Former educator makes the case for writing your kid's name on their class school supplies
It's counterintuitive but many parents swear by it.

A former educator makes a compelling case for parents labeling their kid's school supplies.
Yep, we are already back to having all things back-to-school on our brains. Time flies, doesn’t it? As parents are prepping their school supply list, one heated topic is bound to come up—whether or not to label those supplies.
Some parents might want to get their kiddo special, personalized, perhaps even higher-end items, especially if said kiddo is picky or has a special interest. However, many teachers argue that it makes for an uneven playing field, and therefore request that everything be part of a shared, communal pot.
What’s more, educators warn that it teaches children to be selfish.
@4thebarz Parents writing names on school supplies
♬ original sound - 4TheBarz
Obviously there are pros and cons to each method, and therefore no one can fully agree on the matter…thus fueling what seems to be an endless war between some teachers and parents.
But former educator Tionna’s argument in favor of parents writing their kid’s name on school supplies ticks both those boxes—making a child feel special and building a bond with fellow students in a really satisfying way.
“As a former educator, I’d highly recommend writing your kid’s name on school supplies,” she says in her video. “That way when the teacher goes to the community closet, we can all know where it came from. And I can read it and say, ‘Look everyone, this came from Johnny. Johnny got us this new bottle of hand sanitizer. Everyone say thank you, Johnny.’”
“And then Johnny feels appreciated,” she continued. “He knows what it feels like to contribute to a community that he’s a part of. Now his friends get to say thank you. Thank you for contributing to our community. What a great friend. Everybody wins.”
@marshforeverhome #fyp #backtoschool #community #schoolsupplies #teachertok #schooltok #trendingvideo #foryoupage ♬ original sound - Tionna | Housewife & Mom of 2
The video already has nearly 600,000 views and the vast majority of 4,000+ comments agreed with the idea:
“This is the best take on this topic that I’ve seen yet.”
“This is great middle ground of all the videos I’ve seen.”
“I’ve noticed a theme in life and it’s that we’ve lost a sense of community while demanding to be part of one.”
And of course, fellow teachers rallied to approve of Tionna’s message—many speaking from their own experience.
“My class LOVED when we celebrated them for new tissues, soap, or sanitizer!”
“I used to put a small sign on the tissue boxes ‘Donated by _____ Thank you!’ The kids LOVED seeing their names.”
“And for the families who cannot contribute, I write their name on one of the items that I’m providing.”
“Literally. Actually the kids love to share.”
Gosh, that last point. While we can probably name many times when kids aren't naturally inclined to share, research shows they truly do have a propensity for cooperation and acting fairly with one another. Imagine what might happen is we actually foster these inherent skills.
What skills do we really want to teach our kids? Photo credit: Canva
Bottom line, this can be a great solution that helps individual kids feel special, while teaching them the power of nurturing their fellow classmates.