School supplies

[Adoratrice]

Could someone please tell me what in the hell a 12 year old is going to do with a $90.00 calculator? I have spent well over $200.00 dollars on school supplies for 3 children in the last two weeks....and I still am not done. I just cannot bring myself to buy that damn calculator, I tried , I really did, put it in the cart and everything. I actually got sick to my stomach at the thought of paying for it. The problem isn't that I can't afford it , I know these expenses are coming this time of year and try to adjust for them . I just can't believe that the school system (Teachers) have free will to demand that every student get such an expensive "supply". I do mean demand....they tell you what brand and model you must have and the children are punished (writing assignments, detentions, exclusion from class etc.) if they do not have certain things by a certain date. What about the children who's parents absolutly cannot afford such a thing?.......Sorry little Johnny we can't eat tonight......but go figure out how far in the hole we are on your new calculator, that will keep your mind off the hunger" Don't tell me it doesn't happen , I remember eating many many meals of potatos as a kid.


okay here is my question:

Do you think certian companies give Teachers "incentives" or some sort of reward for pushing their products?

I have noticed an increase in the brand names on the supply list even for the little things...Elmers Glue...Crayola Crayons and so on.



Psssssst ....if anybody knows where I can find some black market yellow pocket folders with clasps.....I AM willing to pay top dollar for THOSE!

 

[Problem Child]

From what I remember at age twelve, the hardest thing we were doing was long division.

A calculator that will do division can be had for about $5.

$90 will buy a lower end graphing calculator with an led screen and computer data port, suitable for algebra and and beyond.

Sounds like this teacher is a little whacked.

 

[lilfrk]

Damn good thing my kid doesn't go to that school. Things would be very very ugly. I could afford to buy it too but I wouldn't. That's ridiculous to say the least.

Psst...I might be able to help you with the yellow folders though.

 

[Always]

psssst... *taps her ont he shoulder* just make sure the calc has a square root function and percent and it will do just fine. i'm in a required geometry course and i have a normal, everyday, ten-dollar calc, and it works juuuuust fine.

i spent about ten dollars on my school crap this year... a dozen notebooks, pens, a pencil, a few folders... okay, maybe 20. then again...


i knew long division at the age of eight...


if you just get the kid supplies, they don't check. it doesn't matter as long as they HAVE a folder, HAVe a calculator. model and brand don't mean anything, and if the teacher does stuff like that, you can sue. it's just not allowed.

 

[Adoratrice]

That is exactly what they are asking them to get...a TI 83plus Graphing.

To be used in class and for homework so they can't just buddy up with someone in class.


and it is not just one Teacher , it is the entire 8th grade math dept.


And do they think I am going to be able to help her use the dern thing?

 

[lavender]

 

[tmuyo]

adoratrice

that calc wouldn't happen to be a texas instrument graphing calc is it?

if so, the little kid doesn't need that till he/she actually hits trig and calc.

definitely a requiremnt for university and college...

you think school supply costs like that are bad...wait till ur kids get into college...$200 translates on average to 3 text books (if your lucky).

my bio book set for one class cost me $125.

luckily the chinese workbooks and text books i'm going to have are much cheaper...whew, making language more cost effective, here we go mandarin.

 

[Pokerman]

Try E-Bay!
I did and it said:

199 items found for TI 83 calculator.

many were of the plus variety.

GOOD LUCK

 

[tmuyo]

btw

my ti-89 works wonders...looks like a graphing calc with windows, lol. microsoft didn't know what hit em i guess...

anyway it's a great calculator that cost me $180 when i was in calc in my junior yr. here's a hint. don't torture your child and make them do trig all by hand. if they get into trig, shell out the $90, it'll keep them sane....

as for universities...
sniff...thank god i qualify for financial aid.
coming from a ghetto actually paid off...who knew?

 

[lickerish]

PS.. try Goodwill, or garage sales, or classified ads.. sometimes kids doesn't need the graphics calc anymore after that specific grade & people get rid of them. (crimany, i dont remember using those type calcs till high school! )

OR, ask the school if they have any loaners.. I went through my first year of college that way.

 

[RudeNastyAssBitch]

THE DOLLAR STORE!

I Always Got My Pens, Highliters,Paper, Notebooks and Gluesticks There. Then When Ya Get Into The Groovy Stuff, Such As, Pencil Crayons, Markers And Calculators ( MATH! Yeck!) You Can Walk Into The Business Depot With Quite The Wad Of Cash From Saving So Much At The Dollar Shop

Not To Mention That Ya Can Get Like A Bijillion Sheafs Of Paper Product And A Trillion Pens For $4.00!

Not Everyone Has Tons Of Cash Ta Throw Around On Things That Really Should NOT Be That Much Coinage Anyway!
Rich Folk, I'm Sure, Would Balk At Such An Unbelivable Gouge On A Fricking Calculator Too.

Tell Her Ta Go Jump In The Lake

 

[Adoratrice]

http://www.curriculum.org/occ/resources/10ti83.htm



Everything you ever wanted to know about a calculator.


and then some.



I'm glad I'm not the only one who thinks this is just wrong.

I know my daughter, she is a very bright child but also easily discouraged , if she thinks she will be expected to figure that thing out she will shut down and give up.

 

[Cheyenne]

From what I remember at age twelve, the hardest thing we were doing was long division.

Nope, age 12 was 8th grade for me and I was in algebra class that year.

If you can afford the calculator, get it. But mention something to the school about the cost. Maybe they can convince the teacher to use a cheaper product in future semesters.

 

[Weird Harold]

okay here is my question:

Do you think certian companies give Teachers "incentives" or some sort of reward for pushing their products?

I have noticed an increase in the brand names on the supply list even for the little things...Elmers Glue...Crayola Crayons and so on.[/COLOR]

I think many companies probably do contribute to schools (not individual teachrs) with a condition that they use their product name on school supply lists.

I don't think that is the reason for specifying a specific model calculator for a class. I think the reason for that is to simplify teaching -- The teacher knows that if certain buttons are pressed in a certain sequence on that model calculator, the display will always be the same for every student.

I would definitely talk to the school and find out why that particular brand and model is needed. TI makes several graphing calculators that are much cheaper than $90 -- and the functions should work the same on all of them.

I'd also go to a school board meeting and ask why a list of suitable substitutes isn't included.

 

[morninggirl5]

Do you think certian companies give Teachers "incentives" or some sort of reward for pushing their products?

I have noticed an increase in the brand names on the supply list even for the little things...Elmers Glue...Crayola Crayons and so on.



Psssssst ....if anybody knows where I can find some black market yellow pocket folders with clasps.....I AM willing to pay top dollar for THOSE!

If the companies are giving incentives, I wish someone would have let me know about it. I did list specific brands on my supply list for my students. In most cases, it's a matter of quality and safety. Crayola crayons and Elmer's glue are certified Non-Toxic. We still have the occasional child who puts everything in their mouths and I'd rather know that they're not being poisoned than take the risk of a no-name brand that may have toxins.

Also, in most cases, we've tried the "off" brands and found that they are not of the same quality as the name brands, leading to you buying supplies again and again.

And, my final reason for requesting name brands -- it's a classroom management issue. If everyone has Elmer's glue, we don't spend ten minutes with children bickering over who picked up the wrong glue bottle. It's all the same, we have community property and we share. For this reason I specified only yellow No.2 pencils for my students. Students sharpening pencils while I'm trying to teach is one of my biggest pet peeves. I keep a bucket of sharpened pencils and when one breaks, the student trades for a new one. Instructional time (and my sanity) doesn't suffer because of sharpening pencils.

Talk to the teacher and find out why she's requesting the items. There's usually a reason based on experience and her classroom instructional practices.

Most schools have supplies donated for students who cannot afford to purchase them. My list is very short (8 items) because practically all my students live in homes below the poverty line. I have contingency plans for every item on my list.

 

[It'sasecret]

Geeeeeeeesh I work in an elmentary school where we can't ask for a supply list AT ALL! It is a very poor town, so we can't ask for anything. But I know how harsh schools can be on kids when they don't bring in the "right" supplies. Trust me I suffered through catholic school (yuck).

 

[Never]

Okay, I had the humiliation of going through Algebra II twice and getting 'D's both times because I couldn't afford that stupid calculator and therefore couldn't do any homework. Oddly enough my mother managed to get through Algebra II without any calculator so my question is.. What changed?

I mean, am I the only one who sees this as blatant favoritism toward middle and higher income families? The only way you can get a good high school math education is through paying for it?

 

[scylis]

the thing about the TI-89 is that you can't use it on the ACTs and SATs. it's not really necessary for a high school course, but i can imagine how handy it'd be in college! i myself would pay $10-20 more and get a TI-92, myself, though. i just like the little keyboard thing! now if it could only connect to the web.. hmmm...

what schools should do is something like what mine did: buy a number of the calculators and rent them out to students for $10-20 for the year. you get to take it home and everything, but if it gets lost, you have to replace it. helped a number of people out considerably where i went.

 

[bluntforcemama]

lol.... my calculator cost about that much. I'm pretty sure I can launch nuclear missiles from Hungary. Don't worry, it'll stay with him for a few years. It's a TI, right? I like the 92s, myself.


Now, will someone send me a bouquet of newly-sharpened pencils?

 

[scylis]

i can see it now....

Myst: hey! what's this button do? *presses big red button labled "LAUNCH"*

Deep Voice from the calculator: THANK YOU FOR PRESSING THE LAUNCH BUTTON. LAUNCHING WILL COMMENCE IN T-MINUS TEN MINUTES. THANK YOU FOR USING THE HUNGARIAN BALLISTIC MISSILE COMPANY, INT. HAVE A NICE DAY.

Myst: oh fuck.....

Me: guess that means my trip to Moscow is off, now... nice going!

 

[bluntforcemama]

oh shush, I never did anything of the sort! I only used that button for programming calc equations before test time.

 

[scylis]

*phew*
then those must have been some of the ones disarmed thru peacetalks...

 

[Starfish]

.

 

[beckbabe]

I'm sure that somewhere at my son's school, there is an entire room of Elmer's glue. There must be, because each parent has to turn in 4, yes four, large bottles every year. I hate that community supply theory because if I spend the extra money to buy the good stuff, my son ends up using some crap someone else brought in. I have cut corners myself, especially on those Fiskar scissors (named on the list). Personally, I've had the same scissors for 10 years. I understand occasional breakage but what do they do with the 26 pairs of scissors the class used all year? Are they all beyond further use? It really bothers me to have to buy a pair a year. I haven't gotten up to $90 calculators, but I would have a problem with it.

 

[Adoratrice]

Thank you all very much.....especially the Teachers.


I was very poor growing up and also had to do without many "required" supplies, Hell I was lucky to have shoes most of the time............I know there are more school programs to help people today, But damn ,what kind of a Teacher would let a child fail a class Knowing they could not afford a nessessary tool? Why wouldn't they adjust that students curriculum or help them figure out a way to get it.


It is a rhetorical question because the Teachers here are not the ones I really want an answer from.