Readers' Survey 2007: Amount You Spend Out of Pocket Each Year on Classroom Supplies
Edutopia readers weigh in on their favorites.
by Edutopia Staff
Credit: Getty Images
$500 or More
We can see those checking accounts shrinking before our very eyes! Nearly half of you told us you spend $500 or more. Shockingly, more than one in three of those heavy spenders shells out more than $1,000 a year, up to a high of $3,500. Oh, my. Responses ranged from the magnanimous ("I don't care what I spend -- the results are worth it") to the miserly ("$0 -- I refuse to pay for what I can put in the budget"). But the consistent message in response after response was simply "Way too much!"
Our Take
Payback
If you're tapping your own funds for the sake of your students, David Holmstrom, a licensed tax preparer in Brookline, Massachusetts, has advice on how to get some of that investment back from Uncle Sam. It's tough to deduct it the usual way, by itemizing purchases on Schedule A, because classroom expenses rarely outweigh the standard deduction anyone can take. "Congress therefore decided to give educators a special break not available to other employees," Holmstrom says. "They can take up to $250 as an adjustment -- that is, they can subtract it from their income -- whether or not they itemize deductions."
If you're in the 25 percent tax bracket, he says, this adjustment is worth fifty dollars to you -- not enough, surely, but something. The allowance covers out-of-pocket costs for classroom supplies and is available only to teachers, counselors, principals, and aides in private and public K-12 schools who worked at least 900 hours during the year.
Here's the catch: Congress approved the educator adjustment for this year after the tax forms were printed. So, Holmstrom explains, teachers must put the $250 on line 23 of Form 1040 (the line that says "Archer MSA deduction") and write an E on the line to indicate it's an educator expense. He adds, "Isn't the IRS great?"
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Money spent for classroom
Submitted by Sandra Yeager (not verified) on November 26, 2008 - 12:30.
Many teacher today, if not all, spend their own money for school supplies, food, clothing, and so forth for their students. I know I have to keep school supplies and snacks in my room and I teach high school. People would be amazed at how many students come to school every morning without breakfast and go home at night to know there will no be any dinner. Also, in my school we are having more and more teenagers having babies and not being able to buy the baby clothes since they can not buy themselves clothers. To help these students out I bring in my grandchildren's old clothes and give them to students to use. There is never a day I do not have some student ask for notebook paper, a binder, pencil, pen, markers, or crayons. At the end of each year our Special Education county department gives each of us $300.00 to spend on "educational supplies". This does not include binders, notebook paper, markers, or crayons. It must be something that we can use in the classroom for instruction.
I disagree with the school that makes teachers pay 3 cents per copy after a certain amount. In today's classroom there is no way you can get by with just making 200 - 300 copies. My classroom has a maximum of 15 students and I make more copies than that. The school administrators in that system need to wise up and budget for more money for coping. Ask the administraion how many copies they make a year and I am almost certain it will be over 300 copies. What makes them better than the teachers in the school? In my opinion nothing. Make them pay for their copies over the limit and there would diffinately be a change.
Classroom Spending
Submitted by Ruthie Armstrong (not verified) on November 25, 2008 - 20:08.
I am a Kindergarten teacher in a Title 1 school. I spend between $700 and $1000 dollars a year on my students. The majority of my students come from low income families. I buy books, snacks, clothes, supplies, items for rewards, items for learning stations, money for field trips, computer software, etc. At the end of the year, we get a chance to order $100.00 worth of supplies for the next school year. This includes: staples, glue, scissors, first aid items, paper, pencils, computer ink, etc. One hundred dollars is no money, because things are so expensive. We also have to pay to make copies for our students. We are given the first 200 copies and after that, we must pay 3 cents per copy. For the last two years, our school district gave each teacher $200 to spend on things for the classroom as long as we had receipts or ordered through the school. I do all of this, because I love what I do and I love my students.
classroom spending
Submitted by Bette Somerville (not verified) on November 26, 2008 - 15:20.
In our school each teacher gets between $500-$1000 a school year. Though it does help a lot, I know we all spend our own money as well. NYS is in major financial trouble and one area our govenor is pushing for cuts is education (of Course). Each district is looking a cuts based on a worse case scenario. We were told yesterday that one thing to be cut will be our spending budgets. So, we will spend even more of our own money next year. Our district is very poor so as teachers it falls on us to provide school supplies, etc. for our students.
What's a child worth to you?
Submitted by Samuel Grubb (not verified) on November 25, 2008 - 19:06.
Obviously teachers are not in it for the money. And with what we make money isn't really that important to us. So I was not really that surprised to here that we spend a good chunk of our salaries on supplies for the children. I think some of these other teachers came up with very good ideas for pinching some pennies, but let's face it, school supplies aren't exactly cheap. The question that we have to ask ourselves is are the children worth it. It looks like we have asked ourselves this very question and for a large percentage of the teaching population the answer is quite obviously YES! Especially in those school systems where the children can't even afford a pair of shoes that fit. When you see a child come to school in the same outfit they came in the day before it breaks your heart. And NO, you don't mind buying that student a pencil or two; or a binder and a few notebooks..., some color pencils, erasers, pencil box, glue sticks, scissors, a ruler, crayons, markers, and yes, a highlighter, compass, and maybe a protractor. Is it worth it? It is to me and I am very happy to see that it is also worth it for many other wonderful teacher out there today. Thank you for all you do.
Spending dollars on classroom supplies
Submitted by Dana Liccardo (not verified) on November 24, 2008 - 23:45.
I have been teaching in a school near the beach in California for the past 8 years and previously in a small desert community for 4 years. In both areas I usually spend anywhere between $800 to $1000 dollars a year. The main differene I found was in the desert the parents of my students could not afford supplies, food, clothes. Here near the beach the parents feel they are entitled to a free education and expect the schools to supply crayons, pencils, snacks, water etc. It was shocking at first to be told we cannot send out a supply list at the start of school and to not ask for classroom donations. I am fortunate that some of my parents bring in stuff anyhow. I also found that special education classes are not really counted when ordering materials, books and what is not leftover teachers need to supply. A couple of ways I found help in was signing up for "teacher discount cards". Staples will send you a check equal to 10% of all purchases to your account number. I make cards with my teacher account # and ask all my parents, friends, neighbors to please use this number when buying items from staples. It really helps me keep the classroom replenished throughout the year. I also check clearance items in bulk at Oriental Trading and US Toy Supplies. I have found great deals of classroom treasure box items, crafts, glue. Target is my last great find. I check with the manager to let me know when they clearance the back to school items so I can stock up for later in the year. I guess if you love what you do the money doesn't hurt so much. It would be nice to have to spend less though.
for the sake of art
Submitted by paul blankenship (not verified) on November 24, 2008 - 17:55.
I find that if I want to teach a quality art program I have no choice but to use some of my own funds as the kind of supplies I sometimes need are not available through normal channels and it is left up to me to find them and purchase them. But it is worth it to supply an interesting lesson that will motivate the students. I do believe that such programs should have more financial support and teachers should have more access to deferent means in which to obtain supplies.
teaching preschool is expensive
Submitted by Susan Cintorino from NY (not verified) on November 24, 2008 - 17:51.
I am a teacher at a Migrant Head Start program in upstate New York. I can not imagine how much money I must spend out of my own pocket each year. I’m glad I do not keep track because it would probably bring me to tears if I knew the amount. I shop each weekend and sometimes two trips a week to the stores looking for materials and supplies for activities, lessons, bulletin boards, and everyday wear and tear on toys and classroom furnishings. There is little to no money left in our programs budget for materials and supplies and I have found my preschool classrooms to always be in need of supplies and materials. I make up for what the budget can not. When a child in my classroom needs socks, a winter coat, or other essentials and there is no money in the budget to get them I feel compelled to go out and purchase these things myself. Yes I could teach without many of the materials and supplies I often buy myself, but I would not want the children in my classroom to not have the experience or materials because our program believes the money should go elsewhere. I believe teaching preschool is the most expensive level to teach and unfortunately accompanied with the least amount of pay. Our children come from poverty, they have very little outside the classroom that I try to make sure they never go without inside the classroom.
Special Education
Submitted by Molly E. (not verified) on November 24, 2008 - 12:12.
I am a Special Education teacher in Idaho and I easily spend five hundred dollars or more of my own money after getting reimbursed for what I can. In special education we are often not given many materials or a set of curriculum materials for each subject. When I first started teaching there was nothing in my classroom besides a few books and some old leftover general education teacher manuals. I had to supply everything. It has taken me a few years to get my room fully supplied where I feel like we have all the materials neccessary to foster student achievement. In the district that I teach in we are reimbursed for $250 a year for specific materials but that only goes so far in glue, paper, pencils, etc. for a whole year. The majority of my students are also low income and have little family suport to buy them clothes let alone school supplies or snacks so I feel obligated as their teacher to provide those things. To me the most frustrating thing is when I compare how much money low paid teachers have to spend on their job vs. a high paid business man. At my school we have to pay social fee dues every semester that goes towards social functions, birthdays, filtered water in the lounge, etc. How many jobs are there out there where you have to pay for the availability of drinking water?
Special Education Spending
Submitted by Cindy Wilson (not verified) on November 24, 2008 - 14:01.
I also teach special education. I agree that the money I spend in my classroom is beginning to outway what I spend in my home. It is not unusual for me to spend $500 before the school year begins on things I need for my classroom. This year, our administration made it mandatory that we receive the same textbooks as the general education population. Some of my students were thrilled to take what books we did get with them. One of my Seniors stated that this is the first year he will have a textbook from his English class. Although our administration is willing to help, our seasoned heads-of-departments still do not feel that public school is the place for children with learning needs and that they could not succeed with the materials they use with their classrooms. To date, we still do not have the literature text for 3 grade levels and are missing several of the teacher editions to workbooks and other materials needed to complete the series. Instead of getting to choose from the complementary classroom set novels, we were given the "levels" textbooks with short stories and easier activities. It amazes me that the students with the greatest need for reading and basic math instruction are the last ones to receive appropriate materials. Our "experts" in their fields do not feel they belong in public education; yet our politicians believe that our accountability measures should be the same as other educators.
It is not feasible for me to ask my parents for donations to my classroom. Many of them are trying to find the money to pay for meals and medicine for their children.
Don't forget that every 6 years, or so, we are required to take at least two college classes ($1500) in order to be able to keep the jobs we are paying for in our taxes. I wonder whether the paycheck and bills of the teachers have been considered when comments are made about improving our educational system with more qualified teachers. I do what I do because I love my job (for the most part), but I often wonder why people believe that the best and brightest can even afford to begin a career in education, let alone stay for any length of time.
Classroom spending
Submitted by Kristy (not verified) on November 20, 2008 - 15:59.
I am a Pre-K teacher working for Head Start. They are a low income program who is funded by the government. Our funding depends on alot of factors like attendance and number of children enrolled. I also spend my own money to buy things for the classroom. It is so hard to help these children when you do not have what you need in the classroom. We get to order things for the classroom once a year, this makes it difficult because we are limited. So of course like a lot of other teachers I go out and spend money which I really do not have. I try to go to the dollar store and to walmart because it is way cheaper. I do not get reinversed either. With the economoy and budgets the way they are it is very difficult!
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