There was a time when parents would receive a list of school supplies needed by their children for the school year: lined paper, pencils, erasers, protractor, compass, scissors, glue, crayon, a cigar box, and a box of tissues for the teacher.
In California, there were those who sympathized with the poor parents of students who attended public schools. They made it illegal for schools to demand, via a list, supplies from students, so as to not discriminate against children whose parents were unable to provide equally for them.
Thus began one of the biggest wastes of money in our state history.
The first time I saw a brand new ( unsharpened) pencil broken in half and tossed on the floor by a "poor student", with complete disdain and ingratitude, was the day I started making my students "earn"their supplies.
Each time a student takes a clean piece of paper, without any writing on it and tosses it into a wastebasket, they get to hear my "taxpayers would not appreciate it" speech.
In many public schools teachers are given hundreds of dollars a year to buy their students' supplies.
Being "poor" in California rarely means a student goes without food or clothing.
There are students who come to school with no supplies but have enthusiastic stories about their $50 video games, $300 video game boxes, and trips to amusement parts.
Certainly, I do not begrudge anyone items they earn.
But, why not have families fill out paperwork to receive taxpayer funded school supplies? Instead of assuming poverty, why not demand proof of it?
