We’ve partnered with State Rep. Deb Conroy for a School Supply Drive. Our mission is to send lower-income children to school with confidence! A new backpack and supplies gives children in struggling families the right head start. Look for the collection bin in our lobby and donate by Mon, 08/15.
Imagine a youngster starting the school year without a new backpack or even primary school supplies. With the ongoing pandemic, high unemployment, and more than 30 million students enrolled in the free and reduced meal programs, many parents are unable to provide the basic school supplies their children need to be effective. In addition, schools across the country are facing severe budget cuts and lack the funding to purchase necessary supplies. They need your help to start the year with confidence and the essential school supplies.
School Supplies Impact Student Learning
Education is a potent tool for empowering students’ success and paving the way for bright futures. Many people point to the need for good teachers and increased funding to make this happen. However, budgets do not matter if it does not translate to pencils and paper that students can use. Furthermore, inventive teachers are powerless if their students do not have the supplies to work. If you want to help schools realize the classroom’s potential to help students grow, read this guide about how school supplies impact student learning.
Everyone benefits from stability. Though kids may not always admit it, having an organized backpack full of notebooks, folders, pens, pencils, and other supplies is reassuring. Arriving equipped for the school day also helps them feel confident in their ability to perform in the classroom. Rather than depending on the teacher or their peers for a pencil, students achieve independence with their own proper supplies. With your support in this program, students will apply their focus to learning.
When students are engaged, research shows they’re more likely to follow behavioral expectations, be kind to their peers, and succeed academically. Rather than hearing their teacher talk through fractions, students with proper supplies will follow along with their own pencil and paper and write out equations themselves. This allows for a hands-on experience that will inevitably lead to confidence in their work and shine through their behavior inside and outside the classroom.
Classrooms focused on developing creativity in students build long-term success for life in expression, problem-solving, innovation, and more effective learning. A teacher’s creative skills are not enough to sustain students’ success if they don’t have the right tools for implementation. For example, in art class, students are encouraged to express their thoughts and ideas with crayons, markers, colored pencils, paint, and so forth. Without these supplies, students restrict their creativity, thus diminishing their learning and creative growth. When you support our back-to-school program, you help teachers introduce creative activities and help students practice and express their creativity in a nurturing environment.
There is nothing more distracting for a teacher than a student disrupting the classroom. Classroom disruptions waste valuable instruction time and lead to ongoing behavioral problems for students. When students have the right supplies, teachers can focus on teaching and students focus on learning. When students do not have their supplies, they cannot participate. More often than not, they will end up disrupting the flow of the classroom. For this reason, donating essential school supplies helps the overall classroom atmosphere and prevents disruptive behavioral issues.
Students often lose points on assignments or tests because they can’t find the materials they need. It’s frustrating for them and their teachers because even though school isn’t testing them on neatness, basic organizational skills are necessary to keep track of school supplies, notes, and assignments. Being organized is also a lifelong skill that can help students succeed in their future careers. Learning tools like notebooks and pencils are not helpful if students lose them. Having consistent organization tools helps students keep track of their things and makes it easy to refer to important resources.
