Not Just For Back-To-School: Teachers Need Help Getting Supplies All Year Long

School has started again and students across the nation have brought in supplies. But it won’t be enough. It’s never enough. Parents could buy everything on a teacher’s wish list and it wouldn’t last a year. And those lists don’t always have everything a teacher needs, either. At some point in the year, the underpaid teacher will inevitably have to replace the supplies themselves.

According to the fifth Annual Teacher Shopping Survey from Agile Education Marketing and SheerID, in 2018 teachers spent an average of $652 of their own money on classroom supplies. This was up 39% from 2017 and was the highest amount since the survey started in 2013. The amount that individual teachers spend is, of course, a range, but at the highest end of this range, one teacher surveyed spent $7000 over the course of the year.

This is going to keep happening if school districts don’t provide the materials teachers really need. Some districts may provide textbooks and instructional materials, but those materials don’t always fit the needs of teachers’ diverse students. If a teacher wants to do a new instructional unit, take a field trip, or provide students with art instruction, they often have to fund the materials themselves.

Since adequately-funded public education sadly seems like a far-off dream, know that there are other ways to help. Certainly having parents continue to buy supplies for their children’s teachers is one way. But there are other ways for people to get supplies for teachers both inside and outside of their local communities.

Donors Choose, started in 2000 by a public high school teacher, gives everyone the opportunity to fund public school teachers’ projects. Thousands of teachers have posted projects on the site. Donors can choose from a variety of projects, from technology to musical instruments to basic school supplies, and ]also donate any amount they want.

AdoptAClassroom.org is another way to help teachers buy supplies. Instead of coming up with specific projects, this site has teacher register for donations. Donors can find specific teachers, give to teachers in their community, or contribute to a larger fund. When teachers receive the money, they have the freedom to decide which classroom supplies to purchase.

Yoobi founder Leffler gives students school supplies

Taking a different approach, Yoobi is a school supply company that is built on a “buy one, give one” model. For every Yoobi item purchased, they give a Yoobi item to a classroom in need. Yoobi was started in 2014 by Ido Leffler, the son of a school teacher, with a mission to give back to teachers. They have now donated free school supplies to over 3.5 million students across the country.

“There’s nothing more important than investing in the development of our students, and teachers shouldn’t have to bear undue responsibility when budget shortfalls or other factors get in the way of providing basic learning tools,” Leffler says.