Giveaways and Reviews

Staples School Tools

It’s a back to school time unlike any other we’ve ever experienced. To put it mildly. In just a few days, summer holidays will be over (which, to be fair, started in the spring) and while typically this is the time I kid with my readers about celebrating the freedom that comes with the kids going back to school and my house being empty – it’s just not a happy time for anyone right now. Whether you’re moving to online-schooling for the 2020/2021 school year, or your kids are returning to the classroom, this is a time of concern that we, as parents, are navigating with our kids. I want my kids to be excited (they are!) and I want to look forward to them learning and growing at school while I’m at home in my quiet house (oh my!) so we’re working hard to make the best of a very odd situation and get ourselves prepared for back to school.

My kids are – as of writing this post – returning to the classroom at their schools. Our back to school shopping list was shared when report cards were mailed at the end of June, and updated with communication from our school recently to state items that were no longer needed, so that helps.

This year, like I have every year for as long as I can count back, I’m partnering with Staples Canada to do my back to school shopping, and sharing information with YOU. I couldn’t have imagined a year ago I’d be sharing the assortment of cute masks Staples Canada has for back to school, but here we are (and they really are cute!)

As Canada’s trusted back-to-school destination for decades, Staples Canada is helping Canadians navigate the new school by carrying their widest assortment yet, always available at low prices, and with fast free delivery for online orders!

If your school participates in Staples School Tools, you’ve got it made!

Staples School Tools allows teachers to create an approved list of school supplies that their students will use in the coming year. Parents can then shop with confidence, knowing their kids will start the year off with the right supplies. Staples Canada also offers a general list for grades K-12.

Parents will receive extra savings of up to 10% on top of Staples’ everyday low pricing. All orders can be shipped to their home address or directly to their school. Additionally, Staples gives 3% of every order back to the teacher’s school, allowing them to get whatever supplies they need from the robust Staples catalogue.

Neither of my children’s two schools participate in the program, so I was tasked – list in hand – with shopping for back to school as normal this year. It’s one of the few normal traditions at this time of year, albeit a little different with a mask on my face and arrows on the floor and reminders to make sure we’re giving people ample space.

No one could have predicted masks would be on our back to school lists for 2020/2021 a year ago. We’ve been buying masks all summer from various places and I’m really impressed with these Bond Street Non-Medical Kids Masks With Filter ($12.99/set of 2). I bought two sets for a variety of patterns and my 9 year old is happy with the way they fit on her face and especially behind her ears (they’re adjustable!). Staples Canada also has a large selection of other PPE back to school items including filters, disposable masks, face shields and even signage.

While some items on the list may be different than last year, Staples Canada has everything you’ll need for a successful school year whether learning in school or online. The Pep Rally Notebooks ($3.18) shown in the photo above are just a few of the designs available and also have matching binders, folders, pencil cases, water bottles, lunch kits and more so you can personalize your back to school items as an entire theme – or aesthetic as my 12 year old calls it – if you like. And, of course, you can always count on Staples Canada for super-low prices on all the school basics like Crayola 24-Pack Crayons ($0.69) and Crayola 24-Pack Coloured Pencils ($1.99). I actually stock up on both to have extra for the school year and this year is a good idea to buy extra because students will NOT be sharing items and if something is lost, they won’t be borrowing a friend’s to use.

Remember to label all your school supplies this year as you do every year, but it’s very important to do so this year because of that non-sharing rule. With great prices at Staples Canada, having extra items on hand makes sense. Also, help teachers out by not sending everything at once – in the first few weeks of school teachers will share information about what items are needed, and this makes good sense too!

To celebrate another back to school season with Staples Canada, I’ve got a $50 Staples Canada gift card to give away to a lucky reader! To enter, just fill in your name and email address in the form below and click BEGIN! Then just leave a comment on this post telling me – parent to parent – how you’re preparing for back to school this year. Do you have your masks, supplies and everything else ready to go, reusing most of last year’s items, or maybe you’re stocking up like me! Maybe you’re online-schooling this year. Basically, use the comment to enter as a way to share how you’re doing. What a year, parents (and grandparents!)

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    • This year I made sure to label everything and then put a clear coat of nail polish over top … fingers crossed their names stay on all year long.

  • This would be amazing to win, as we’ve got lots of supplies to purchase from Staples. Gotta get ready for school, asap!

  • My daughter has pretty much gotten all he needs. We were having a hard time finding wipes but thanks to one of your posts we found out he no longer needs them at his school!

  • My daughters are very nervous about sending the children back to school, but they need to get out, I bought my grandchildren a few items and of course they love anything new! but they are not to happy about wearing the masks all day

  • Definitely a crazy year this has been and will be. But we’re all in this together. I always make sure to use up supplies already in the house, huge savings right there!

  • Our kids are nervous going back to school – so we are just preparing them as best as we can as parents ❤️

  • I have only one left in school now and she’ll be doing remote learning for now.We’ll see how things go. I’m picking up a few things for supplies.

  • We’re homeschooling as we usually do. We’ve bought some of our back to school stuff (our masks, a lot of our books). We’re pretty well stocked on pencil crayons and paper but I still need to buy pencils, glue sticks and some other random supplies

  • Just gave several hundred dollars to Staples for BTS supplies for our Gang of Four. Glad I only had to make one stop though!

  • I’ve never been more thankful to be a homeschooling parent! The decisions that parents are having to make for their children this year must be a nightmare…….in our area, for example, you had to commit (if you decided to return your child to physical school) to keeping them in until at least November. Can you imagine having to keep your word through a COVID-19 breakout in your child’s school? Terrifying to contemplate.

  • With two kids homeschooling we are stocking up on loads of good books and pjs (our unofficial school uniform) and I’m actually heading to Staples this week – it’s my fave school supply spot.

  • This would be a real help! we need to get a new desk and chair and I have my eye on a couple at Staples!

  • My daughter and I have been drilling rule. 6 ft apart when possible. Change her mask whe nit is too wet. Hand sanitize when she can’t wash hands if she has touched something that isn’t hers. I’ve included her own personalize spray handsantizer to put on her desk this year.

  • Staples was always my number one place for supplies for for kids for school and university. This would be nice for the grandchildren.

  • So many different ways to answer..I have been buying masks( to wear all day) and hand sanitizer creating small kits for my son to have on him in his hoody in his school bag . I work as an educator and have a small idea of what will need to take place. I have do much respect for teachers and the administration for getting things ready in the best way they can going above what the govt protocols are.
    I have had a knot in my stomach now for weeks( how to manage new group in the child care centre ,take care of my mother who lives with me and my son ..creating our own protocols coming back into the house,etc). My 14 yr old son has his own anxiety that I am grateful he talks to me about it.i am grateful that I have a great colleague at work to get through the day I am grateful for all the people who get up everyday and do their own best and wear masks.

  • My kids are going back full time. Home school is not an option for me (technically yes, it is…but it’s not happening willingly)
    I wish they had a part time schedule with half the students each day which is what happened for 3 weeks in June for anyone that chose to send their kids.

    Anyway, I went to Staples two weeks ago with my two girls, in the early evening when the store was almost empty of people but well stocked, and we loaded up on our supplies. With two in middle and two in elementary I spent around $150. Backpacks, lunch kits, rulers, pencil cases all survived to live another year so that was basically paper goods and consumables.

  • I will be virtual learning through the school board with my kindergartener and preschooler while taking care of our newborn. We are currently stocking up on paints and other craft supplies and printer paper (my 5 year old goes through printer paper like crazy, she loves to draw).

  • I’ve gotten all the supplies the kids need this year with the help of Staples and some left overs from last year. Our family has decided heading back to in-person classes with an optimistic outlook will work best for us.

  • 7 of my grandchildren are going to school this year. They range from one in kindergarten, one in grade 12 and the rest in between. With the extra supplies needed this year this gift card would be great!

  • In some ways I have been ignoring that back to school is literally just a few days away.
    I have not purchased anything but am waiting to see what is needed.

  • We’re embarking on the back to school shopping (at Staples!) next week – masks and sanitizer have never been on the list before!

  • I’m doing OK but I am pretty nervous for my nieces and nephews going back to school and my friends who are teachers. I would never have predicted that face masks and hand sanitizer would be the must have items!

  • Love shopping at Staples, they have a great selection of products at good prices.
    We just picked up a new printer there last week.
    Those face masks for kids are super cute!

  • We love back to school shopping, but it’s a little different this year, isn’t it? We’re getting a lot of computer gear this year.