OT or extra duty. Some work Sunday due to the district renting the auditorium for church. No OT or extra duty pay. 40 hours week, no more no less.
Mo, our dumpsters are full at the end of the year with school supplies, new and used, mostly slightly used. My neighbor and SIL are teachers and I supplied them with many items. I brought home tons of new supplies that were thrown out. It's sad to see what goes to a landfill when it could go to underprivileged schools.

Thats in your district, ours doesn't have night staff, everyone here is trying to lump every district into one as if they are all run and funded exactly the same, the facts are they are not. At the end of the day there is X amount of money and it costs X amount of money to run a district. Many districts are passing deficit budgets, including the last four I have worked for. My point is if educating students is your first priority, then no matter how you slice it sports and extra curricular are taking monies away from the classroom. Districts choose to fund those other programs.

Great question. Sounds like an opportunity to teach the teachers about the wonders of lean and just in time manufacturing.

Der, I know what you're saying. An enormous amount of money is going to sports when it should be going into classrooms. Field trips were cut out when fuel went sky high. Our district had a rule that if a student didn't have lunch money that student was to have a cheese sandwich and a milk. Those parents complained and their kids were given lunches at no charge. And this, our (elementary) students get to buy ice cream.....thats right. Do you know how many full trays of food I saw go into a trashcan on a daily basis just because little Johnny was full of ice cream and potato chips, and popcorn. They bought bags of popcorn for breakfast and lunch and out goes a tray of untouched food. We also had salad bar and we threw out approximately a $1000 a week in vegetables, cheese, ham, and dressing. I've gotta stop, I get so mad seeing the waste first hand and then having my boss say sorry, I don't have enough $$ in my budget to make it to the end of the year.

JayC because you just don't want to acknowledge that it DOESNT MATTER if it comes from separate funds, your reaching in one pocket and the schools are reaching in the other, same pair of pants. And I win because you always stoop to personal attacks. Yes I played all 4 years basketball in HS.

As the husband of a teacher, and myself working in manufacturing. I can honestly say this is absurd.

Wouldn't it be possible to hire a "Teacher Coach" and have schools compete academically as they do in sports?

Shouldn't that be the focus of public education?

I have said this till im blue in the face and they do have these comps. But what if you built a 180 mil science and engineering facility and paid the teachers
1/3 of what a bigtime HS coach makes? How many families would flood in from all over the US??

Ok bud, whatever you say. Congrats on your posting championship. Will there be a parade?

For the record, I'm still pizzed about the pencils.

We try and avoid the poor, I think that's the best policy

Hey this was the title of the PM

*allegedly

Aledo has become a sh*thole as well

Screen shot and post it

Can you get away with bringing a package of five mechanical pencils and three containers of lead refills?

Dilly dilly!

I removed myself from the PM so it went away

The conspiracy continues!