A Complete Back-to-School Supplies Checklist (With Free Printable)

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Afraid you’ll forget something? Don’t worry! I got you covered. This complete Back-to-School Supplies Checklist has everything you need to prepare for your child’s first day of school!

This post contains affiliate links. You can read my full disclosure here.

I’m excited to be collaborating with some awesome ladies on a series of posts to help you get ready for this back-to-school season! We have created incredibly helpful articles on supplies shopping, saving money, meal planning ideas, organizing school clothes, free printables, helpful books, and much more!!!

I’ve linked to all of them at the end of this post so hang around until the end so you can benefit from this valuable Back-to-School Series!

Every time we have a trip coming up or something important as back-to-school season, where I need to make sure we have everything ready to go by a certain date, I start freaking out! The fear of forgetting something is real! And man, do I forget things… [Just ask my husband ?]

I usually also just get started on our shopping a day before the big date. (Maybe that’s why I forget things so much… If I planned ahead, we wouldn’t have that problem)!

Well, that’s exactly why this year I decided to put together a complete list with all the back-to-school supplies I could think of! The essentials that you have to buy before the first day. Think the important things, the ones that are truly needed. No fluff or exaggeration.

I like to keep my shopping lists to the basics. If I start adding the “maybe” stuff, I will end up spending more than I planned and we work really hard to stay in our budget. So that’s just not worth it!

Here’s what you can expect:

First, I will have the free printable for you to download and either save in your computer (it has clickable links) or print it out and go shopping at the store.

Then, I will share with you 2 amazing apps that you can sign up for free to get instant cash back and save money on all of your shopping needs!

Finally, I will share right in the post, the items listed on my printable back-to-school supplies checklist, as well as some of my favorite finds.

So stick around until the end to get all the benefits. You don’t want to miss all the savings!

Get your FREE Back-to-School Supplies Checklist

First, you’ll want to download your back-to-school supplies checklist to make sure you don’t forget a single thing for your child’s first day of school. You can do that here:

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2 Apps that will save you tons of money on your Back-to-School Supplies Shopping

These apps are completely FREE and I use both of them all the time to save on my online and in-store purchases.

Save with the Ibotta App

With Ibotta, there are 3 ways you can save:

Send receipt (this one only works for groceries or household essentials);
Link a supermarket loyalty card (same as above);
Mobile in-app purchases (cash back at over 500,000 locations in almost any type of products… like for example back-to-school supplies).

So with Ibotta, you can shop in your mobile device right from the app in one of the (over) 500,000 participating stores and get cash-back added to your account right away.

When you reach $20.00 on your account (which happens super fast depending on how often you use the app), you can redeem in cash via Paypal or Venmo or you can get gift cards from tons of different locations. I usually just pick the cash option via Paypal.

Save with Ebates

The second cash-back platform is called Ebates and it works either on your phone or on your computer. You can even add a web browser extension to your computer screen, which will remind you to activate cash back every time you make a purchase in one of their participating stores.

With Ebates, every time you make a purchase on Amazon, Walmart, and thousands and thousands of other online stores, you get cash back!!!

This is my favorite way of earning cash back because I don’t have to remind myself to activate it. The app does it for me. Like I said at the beginning of this post… I’m super forgetful. So I can always use a friendly reminder to save money. Wouldn’t you want that?

And…

The best part: you also get a $10 welcome bonus when you spend your first $25 shopping on any store on Ebates. It’s free to sign up and you can do so here to save tons of money on your kids’ back-to-school supplies.

Now, it’s time for the fun part!

Let’s look at all the adorable back-to-school supplies I was able to carefully curate from around the web!

Complete Back-to-School Supplies List

The list starts with simpler back-to-school essentials, then it goes on to the fun part, like backpacks, shoes, etc!

#1. Pencils

A simple, affordable pencil box with 30 (No. 2 HB) pre-sharpened pencils. I’m pretty sure this lasts the whole school year and even more!

#2. Pencil Sharpener

There are tons of different pencil sharpener types out there, but this one caught my eye for two reasons:

It’s got a compartment for getting all the mess sharpening a pencil makes! It has a screw-on lid that prevents accidental openings. Meaning, no more pencil-sharpening mess on your carpet or floors.
This compartment also covers the sharp part of it, making the sharpener safer for younger kids. Well, and even for older kids, because no one is 100% free of accidents. They just happen.

This is what it looks like:

Now, I realize it’s not the cutest option, but I like the mess-free + safety attributes it has! To explore the hundreds of other pencil sharpener options, you can go here.

#3. Erasers

In this page, you can find all sorts of erasers. From simple ones to fun, sandwich, and hot-dog shaped ones!

#4. Blue or Black Pens

If you wanna keep it cheap and simple, here you can find a (36-count, Black) BIC pen package for less than $4.

Now, if you don’t want your child to have to deal with lids and want them to experience a soft pen for the many homework activities they will do throughout the year, there’s also the BIC Soft Feel Retractable Ballpoint Pen (Black and Blue, 36-Count).

To see all the options Amazon has, you can go to this page.

#5. Colored Pens

When I was a little kid, one of my favorite parts of back-to-school shopping was to pick out tons of colored pens.

I loved color coding my notebooks and binders and making school fun with them. Now that I’m a mom, I still love colored pens for my Bible journaling, blog planning, and craft making experiences.

My favorite colored pens are the new Pentel Pop Pens, which by the way, I have a 50% discount code for. Just copy and paste this code at checkout on Amazon:

50POPBOX

You’ll get 21 pens! Most of them write on light and dark paper. They’re great for making special school projects!

#6. White-Out

I love these affordable, mess-free tape white-outs: Mr. Pen 6 Correction Tapes.

#7. Pencil Pouch

I’ve curated some CU-TE pencil pouches! They were also one of my favorite stuff to shop for when it was back-to-school time!!! The first option is a monogramed pencil pouch and it’s only $10!!! Isn’t that AH-MAZING? I’m in love with it!!!

Here are some options of binder pencil pouches:

#8. Highlighters

These BIC bright liner highlighters are the exact same ones that I love and use for all my blogging and home planning needs. They are great and affordable!

#9. Permanent Markers

To me, Sharpies are the best and will always be! Unless something pretty crazy shows up in the market. I’ve selected the 2 most affordable options I could find. The second is my favorite, but it all depends on what you’re looking for.

#10. 3-Ring Binder

Do I need to say picking my binder was always super exciting too? Look at these cute, affordable options I found:

*please make sure to read the binder specifications and that they meet your kids’ needs.

#11. 3 Hole Punch

Here’s the very same one I have by Swingline, which I absolutely love! I can adjust it to punch holes for my large 3-ring binders as well as for my half-page 3-ring binders. It’s super easy to adjust it!

And here are tons of other options on Amazon.

#12. Loose Leaf Papers

#13. 3-Ring Binder Index Dividers

Or… I love to use these types of sticky notes as a binder divider. I just stick them to the first page of what I want to categorize/divide and leave about 0.5 inch sticking out, where I write whatever it is that I want to call that section. I find this a lot cheaper than actually getting the index dividers. I do this in all my home organizing binders.

#14. Folders

#15. Glue

#16. Post-Its

#17. Ruler

#18. Scissors

Oh my gosh! I absolutely love this Yoobi brand. They have the cutest back-to-school items ever. Most of my favorite scissors are by them. *Please make sure that they have blunt tips if they are for littles, which most of these do.

#19. Calculator/ Graphing Calculator

#20. Combination Lock

#21. Locker Kit

#22. Personal Planner/ Calendar

If they’re old enough to even understand how to use them, I think it’s great to teach them since a young age how important it is to plan they days and activities.

#23. Stapler

#24. Tape

#25. Paper Clips

#26. Backpack

Here are my favorite girls and boys’ backpacks:

Here are tons of other great, affordable options at Amazon.

#27. Lunch Bag

I was blown away by how cute these lunch bags are. I almost bought one for myself! They’re all insulated and are a good size to carry lunch to school. They’re super affordable and I think they’re the perfect back-to-school lunch bag!

Here are some other incredible options.

#28. Water Bottle

I love stainless steel water bottle for the boys because I feel like they preserve the temperature the best! With stainless steel water bottles, the kids always have fresh, cold water available to them all day long. These are my absolute favorites:

#29. Comfortable Slip-Proof Shoes

I found some pretty awesome shoes on Amazon. There are tons of colors to choose from, they are lightweight, have soft non-slip soles, and the fabric is completely breathable (which is a great plus. Meaning no stinking shoes! It’s a win-win)!

SLEVEL Lightweight Casual Sneakers for Kids

#30. Ink Cartridges

This was my complete list of back-to-school supplies! I really hope this helps you find everything you need for your child. It’s such a crazy time of transition and I know the weight we feel in our shoulders to get everything ready for the big day.

[thrive_2step id=’3863′]Here’s the downloadable version of the Back-to-School Supplies Checklist[/thrive_2step] one more time so you can save it in your computer/smartphone or print it out if you decide to buy anything in the store!

Remember the Back-to-School Series I told you about at the beginning of this post? Here are all the other articles written by some other awesome blogger friends of mine that will help you have everything ready for back-to-school time!

Free Weekly Meal Planning Printables with Tons of Easy & Healthy Weeknight Family Dinner Ideas:

Save Time Every Morning With This Easy Way to Organize School Clothes:

10 Unconventional Back-to-School Books Your Kids Will Love:

How to Make a Back to School Shopping Plan that saves you Money:

First and Last Day of School Free Printable Signs:

10 Ways to Save Money on Back to School Shopping:

Go ahead and visit these other articles because I can promise you they will be super helpful!

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