Stationery for high school subjects

High school stationery is organised by subject, not by year level, which is why a single generic pack never quite fits. Some of it you buy in January. A surprising amount you should wait to buy until the teacher tells you the exact specification in week one or two.

Buy the core in January, wait on the subject-specific items, and you will buy each thing once.

The core, buy in January

This is used across every subject and does not depend on a teacher’s instruction.

• Pens: blue, black and red. More than you think, because they disappear
• Pencils, an eraser and a sharpener
• Ruler, 30cm and clear
• Highlighters, two or three colours
• Glue stick and scissors
• A pencil case that survives being moved between six rooms a day
• Exercise books or binders to the school’s specified format
• Display folders or dividers if the school uses them
• A diary or planner, if not supplied
• Headphones, increasingly required across subjects

Maths

• Scientific calculator. Schools usually specify an exact model, and buying a different one is the single most common stationery mistake in high school. Wait for the specification unless you already have it in writing
• Geometry set: compass, protractor, set squares
• Grid or graph book if specified

Science

• A separate exercise book, often a specific type
• Some schools require a lab coat or safety glasses, usually supplied by the school
• Coloured pencils for diagrams, which are preferred over highlighters in most science books

English and humanities

• Lined exercise books or a binder with loose leaf
• Sticky notes and page flags, genuinely useful for set texts
• Set texts, which are subject to the school’s book list. Second-hand copies are fine where the edition matches

Art

The most expensive subject list, and the one most worth waiting on.

• Visual diary, usually a specified size such as A3 or A4
• Pencil set with a range of grades
• The rest depends entirely on what the teacher runs that year. Do not buy an art kit in January

Technology, food and textiles

• Often an apron, a container or specific tools
• Sometimes a materials levy instead of a purchase
• Almost always specified by the teacher in the first fortnight

Music, PE and languages

• Music: a manuscript book, and an instrument if applicable
• PE: the sports uniform and a labelled water bottle
• Languages: a dedicated notebook, and sometimes a dictionary

What actually runs out

Restocking mid-year is normal and the list is short. Keep a small home stash of these rather than doing a second full shop.

• Pens, constantly
• Glue sticks, faster than seems possible
• Exercise books, roughly one per subject per semester
• Highlighters
• Printer paper, if your household prints assignments

Where to save

Buy the core in bulk and split it across siblings or across the year. Pens and books are the items where bulk genuinely saves.

Buy the specified items exactly and the rest cheaply. Nobody is marked on the brand of their eraser.

Second-hand textbooks where the edition matches. This is the largest saving available in high school.

Do not buy a generic pack if the school has published a subject list. You will end up with both.

Next: the year-by-year shopping list covers the whole range, first day of high school covers the year 7 jump, and book packs and stationery lists explained covers whether you have to buy the pack at all.

---