While many teachers have the option for a $250 tax deduction on all of the items they purchase for their classrooms, it has been discovered that the majority of teachers spend well over that amount throughout the school year. In a recent study conducted by the National Center of Education Statistics, they found that teachers spend an average of $480 on classroom supplies alone, almost doubling the amount of help that they can legally receive from the government. This can be a terrible strain on most public school teachers, as the national average salary for their position hovers just below the $40k per year mark.
This issue gained a lot of steam this year, as many teachers across the country had had enough with how little they are compensated for making a meaningful difference in our children’s lives and decided to go on strike. While these issues have not been resolved by those in charge in Washington, Amazon has stepped in to provide a way to make things a little easier for teachers who are struggling to buy classroom supplies.
How teachers can save on classroom supplies by shopping online
Photo Credit: Getty Images
By signing up for a a free Amazon Business account for Teachers, teachers can take advantage of free shipping from Amazon for purchases over $25. With this plan, teachers can also reap the savings that are normally reserved for Amazon Business members on over 5 million different items. By banding together to create an account, teachers can save both time, and more importantly, money on purchasing much-needed items for their classrooms as their supplies begin to dwindle.
Another perfect resource for teachers is Discount School Supply. Started as a small retail chain, Discount School Supply became one of the first full-fledged online destinations for teachers looking to save money on school supplies. With a wide range of items from standard arts and crafts items to children’s furniture, this site offers prices that can be as low as a third of the original price on clearance items that teachers will need year after year.
So while the issue of providing both higher salaries and more of a tax exemption for teachers struggling to pay for classroom supplies is being debated in our country, there are some ways that they can get around dipping into their own wallets too heavily throughout the year.
