I started to post a rant on a blog I bumped into, but decided to move it here-- my rant got a bit long, and I didn't want to stir the pot all in one place!

In response to this post: Letter to Teacher about Green School Supplies
I would like to say this:

I wanted to add my two cents as a "community-centered" first grade teacher...
First, let me say that I am VERY pro-"green." My first degree is in environmental science, and I teach with the heart (and head) of an environmental educator.

Brand names = absolutely NO loyalty to any ONE company... crayons are crayons, some will debate me here- to each their own, but come on! No big diff.

Paper and notebooks: send whatever you are most comfortable with-- I always look for the paper with the highest post-consumer recycled content I can find. Honestly, a lot of it eventually ends up in the recycle anyway (many sweet, handmade odes end up in the recycling at home, GOD FORBID the kiddos take offense or doubt my adoration of their works, but they still go to the recycling plant)

Hand sanitizer: YUCK! Kids, nine times out of ten, WANT to use this crap... I teach (yes, teach) them how to wash their hands with soap and water and even if they insist upon using this disinfectant crap, we wash our hands after-- that DOES NOT guarantee that they don't immediately stick their fingers into their noses-- let's be real here, people!

As much time and thought and moral-dillema-inducing-hemming-and-hawing you've likely put into your school supply purchases, "your" supplies very quickly become "our" supplies and I DO NOT have the space, time, energy, patience to keep your child's supplies separate from the community supplies-- unless your child has some life-threatening allergy. (*In which case send more ziplocks!)
Your child's crayons will be used by children in first grade that need crayons-- they might even be (omg) children whose parents buy at Walmart, drive an over-sized SUV and vote Republican. I'm not enthused about it either, but all children in my classroom use crayons, which I am happy about. I will not guarantee that it will be your child that uses your supplies-- and really, sharing and relative equality is something that most children learn to LOVE at school. If you only want "your" children to use "their" supplies- homeschool or plop your kids in a bubble or something. They don't get to hide anything in their desks either (and not tell me or the other kids about it) because
1. They don't have a desk- welcome to the world kids, you get tables to work on and 2. It's dishonest and greedy- two things you likely don't want to encourage.

"Your" child can use "their" own crayons in "their" own home.. but then, they might have siblings, or neighbors, or friends- let it go people, they're crayons.

Ziplocks: In my classroom, I use a lot of ziplocks-
ziplocks to store homemade playdough in the fridge, to ziplock open containers of paints shut to make them more child-accessible and less of a mess. We also grow beans in ziplocks so that the kids can see EVERY part of the plant- roots, seed, shoots, etc. We send home guided reading books in ziplocks because they are waterproof, can be closed, (need I mention contain the various ingredients in the bag?), as well as hold up to a mild amount of mistreatment, and can be easily replaced.
I also use ziplocks to seal up extra class snacks in the snack cabinet so as not to lure rodents or molds or bacteria. Ziplocks hold teeth that fall out, undies that get soiled in an accident, all the parts of jewelry, toys, hair ties, clothing from the (insert annoying brought-from-home distraction tool here) that break into a million pieces when the kids play with them and they break.

Paper towels (wow, I've never asked for these) and kleenex:
Kleenex= essential. I CANNOT tell you how many of your children (yes, your child) spends a lot of the day (nearly every day) with their fingers in their nose, (not to mention other regions of their tiny bodies) and then in their mouth. When a child begins to pick their nose in my classroom, I remind them where the kleenexes are in our classroom, and when they continue, or "sneak" their boogies into their mouths, I remind them that they need to wash their hands. Kleenexes catch other things though too:

Teeth: the average first grader in my classroom loses 4-7 teeth in my classroom over the course of the year. Many of them come out with blood- which I'm sure I don't need to remind you is a biohazard, and no matter how much I love them, need to treat with universal precautions.

Snacks: When parents don't send napkins, kleenexes separate your child's snack from the germy (no mater what) table surface.

Gum/Candy: When your child shows up to school with candy or gum in their mouth, it ends up in a kleenex and goes into the trash.

Bugs: When they suddenly proclaim that there's a spider on the floor during morning meeting-- unfortunately, 8 times out of 10, it ends up squashed into a kleenex. If we have time (a lot) or another container at the ready (rarely) we try to spare the lives of our insect and arachnid friends and then release them back outside- but this is the best case scenario.

Again, your moral green choices are absolutely appreciated-- honestly! Hooray for you, I'm with you. When I have children, I will try to make equally informed and responsible choices-- but school is where your child begins to learn how to get along in the world without you. (Sorry, I know it's sad, it makes me teary as well.)

It's really important that you provide excellent resources to your child- Eco-friendly pencils and paper, lunch boxes, clothing, art supplies, sneakers, not to mention backpacks- but what's even MORE important than what is going on the outside of your child, is what is going on inside your child. Healthy food (breakfast, please!!) and the ability to make educated and respectful decisions is what will help your child be happy and healthy while they learn to be responsible global citizens of our world. If they see happy, healthy adults that care about them making responsible and educated decisions consistently every day, they'll learn how to make them as well.