Back to School Checklist: High School

When you're in high school you actually need less school supplies than you do for middle school or elementary school. I'm going to be going through the basics of what a high school student should have.

1. Binders
Binders are absolutely essential. I recommend 1 or 1 1/1 inch binders for half semester classes and 2 inch binders for the full semester classes. Binders are getting really expensive these days so I recommend that you don't buy enough binders for every single class. Classes like art and chorus may require just a regular folder. If the student is a little unorganized, you should get binders that have the sleeves inside for loose paper. An array of binders can be found at any office supply store, Walmart, Target, or other super centers.
Price Range: $3.00 - $7.99 per binder.

2. Dividers
Dividers are very important because it keeps the binders organized and satisfies teachers who give routine binder checks. Your underclassmen will be facing these binder checks mostly. You can get dividers that you write on, or ones that have the plastic tabs. It doesn't really matter which ones you buy because it's still a divider. Buying dividers can get pricey because each binder needs about 3-5 dividers. You can buy packs of dividers that contain 5 or 8. Again, you can find dividers in the locations mentioned above.
Price Range: $1.29 - $7.00

3. Looseleaf Paper
Looseleaf paper will be needed for notes and looseleaf paper is usually cheap to buy. College ruled is better for the high scholars and the paper should be hole punched so a student doesn't have to mess around with going to the hole puncher for every page of notes. The stores where paper can be bought are mentioned above.

4. Notebooks
Notebooks are for the students who don't like the looseleaf paper. I recommend notebooks that are three hole punched and have the creases that will make it easy for paper to be ripped out and stored in a binder. As with binders, there are a wide variety of notebooks. Single subjects, all the way to five subjects. If you're looking to buy notebooks for every subject then a five subject might be the route to take. Notebooks get expensive when they have nice designs on the front and have decorative folders inside.
Price Range: $0.10 - $7.00

5. Pens
Pens are used for a majority of the work high scholars do. There's a huge variety of pens and I don't recommend the fancy ones. Today's high scholars love pens and will snatch them if they look nice. When I was in high school it happened to me all the time. I would get up to use the bathroom and when i came back, my pen was gone. I hate to say this, but many teachers do it unknowingly as well. They'll be helping a student and then just walk away with his or her pen. So, save yourself some money and just buy the regular generic pen unless your student is careful with writing utensils.
Price Range: $2.00 - $8.00

6. Pencils
Pencils are another necessity, especially for math classes where writing with pens is frowned upon. I am recommending mechanical pencils because it saves a lot of time. Instead of getting up to sharpen a pencil you just have to click it and voila! More lead! You will also need to buy the fillers for mechanical pencils; lead and erasers. It may seem like a waste of money but it is a good investment.
Prince Range: $2.50 - $17.00

7. Index Cards
Index cards are the best study equipment for English and foreign language classes. They're usually cheap too.
Price Range: $0.75 - $4.00

8. TI-83 Graphing Calculator
Buying a graphing calculator is always the part of the back to school shopping adventure that turns into a nightmare. Graphing calculators are incredibly useful for Algebra 1 &2, Geometry, Trigonometry, and Calculus. Math teachers will heavily recommend these because students will need it every single year of their high school lives, and in college. These are not cheap. It's not like going out to buy a scientific calculator. I said earlier that the mechanical pencils were an investment, but this is the bigger investment.
Price Range: $50.00 - $200.00

9. Flash Drive
These aren't a necessity but they will come in handy. Computer classes will recommend that a student gets one, or they might even require it. They also come in handy if you run out of ink on the home computer or a student starts typing a paper at school and has to finish it at home. Be very careful with them though. I have a similar bathroom story regarding a flash drive. I was working in a computer lab and I went to go use the bathroom. When I got back, someone had swiped my flash drive out of the back of my computer.
Price Range: $12.00 - $80.00

10. Backpack
In my opinion, backpacks become even more useful in high school because many high schools allow you to carry your backpack around from class to class. It saves students time so that lockers don't have to be visited between classes. There are so many backpacks that you can buy and you can get them from places like Macy's, Walmart, Staples, Spencers, Journey, Hot Topic, and just about anywhere. The mall is the best place to go when hunting for back packs. You could also buy a messenger bag instead of a backpack but I wouldn't suggest doing that because it puts a lot of weight on one shoulder.
Price Range: $20.00 - $80.00

Here is a list of items that your student might need, depending on what classes he or she is taking:
1. Art pencils
2. Colored pencils
3. Erasers
4. Book covers (I recommend the stretchy kind because they'll last a few years if used properly)
5. Paper clips
6. White out
7. Post it's
8. Thesaurus
9. Dictionary (Especially dictionaries for the language a student is taking)
10. Planner (Many schools provide students with planners but if they don't, a planner is a must)