Demands from school - being one step ahead of the game

[whoseideawasthepuppy]

The demands from school and nursery get more and more each week. Can those in the know give me a heads up on what equipment I will be requiring for the forthcoming years. Photo of the front of the house by Monday anyone... no problem...
So far I've bought Nit shampoo and a comb
and I'm thinking I need a photo printer

Definitely a printer - we're only six weeks into reception and I've already had to magic up a whole set of family photos with less than a week's notice.

We've just been informed that next week they are having 'Wear your words Wednesday' - they have to go in their own clothes, including something with words on so they can have a go at reading them. I hate slogan t-shirts so I don't think DD actually owns anything like that. Sigh. Tempted to make my own with something inappropriate!

Def a printer, to print stuff from the web and to print photos, and to print letters to the school when you need to start documenting their inaction on xyz... Preferable a copier/scanner/printer!!....Red/green clothes, blue clothes, silver clothes, gold clothes,victorian clothes, indian clothes, roman clothes, bottles of booze, toiletries, unwanted gifts, lots of little brown money envelopes for reply slips/money. Xmas cards bumper pack..Cupcake case, muffin case, square tin, round tin,the whole bakery section of supermarket, lots of spare reading level books, lots of your own homework, a copy of the APP grid and the national curriculum levels.....a friend/babysitter/understanding employer so you can jump to the school requests to BE THERE...erm there is probably more but thats just off the top of my head...

Last year we had to produce (at limited notice):
a stripy teeshirt for sports day (others were blue or red - there was lots of teeshirt swapping going on)
a blue raffle prize (different years got red / white / blue)
a decorated boiled egg
an easter egg, so the kids could buy them back....

I honestly don't think you can predict! Just start saving so the money is there when needed.

FWIW (different school) there was a competition that required a photo. We were able to print at home or e-mail for school to print.

Definitely a printer - I bought one after DD had spent 2 days in reception as it was clear it would become a necessity!

old white sheet for roman/greek/egyptian costumes
supply of £1 coins for charity days

Colour printer definitely (although we have resisted and colour in b&w photos with felt tip)

Spotty t-shirt for Children in Need
Red t-shirt for Comic Relief

Bottle of something or chocolate something for tombola

Dice and playing cards (numeracy homework)

Lots of change - £1s for things like own clothes day, 20p/50ps for cake sales, coppers for numeracy.

a pack of small cheap xmas cards as your dc will want to write one to everybody. Ask teacher for a list of children in the class.
Chocolates or similar for xmas pressie for teacher /TA.
flash cards for times tables, reasonably priced and a god send.

Colour printer, stack of white t-shirts and packet of t-shirt transfers.

Spots for Red Nose Day? Print out spots and iron onto t-shirt...
National waste paper bin day? Print out picture and iron onto t-shirt...
Royal wedding celebration - Print out picture of happy couple and iron on...
Book day - Print out suitable character and iron onto t-shirt...

Have struggled a bit to make a flat cap out of printed paper but most other things have worked ok

Address book for dc friends, collect these off part invites when they come. Several birthday cards with ages on for each year/ small pile of wrapping paper.

tshirt transfer idea is genius beanandspud but what do you do with all the t shirts afterwards?!

notwoo some of them I have kept, most of them end up in the charity bag eventually or used for painting, messing about in the garden etc.

£2 on a t-shirt that gets worn once or twice still feels like better value than buying a whole load of new stuff or spending hours fashioning costumes out of bin liners, tin foil and Sellotape!

most seem to be covered! - I would second a stash of 50p's and £1's for charity days and a wallet or purse to put them in in bag
a water bottle that does not leak - ever
class name list for birthday/Christmas cards
envelopes and paper for notes into school and returning letters/money
library card
notice by the door that tells you what they need each day
box of last minute children's birthday cards/thank you cards, couple of suitable age appropriate birthday gifts, tombola prizes (mostly unwanted gifts)
extra pairs of gloves (whilst they are still in the shops and before they get lost - by feb when its still cold and they've lost every pair the shops will believe its spring)
if your school do 'houses' then the colour top they need for sports day
a yellow tshirt for the annual Roahl Dahl day, pink tshirt for Cancer awareness, children in need bear ears, red tshirt for comic relief, sports kit for sport relief, be primed for the nativity costume making and, in our case, find something your child can have as a 'talent' for the annual show (even if its singing twinkle star because they get upset when they can't think of something on the spot and convinced they have no talents )

so far this term:

DD (reception) has needed - glitter, gold pen, glue, holiay brochures, coloured card, photos with the class teddy and pressed leaves for homework. jam jars, toilet roll tubes, an old shoe, baked bean tin, cake decorations, cereal box, family photos, a piece of oasis and stuff for harvest festival, a national costume, £2 for own clothes day, halloween costume, change for a cake sale and there will be a costume for the christmas play soon.

and my little brothers and sister (years 5 and 6) have needed - pipe cleaners, lolly sticks, cake cases, balloons, red t-shirt, ribbon, string, newspapers, masking tape, poster paints, wrapping paper, odd bits of change for various charities, lard, raisins, bird seed and netting.

So I would recommend a well stocked box of odds and ends of craft stuff, old clothes/sheets that you can cut up for costumes and a handful of change.