Teachers, how much out-of-pocket money do you spend a year on books, supplies and goodies for your students?

As a high school foriegn language teacher, I probably spend between 500- 600 dollars out of pocket. Some of this material is ‘beginning of the year’ stuff, because many students families just can’t afford things like school supplies. To be more accurate, I’d say about 200 dollars of it is school supplies. The rest are supplemental materials, books, games, class decor, etc.

I stopped keeping track of the exact amount a few years ago, just because it was always shocking to see the grand total! On average, I spend over $350 each school year.

Too much…hundreds of dollars.

I never really counted. I guess I should at lest for tax deduction purposes.

If a business man can take deductions for lunch with a client, I think I should be able to deduct supplies I get for my students.

I think it depends on what grade you teach. Elementary teachers spend a lot of money! I have to buy everything from crayons, pencils, plastic bags, paper, AND have to build my own classroom library. Children’s books are expensive! If one of the students doesn’t have crayons…it’s not like I can tell him/her “too bad, be prepared next time!”

Anywhere between $500 – several thousands. I know, it is just so ridiculous. You only get to write off about $250.00 a year in taxes. They are not all tax deductible, but they should be.

These purchases are tax deductible. Even software like Turbo Tax can guide you through the process.