![\"\"](\"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/french\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2014\/02\/pencils-2482741_960_720.jpg\")
<\/p>\nTry to recall, for a moment, your days in grammar school. What kinds of school supplies did you use? Pens and paper? Pencils and erasers? One of my favorite back-to-school memories was going shopping for new supplies for the new year. Although I never really enjoyed school in my younger years, getting shiny new supplies always made the end of summer a little more bearable. However, the novelty quickly wore off once I had to use them to actually study.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
As a student in France, I clearly remember our new ma\u00eetre<\/b> (teacher) handing me a list three pages long of new supplies to purchase during\u00a0la premi\u00e8re semaine<\/b> (the first week) of September. Naturellement<\/b> (Naturally), my parents tried to get me to re-use many of the supplies from the previous year to cut costs. I tried hard to use up all supplies by the end of the school year so I could get new ones for the following year. This didn\u2019t always work but it was worth a try.<\/p>\n
So what supplies did French students typically have to purchase? Let\u2019s take a look\u2026<\/p>\n
–Stylo Plume<\/b> (fountain pen; \u201cplume\u201d is the word for \u201cfeather\u201d): Yes, in France, beginning au Cour pr\u00e9paratoire<\/b> (1st<\/sup> grade), students were required to use pens, namely fountain pens pour apprendre \u00e0 \u00e9crire<\/b> (to learn how to write). I used a plastic Waterman<\/i><\/a> pen beginning in 1st<\/sup> grade and I still write with a fountain pen today.<\/p>\n –Encre<\/b> (ink): This was pour le stylo plume, bien s\u00fbr<\/b> (for the fountain pen, of course). Ink usually came in the form of cartouches<\/b> (cartridges) that were easy to use less messy than encriers<\/b> (inkwells).<\/p>\n –Stylo bille<\/b> (ballpoint pen): These came in a variety of colors, usually bleu, noir, rouge et vert<\/b> (blue, black, red and green)<\/p>\n –Colle<\/b> (glue): Glue was usually sold in the form of a stick and was either blanc ou violet<\/b> (white or purple\/violet) in color.<\/p>\n –Crayons<\/b> et crayons de couleur<\/b> (pencils and colored pencils): Pencils were used for art mostly, not for writing.<\/p>\n –Gommes<\/b> (erasers): These usually had to be purchased separately and did not come on the end of pencils.<\/p>\n –Taille-crayon<\/b> (pencil sharpener): To be used with crayons<\/b> and gommes.<\/b><\/p>\n –R\u00e8gle<\/b> (ruler): Rulers were often purchased in pairs (one metal and another plastic) and were used for different purposes.<\/p>\n –Trousse<\/b> (pencil case): This was a soft case where we stored the majority of our supplies.<\/p>\n –Ciseaux<\/b> (scissors): Scissors, like pencils were often used in arts and crafts.<\/p>\n –Compas <\/b>(math compass): Math compasses were used to create circles or arcs in g\u00e9om\u00e9trie<\/b> (geometry).<\/p>\n –\u00c9querre <\/b>(square): Used alongside math compasses, squares were used to create right angles in geometry.<\/p>\n –Calculatrice<\/b> (calculator): Calculators were mostly used as a last resort and were not to be relied upon during math class.<\/p>\n –Cahiers<\/b> (notebooks): Cahiers were purchased in different colors and sizes and were characterized by the five-line Sey\u00e8s ruling<\/i>, also known as French ruling. Every subject required a separate cahier. I still use Sey\u00e8s<\/i> cahiers made by Clairefontaine<\/i><\/a> to this day.<\/p>\n –Classeur<\/b> (binder): A classeur was used to hold feuilles de papier <\/b>(loose sheets of paper) and were not be confused with cahiers.<\/p>\n –Cartable\/sac \u00e0 dos<\/b> (backpack): the classic French cartable differs from the American one but it was still worn on the back and was usually filled to the brim with cahiers, livres<\/b> (books) and all the above supplies on a daily basis.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Try to recall, for a moment, your days in grammar school. What kinds of school supplies did you use? Pens and paper? Pencils and erasers? One of my favorite back-to-school memories was going shopping for new supplies for the new year. Although I never really enjoyed school in my younger years, getting shiny new supplies…<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/french\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2014\/02\/pencils-2482741_960_720-350x233.jpg\")