School Supplies That Make Learning More Fun (And Which Your Child May Already Need Anyway)

by Mable Buchanan

BRIGHTLY COLORED PENS and HIGHLIGHTERS are a way to bring some excitement to school supplies that your child probably needs anyway, and the different colors can encourage them to stay organized and take more careful notes.

CREATIVE PAPER CLIPS come in many fun shapes and colors, like music notes or animals, and can be a fun and relatively inexpensive way for your child to keep loose papers organized or mark their place in a notebook.

PENCIL POUCHES are another school supply that your child may already need, and stores like Target and Walmart, as well as Amazon, are filled with fun options that resemble creatures, feature fun designs, or may come in your child’s favorite color

FLASH CARDS for topics like multiplication and division, elementary level foreign language study, or geography, can make studying for subjects more fun, and can also make it easier for parents, friends, and family members to play a role in helping with studying and encouraging students as they learn.

MEMO PADS can be helpful for remembering assignments, annotating assigned readings, or writing down important information on the go, and post-it versions come in many different options.

FLASH DRIVES are another school supply that your child may already need, and many options that include all kids of designs, like animals, a mix tape, sushi, gum, or Darth Vader’s head, cost as much as traditional versions. Also, being unique, they will be harder to lose and easier for the user to identify as theirs.

LOCKER DECORATIONS can include locker wallpaper, DIY colorful, glittery, or bottlecap magnets to hang pictures, or a mirror, dry-erase board, or suction hook to hang important items like keys that can be hard to find in a hurry. Other additions, like pictures of friends and family, can bring a little bit of happiness to a stressful day.

PLANNERS, especially for older children and teens with busy schedules and many assignments, can be helpful with keeping organized and managing stress, and come in many different designs and with helpful features like inset calendars and pouches for pens or sticky notes.

DIY NOTEBOOKS can be made out of traditional marble composition books and acrylic paint. Some designs which can be found on Pinterest incorporate designs with fruit, friendly creatures, or stripes made of washi tape.

While not a traditional school supply, COLORED KEYS can help a child keep track of and remember the uses for each of their keys. They can be made easily by applying a coat of nail polish to plain house keys.