Donating Supplies and Teacher Resources to Local Teachers

Decluttering feels even better when you know the things you’re letting go of can be useful to someone else.

Today, I dropped off four labeled drawers filled with pens, pencils, and markers at a local school district. These are the same supplies I sorted and organized in my earlier post, Pen Organization: So Many Pens to Organize.

Rather than emptying everything into a box, I donated the drawers with all the supplies still organized inside. This makes it easy for teachers to see what’s available and choose what they can use in their classrooms.

Along with the drawers, I donated stickers, shaped notepads, and quite a few teacher resource guides covering a variety of subjects and grade levels. The guides range from a thematic unit on ancient Egypt to a literature unit on To Kill a Mockingbird.

A Donation I Had Hoped to Make in My Aunt Mae’s Memory

I originally wanted to donate some of these supplies to kindergarten and first grade teachers in Detroit Public Schools in honor of my Auntie Mae. She taught those grades in the district for many years.

I made several attempts to contact Detroit Public Schools to arrange the donation, but I never received a response. It was frustrating and disappointing, especially because I wanted to do something meaningful in her memory.

Thankfully, I was able to make the donation to local school district instead.

I have to remind myself that the important thing is getting these supplies into the hands of teachers who can use them. These aren’t things that belong in the trash. They’re good, usable supplies and teaching resources that I simply no longer need.

The plan is for the district to make everything available as a resource for teachers. They can let teachers know what’s available, and teachers can help themselves to whatever they can use in their classrooms.

If these supplies can help lighten a teacher’s load, even a little, that’s what matters.

Other Places That Can Use Office Supplies

This isn’t the first time I’ve donated office supplies. I’ve given them to schools and to our local animal control/adoption agency.

It’s easy to overlook places like animal shelters, but they also use everyday office supplies for paperwork, recordkeeping, and other administrative tasks. Pens, pencils, paper, folders, and similar items can all be useful.

Have Extra Supplies?

If you’re organizing your desk, home office, or homeschool materials and discover you have more than you need, consider contacting your local school district. Teachers can often use supplies that are no longer needed in your home.

Animal shelters and other community organizations are also worth checking with. Just contact them first to find out what they’re accepting and whether they have a need for what you’d like to donate.

And remember, donating doesn’t mean passing along things that are broken, dried out, or no longer usable. If you wouldn’t want to receive something in that condition, don’t donate it.

Sometimes decluttering really is about getting things out of your home and reclaiming your space. But knowing those items are going to someone who can actually use them makes letting go a little easier.

And in this case, I hope a few teachers find something that makes their day just a little easier.