A supply list, three aisles, and the feeling of having bought the same thing twice. Here is how we sort it out.
The list arrives in late August and says nothing about what matters: what will last until June, and what will have vanished by half-term. We have been watching new school years go by from this side of the counter since 1932, and the difference eventually becomes obvious.
Everything that follows comes from our Back to School! Recess Fun! selection, put together for this time of year.
Contents
- What lasts, what disappears
- The pencil case: less, but better
- Pens that really do erase
- Label everything, once
- The small object that tempts them
- Break time, the other half of the bag
- The snack that comes home intact
- What you do not buy again
What lasts, what disappears
Pens get lost, the pencil case stays. Glue runs out, the compass gets handed down. That is the only genuinely useful way to settle a back-to-school budget: spend a little more on the things that cross the whole year, and simply have enough of the consumables.
The pencil case: less, but better
A flat case is more than enough. It sits in the schoolbag without bulging it, it opens flat on the desk, and the child finds everything at a glance. The big tiered models have their fans, but they often end the year half empty.
My Pencil Case
In the same family, the My Backpack rucksack applies the same recipe to the schoolbag: simple, light, same spirit.
Pens that really do erase
Heat-sensitive ink settled an old quarrel, the one about crossings-out. Rub it, the heat erases, write over it. For a child learning to write neatly, that means less tension and fewer torn-out pages. And a refill costs less than a new pen.
Legami Erasable Gel Pen 0.7mm
Label everything, once
It is the most thankless quarter of an hour of the school year, and the most profitable. A marker, a protective film to lay over it, and the name holds: things come home instead of ending up in lost property.
66 Adhesive Name Labels
The small object that makes the bag worth opening
You need one. Just one. A rocket-shaped glue stick, a pencil like no other, and the child unpacks without being asked. That is not frivolous, it is the ritual that makes the rest bearable.
Glue Stick - Rocket
Another serious contender, for the stories that will not wait until the end of class:
A5 Notebook - Petit Vingtième Train
Break time, the other half of the schoolbag
The official list stops at the classroom door. The playground has supplies of its own, and they are the cheapest of all: a bag of marbles fills a whole term, a skipping rope gets lent around without wearing out. It is half the day, and nobody makes a list for it.
Rainbow Glass Marbles Set - 21 Pieces
Kids Wooden Jump Rope - Babeth Frog Design | French Made
Add some rainbow chalks for Wednesday afternoons on the pavement, and break time is equipped until the summer.
The snack that comes home intact
A leak-proof bottle and a box that closes properly: the pair that saves you from sticky corners at the bottom of the bag. Choose a pattern the child spots from across the bench, and the snack will follow all the way to school camp.
Little Prince Water Bottle 500ml BPA-Free Tritan Kids
For the box, the Snoopy lunch box completes the pair.
What you do not buy again
Last year's scissors still cut, and so does the ruler. Before heading out, empty the pencil case onto the table: half the list is often already there. What you save goes into the case or the bag, which will serve four years.
A good start to the year is not decided by the length of the list, but by two or three things chosen to last. The rest gets replaced along the way.
And to see it all at once, from the essentials to the little extras that make school worth showing up for, the Back to School! Recess Fun! selection brings it all together.
About the author: This article was written by the team of L'Oiseau de Paradis, a Parisian toy shop founded in 1932. Four generations in the service of childhood and authentic play.
