$200???!! For posters and borders for bulletin boards? Yep – teachers often have sticker shock at teacher stores – or the dollar store! It’s amazing how much of your own money you can spend! So it’s good to go with a plan and a budget. Here are some tips:

1. Your classroom doesn’t have to win awards for the first day of school – just presentable. Buy the bare minimum and then see what you really need – the school may have more of what you need than you thought.
2. Parents will often offer to buy needed supplies if they know what you need – kleenex or markers etc. – casually mention it to a few you think may be open.
3. It’s best to buy supplies you can use year after year – books, manipulative etc. Things that will stay with the classroom offer you less value for your money.
4. If you are covering a class for a teacher on sick leave or maternity leave, try to spend as little as possible. You may be teaching a totally different grade or subject the following year and the things you buy may not be useful.
5. Over the years, you will collect a lot of supplies – plan to have a place to store the ones you aren’t using that year (grade 1 Disney readers when you are teaching grade 6 Health).