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school system in USA question

Rara

Thinker
Joined
Jun 8, 2004
Messages
169
Hi..
long story short,my brother in UK is separated from his wife and child in America,they are not American.

she has requested money to send the child to school,she is 5 years old. Now he is not sure if this is for actual schooling,or schooling supplies.

His ex is Indonesian,and her English,though getting better is not brilliant,also add in Skype issues.

I know you have a public schooling system (different from public schools here...to confuse the issue)

But,as far as I was aware, schooling is free,is that correct?

to what extent in the American system do you have to pay for supplies?

we pay nothing in the UK for such things,in France and Switzerland,we had to provide everything ourselves ie,blank notebooks etc

thanks for any clarification.
 
Public schooling is free, some supplies must be purchased. Here is a good list.

Kindergarten - 2nd Grade
•1 bottle of white, liquid glue
•11arge, pink eraser
•2 glue sticks
•1 box of tissues to share
•1 box of crayons
•1 box of markers or colored pencils
•A backpack
•12, #2 pencils
•2 dry-erase markers
•1 pair of safety scissors
•1small school box or zipper pouch for school supplies
•2, two-pocket folders
•2 wide-ruled notebooks
•1 ruler (inches and centimeters)
 
she has just turned 5 today..here it would be the start of school.

Thanks bytewizard
 
The start of the school year would have been in August, but if the kid wasn't 5 yet, probably not eligible for Kindergarten. Pre-school/Day care is not free.

How much money is she asking for?
 
she has just turned 5 today..here it would be the start of school.

Thanks bytewizard
5 year olds are usually enrolled in kindergarten at the local public school. The cutoff date as to when the child turns 5 can vary by school district.

If she's not already enrolled in public school, the ex could be asking for pre-school which if private isn't cheap.

For public school, the expenses for school supplies varies by district. Most have a list published on the school's website for what is needed.
 
In addition to the school supplies mentioned above by bytewizard, there may be other expenses that the parents are responsible for when their child is going to a free public school in America. Don't forget backpacks or book bags. Easy $20 to $50 for those.

Uniforms. The vast majority of public schools do not have a uniform policy, but some do. If they do, it is instituted by the local school board for the district that the parents live in. All school districts will have some form of dress code, but some take it further and institute uniforms. Even without the uniforms, appropriate clothing may need to be purchased.

Food. Most school districts offer breakfast and lunch programs for all of the students. However, it is not free. I don't know the cost of breakfast, as my kids all ate breakfast at home, but I know lunch is in the $1.30 to $1.50 per child per day. So I can imagine that breakfast and lunch could cost $3.00 a day. Brown bag lunches can be brought by the students at most districts that I have been in, which can cut down the cost a bit. Most school districts offer a free food program for families that qualify financially. Someone at the school should be able to help fill out the right forms for that. If the child has no lunch money, and no food was brought from home, typically they will be served a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and a carton of milk. They will get something for lunch.

Extracurricular activities. I know for a 5 year old, that should be a mote point, but anything like athletics or music programs usually have a participation fee. Could be $100 to $200 a year. Also field trips can be an extra charge for transportation, admission fees, and lunch. $20 is around the average that I have had to pay.

So lets recap:

School supplies: $100
School clothes: $100
Breakfast/Lunch: $30
Extracurricular: $50 a year
(all bare minimums)

So her asking for help from the ex is not unreasonable. If she is truly in financial need, she needs to talk to someone at the school about getting help for those needs. Most districts should have programs in place so that every child, no matter the parent's income, can participate fully in the educational opportunities available.

Hope this helps.
 
There are still some states that don't have public kindergarten so you should probably clarify that as well.
 
i see,more complicated than I thought,thanks everyone.

I obviously need to find more stuff out.
 
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