Stationary for Y7 starters

I just spend around £50 for stationery for DD. We made a deal which I hope makes her realising how much stuff costs and keep her more aware where her things are.

I pay once a year for items she likes. If she looses it or breaks it because she can’t be bothered to be careful she gets it replaced with the most boring items available, anything fancy needs to be paid by her.

This is now I survived secondary school, also the need for the 4th fountain pen was crushed when I realised I had to pay for them myself. DD loved the pens at Paperchase so I hope she is careful and won’t share (I know she hated that a boy on her table on Y6 always used her stuff).

I am just glad that I don’t have to buy books and workbooks. I am from Germany and we always got a list of books and workbooks to buy before school started, plus Any literacy books we discussed during the year which was easily around. £50-75 per year for books only.

Buy lots of spares. I have a stationery eater. Yes literally. He also takes calculators to pieces.

Thanks Maisy that's good to know. On threads like these it always seems to be highlighted that you should keep spares at home in case of items being lost/broken/stolen - so figured it was good for those with new secondary school children to be made aware that their school shop may also be able to plug this gap!

(At DC's school they actually sell an "initial kit" package - it was competitively priced i.e. the same as anywhere else, and certainly saved lots of angst over the "right sort" of pen/calculator etc - I hadn't realised until MN that this wasn't standard!).

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Every school I've worked at has had a supplies shop or the ability to buy equipment at the library/student reception.

It's usually cheap and cheerful for when things run out or get broken. I probably wouldn't have bought the whole initial kit there though.

Check what pens are allowed, we weren't allowed to use Biro, it had to be a real ink pen of some form.

Is DC's school the only one that sells basic stationery (at reasonable cost)? Worth finding out if your school does, OP - it will save you, for example, having to stockpile 10 protractors (I say protractors because the DC seem to go through them at a rate of knots and it's quite tricky to find a single protractor when you want one - thank goodness for school shop!)

Every couple of weeks we do a pencil case check - sharpen all the coloured pencils and replace anything missing and bin anything broken/run out.
I agree with this. Though I forget, and find that my child has been writing with an orange pencil that isn't even his. I think I will have to get him into the routine of a Monday morning pencil case check as he remembers his books for each day but forgets to restock pens when he gets home as the moment has passed.

quieter/well-prepared/more diligent students
Quieter?

They do get through a lot of glue sticks as they glue stuff into their books all the time.

Dd likes Inkjoy pens but i put cheap multipack biros in the front of her bag and tell her to only lend those out.

Does the school not give a kit list?

This may sound horrible but keep spares in a pocket in their bag.
For some reason by half term there's a group of unprepared students (even though home have given them stuff for school) who think it's cool to carry half a nibbled biro in their pocket. These students always expect quieter/well-prepared/more diligent students to lend equipment out to them. Do this at your peril. Your DC will never see that pen/pencil again and they will become the go to for people who are unprepared.

Generally only lend to friends or people you know will return and only lend equipment you'd he happy to lose. Sadly I've had tears from year 7s some years because they've lent out a best pen they go for their birthday at the weekend and it's been broken/not returned.

Just loads and loads of spares and hope your kid doesn’t decide that all pencil cases are for losers meaning that everything disappears all the time

On one memorable birthday around Y9 all the girls donated spare pens to DS cos they were fed up with lending. Quite another question why the boys didn’t.

Get several 15cm rulers and protractors from somewhere cheap like Wilko where they cost about 40p - and yes to writing their name in sharpie on them, but be aware they will still lose lots of them and it's a nightmare not having a spare when homework is due next day.

My DC have pencil cases full in their bags, plus a tin of stuff at home for doing homework so they don't have to get their pencil case out and then forget to talk dint to school. And I keep hold on the stock of extra rulers etc rather than them having access, as otherwise they would have 4 on the go at once and there still wouldn't be a spare when needed.

Every couple of weeks we do a pencil case check - sharpen all the coloured pencils and replace anything missing and bin anything broken/run out.

Buying a 10 or 25 pack of Pritt stick really is a good idea. And now is the time to get it when it's cheap in back to school sales - Tesco has loads of branded quality stationary at half price.

Ours have to have glue sticks and a green pen as well as the usual stuff

Ours are required to have scissors in their pencil case

Wouldn't it be classed as carrying a weapon if they were to take scissors?
Maybe if they are the sharp pointed kind and in your pocket? If they are safety scissors in a pencilcase in your bag then you clearly have a reason to carry them.

Wouldn't it be classed as carrying a weapon if they were to take scissors?

I seem to remember having your own scissors was handy, rare that anyone had glue sticks though.

Spares of stuff in my locker was handy if I forgot bits or to lend to friends (e.g. bits of math sets and a calculator I lost then found).

Cheap USB stick? Though the cloud it's used more now than when I was at school.

Colouring pencils? The red ones always go missing/ used the most, weird fact of life.

Oooooh, for once they've started, make a tiny copy of their timetable for breast pockets (with room numbers, double sided for A/B with card in the middle and laminated with tape), sooooo much better than walking arriving with a bit of natty paper or your diary out like a noob. I made ones with friends lessons too so we knew were to find each other, though tbf by year 10/11 I had an iPod touch and an app for timetables but then ran the risk of confiscation.

Oops, none of what I mention is stationery! So ignore. I got carried away remembering DD’s start at secondary two years ago.

In addition to the above mentioned by other posters sorry for the reality check below...

• packet of tissues or end of a loo roll, I joke not (if school is as broke as DDs then this will be essential!)
• a school bag coloured ‘phone charger dangly for their school bag, it can take them a while to work out how much their ‘phone will last
• blue tak for putting schedule inside of school locker etc
• if a DD then sanitary pochet even if not yet of age, they can lend friends the necessity and then not worry when it does happen
• some change for cake sales, charity days etc. DD has a selection of 20p, 10p and pound coins always to the ready
• hair band for DDs or DSs with long hair for tying back in science lessons
• use of deodorant before getting dressed for school and if they have them after PE showers as they may not have used before but need to get used to it now they will start to smell if they don’t!

Good luck!

Ab you will never need the set square.
I asked DS and they use the set squares regularly in his maths classes.