What do modern school supplies look like now?
How are school supplies changing? Students, parents and teachers are generally used to a more tech-friendly classroom. Some great tech advances for students include helpful apps and platforms for disseminating assignments, turning in homework and giving out grades.
Apps like Libib and Book Retriever allow students to access library books on their phones or other devices. Another example is Google Classroom, which enables projects to be distributed to students and allow teachers to give feedback to students.
However, the four core learning styles remain the same. The VARK model includes 1) visual, 2) auditory, 3) reading and writing, and 4) kinesthetic. It’s best to utilize a variety of these styles with students which means they shouldn’t only listen to a lesson or watch a lesson on a screen. They should also take good “old fashioned” notes.
In fact, a study from Science News for Students found “For the most effective learning and remembering, it was better for students to write or draw by hand versus typing out notes… because writing and drawing activated areas of the brain that typing didn’t.” This goes for teachers too! Creating lesson plans and schedules is still an important part of teaching even though technology allows us more freedom than ever before.
While many assignments and planning can be submitted or kept online, a lot of the hard work still happens when you put pen or pencil to paper. Bullet journaling also remains a big trend this back-to-school season (FYI bullet journaling is a system of personal organization for scheduling, reminders, to-do lists, brainstorming, and other organizational tasks kept in a single notebook). Consider bulking up on great notetaking and organization tools to help teachers and students alike flourish this school year. We suggest a variety pack of different colored pens, pencils, highlighters, markers, notebooks, binders and dividers to keep work organized. Keep in mind that you’ll want products that are easy to write with, comfortable in your hand, doesn’t fade over time, dries quickly (for less smudging), paper that can handle a lot of ink and sturdy products that will last throughout the school year.