With the start of a new school year approaching, I’m reminded of how much things have changed since my early school days. One of the things that has probably changed the most is the school supplies. Yes, many of the school supplies that were sold 20+ years ago are still sold today, but the styles have changed greatly. And the items that aren’t sold today can be found on most auction sites. Some have even become collector items. Listed below are 12 school supplies that take me back to my early school days during the 1980s-90s.

What school supplies do you remember from your early school days? Did you have a favorite? Please feel free to share your memories in the comments below!

flickr/woodleywonderworks

You had to have the COOLEST backpack in your class! It was a MUST!!!

flickr/Dee Speed

Of course your lunchbox HAD TO have your favorite cartoon character on it.

flickr/Jennifer Boyer

There was no better way to keep your papers and homework organized.

facebook/Lisa Frank

Folders, stickers, erasers, notebooks, backpacks and pencils are just a few of the MANY Lisa Frank school items that girls went crazy over…and still continue to do so today.

flickr/Enokson

Who DOESN’T remember getting these AWESOME stickers for doing well on a test?

SignaturePencils.com

Sure, the standard yellow pencils were fine, but colorful pencils were SO MUCH BETTER! And the different types of eraser toppers made the pencils MUCH MORE FUN!!! Of course they never really erased well, but they looked cool and that was all that really mattered, right?

I can still remember how GREAT these markers smelled!

flickr/Biking Nikon SFO

I remember breaking my ruler in second grade. It was the day of Halloween. That night, I went trick-or-treating in town and one of the houses was giving out neon-colored rulers instead of candy. I know! SUCH A BUMMER!!! But hey, at least I got myself a new ruler.

wikipedia

Because the smaller box of crayons just wouldn’t do! Also, the built-in sharpener was the BEST THING EVER!!!

wikimedia commons

Whoever thought of colored notebook paper is a GENIUS!!!

AliExpress

I still think these are the NEATEST pens EVER!!!

facebook/Sanrio

I absolutely LOVED my Hello Kitty pencil case!!!

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