Three different types of pens, highlighters, a compass and protractor, a ruler that must be clear and plastic, and a marker in ‘400 chisel black’.
These are just a few of the items on a stationery list one mum has received for the back-to-school season.
The lengthy list, which contains 22 items, is filled with requests for specific colours, brands, and models for products ranging from binders to pencils.
And the list is just one example of parents struggling across the country to keep up with school requirements, with some even requiring children have their own iPad.
An Australian mum’s staggering back-to-school stationery list, which requires a whopping 22 items, has gone viral on Facebook
The Australian mum’s list, which has since gone viral on Facebook, is filled with extremely specific items.
It asks for a binder, described as the ‘A4 PVC 2D 25MM ASST’, and notes that it cannot be in the colour black.
The list also requests a Calculator SLD-200N Pocket 8 Digit, a Clipfolder A4 PVC ASSTD, and a Compass Micador Safety 325.
It requires that the children’s eraser be large and ‘with sleeve’, that there are pens in blue, red, and ‘0.4mm black’, and pencils specifically by the Staedtler brand.
The list is filled with extremely specific items, like a Calculator SLD-200N Pocket 8 Digit (left) and a 40g clear glue stick specifically from Artline (right)
The mum wrote about her experience on Facebook and revealed that her last end of the year bill for school supplies cost $350
‘Who in the actual f**k can read this shit?’ the mum wrote on her Facebook post. ‘I’m no stranger to this game either, it’s Year 5 this year.’
‘I’m running around Officeworks dodging crazy stressed-out mums ready to start letting off, dazed out dads, and psycho kids shooting thumbtacks at each other and just generally trying to kill themselves, as kids do.’
‘And I’m like 400 chisel black? Why are they giving my 10-year-old a chisel? Where the f**k is a compass micador safety? What is a micador?’
The mum also revealed her local Officeworks wasn’t offering an online pick-up deal, and that her last end of the year bill for school supplies cost $350.
It’s a struggle thousands of parents across the country are sharing, including Sydney mum-of-three Jane.
Jane was baffled when she received a note from her eight-year-old son’s Catholic school asking that she provide a brand new $500 iPad for the new year.
The school also noted that each child would need the latest iPad so it would be able to work with the apps teachers planned to use in the classroom.
But back-to-school costs are now reaching into the thousands as some schools are requiring children to have their own brand new iPads
It also revealed that the iPad could not be shared with a parent or sibling as it had to be available at all times during the school year.
‘I fully support the importance of technology in learning, but my concern is not just buying the iPad…but it’s also that I’m giving it to an eight-year-old boy who I know, sooner or later, will probably bust it,’ Jane told Mamamia.
‘And then I’m going to have to buy another one.’
The same issue is being felt across the ocean in New Zealand, where parents are being asked to fulfill stationery lists and help with communal classroom items.
Schools are asking parents to help supply anything from tissue boxes to emergency items, on top of ID cards, headphones, and USB drives, according to Stuff.co.nz.
One school in Waikanae has even made is compulsory for students to bring their own computer mouse.
Schools are also asking parents to help supply anything from tissue boxes to emergency items, on top of ID cards, headphones, and USB drives
With costs continuing to rise, it comes as no surprise that thousands of children have asked for help from non-profits like The Smith Family.
The organisation, which helps disadvantaged Australian children with educational costs, revealed the average price of sending one child to primary school now clocks in at $2,000 a year.
‘Even if parents are spending conservatively, by the time they’ve purchased the school uniforms, the schoolbag, the shoes, the books, the stationary – and, increasingly, the laptop or tablet – they’ve already spent hundreds of dollars,’ Smith Family CEO Annette Young said in a statement.
‘For families who are watching every cent, this is a huge expenditure.’
‘Education essentials are simply out of reach for many struggling families. This can have a devastating impact on a child’s education.’
‘If they can’t afford the right uniform or the books they need, and feel as though they don’t fit in, school becomes a place where they don’t want to be.’
Non-profit The Smith Family revealed that the average price of sending one child to primary school now clocks in at $2,000 a year