What To Do When School-Supply Shopping Feels Like A Scavenger Hunt

Scavenger hunts are fun! When you’re 10. Not when you’re shopping for school supplies.

The summer is almost over. You’re still on vacation and want to enjoy it, but every year, you get the list of supplies needed for your child to be prepared for the upcoming school year. And every year, the same thing happens: You get to the store and pace aisle after aisle trying to find the pencils.

Why aren’t the pencils with the paper?

And then you run into your son’s friend’s mom and she has that empty look in her eyes, frazzled hair, and she’s ready to fight for the last pencil pack. You then catch a glimpse of yourself in the reflection of a shiny folder in aisle 10 and realize you look exactly the same.

The good news? It doesn’t have to be this way.

When Back-to-School = Back-to-Sanity for You

Back-to-school is not an easy time for anyone. Not even your kid’s teacher. As they’re trying to make your kid’s transition to their next school year seamless and successful, you’re running around on a treasure hunt. Our teachers, meanwhile, are spending their personal savings to stock up their classrooms for our kids. The great news is you can help your kid and their teacher, without pulling your hair out.

I won’t delude you with an unrealistic list of all the things to do at the end of the previous school year to get ahead of the game. I will, however, let you in on how to make life easier for yourself, because when it comes to back-to-school shopping, let’s make it about you this time.

And that means going to Staples — not a hundred different stores to find that one red folder. Staples is the go-to destination that connects parents, teachers, and students for a successful school year. They have all the school supplies teachers and kids will need, and more importantly, they are giving back to teachers and classrooms.

Teachers Help You. Help Them, Too.

You can also help your kid’s teacher by letting them know about Staples Classroom Rewards. Teachers earn $5 in rewards just for signing up, making you the hero! Plus, it’s a great program that enables you to support your child’s classroom. When you make a purchase at Staples between May 19 and September 15, you can contribute 5% of it to a teacher or classroom of your choice.

Another bonus this year: You won’t be trying to track down the school supply list this year! You want me to repeat that? Sure! You won’t be tracking down the list because Staples will have Teachers’ supply lists available right in the store. To make things even more convenient, you can pull up the list on Staples’ website, add everything to your cart, and have it shipped to your house or ready for pick up at your local store.

It’s easy! Once a teacher enrolls, parents can visit the Classroom Rewards website, select their child’s teacher’s name or school, and enter their receipt number and purchase amount. And teachers can earn up to $250 in Staples rewards to prep for the new school year.Another bonus this year: You won’t be trying to track down the school supply list this year! You want me to repeat that? Sure! You won’t be tracking down the list because Staples will have Teachers’ supply lists available right in the store. To make things even more convenient, you can pull up the list on Staples’ website, add everything to your cart, and have it shipped to your house or ready for pick up at your local store.

Plus, Staples guarantees that your school essentials are in stock in store all season long. What does this mean? You won’t have to run around to different stores finding just the right highlighters. All the supplies you need are at Staples. One of my muscle aches just went away writing that.

Our wallets matter, so look for Back-to-School Block Parties at your local Staples, where you can find savings on school supplies, deals, giveaways, sanity, happiness… What was I saying? Ah, yes, look for these events because you can actually save some dollars and use them on your summer vacation.

Staples creates stronger classrooms and closer communities by building meaningful connections between parents, teachers, and their children. Back-to-school shopping sets everyone up for a successful year. With a broad selection of school supplies, your local Staples store can serve as a resource all year long.