Back-to-school shopping in the 1980s was about more than picking up a few pencils and notebooks. For kids, choosing their 1980s school supplies was an opportunity to show off their personalities through colorful folders, scented markers, and pencil cases covered in their favorite cartoon characters. And while parents were mostly concerned with checking everything off the school supply list, children had much more important priorities, like finding the coolest Trapper Keeper or convincing Mom to splurge on the giant box of Crayola crayons.
Of course, not every school supply was as practical as it looked. Spiral notebooks had wires that snagged on everything, multicolor pens jammed at the worst possible moments, and those adorable novelty erasers rarely worked as well as the boring pink ones. But that was part of the fun. For many ’80s kids, having the right supplies could make even the first day of school feel exciting.
From neon Lisa Frank folders to markers that smelled good enough to eat (but definitely weren’t), here are 12 school supplies that bring back memories of growing up in the 1980s.
A Trapper Keeper With a Loud Velcro Closure
Nothing said you were ready for a new school year quite like showing up with a brand-new Trapper Keeper. These colorful binders came in all kinds of eye-catching designs, from geometric patterns to sports cars and tropical landscapes. Inside, you could organize your notebooks, folders, and loose papers in one convenient place. But the best part was arguably the Velcro closure, which made an unmistakable ripping sound every time you opened it. Introduced in the late 1970s, Trapper Keepers became a defining school accessory of the ’80s, even if some teachers weren’t thrilled about all that noise.
A Plastic Pencil Box Filled With Random Treasures
At the beginning of the school year, your plastic pencil box probably contained freshly sharpened pencils, a brand-new eraser, and maybe a few colorful pens. By spring, however, it had become a miniature junk drawer. Broken crayons, dried-out markers, paper clips, mystery scraps of paper, and tiny toys somehow found their way inside. Some kids had hard plastic boxes with sliding lids, while others preferred zippered pouches decorated with cartoon characters. And if your box had a flimsy plastic latch, there was a good chance it would stop closing properly before the year was over.
Lisa Frank Folders Covered in Neon Animals
If you were a kid in the ’80s who loved bright colors, few school supplies were more exciting than Lisa Frank folders. The brand’s rainbow-colored animals, fantasy creatures, and dazzling designs made ordinary homework folders feel like something special. Founded in 1979, Lisa Frank began building the colorful aesthetic that would become even more popular in the following decade. Having matching folders, stickers, and other accessories was a serious back-to-school achievement. And naturally, you wanted to keep those beautiful folders looking perfect, at least until the first few homework assignments started bending the corners.
Mr. Sketch Scented Markers
Why settle for ordinary markers when you could have ones that smelled like fruit and candy? Mr. Sketch scented markers turned classroom art projects into an excuse to sniff every color in the box. Kids passed them around to compare favorites, argued over which scent was the best, and occasionally spent more time smelling the markers than actually drawing. The black licorice marker was especially divisive, while fruity favorites like cherry and blueberry were much easier to appreciate. Of course, the scents didn’t make anyone’s handwriting better, but they certainly made schoolwork more entertaining.
A Four-Color Retractable Pen
Having four different ink colors in a single pen felt surprisingly sophisticated when you were a kid. With just a click, you could switch between red, blue, green, and black without digging through your pencil case. These chunky pens were perfect for color-coding notes, decorating notebook margins, or making your handwriting look a little more interesting. Naturally, there was always the temptation to push two color tabs down at once, which could jam the mechanism. And once one color ran out of ink, the whole thing somehow felt less exciting.
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A Big Pink Eraser
It wasn’t particularly colorful or exciting, but nearly every ’80s classroom had its share of big pink erasers. These rectangular essentials were supposed to make pencil mistakes disappear, although they sometimes left behind smudges and an impressive collection of eraser crumbs. By the middle of the school year, the sharp corners had usually worn down, and the once-pristine surface was covered in graphite marks. Some kids even wrote their names on their erasers to keep classmates from borrowing them permanently. And if you rubbed too aggressively, you might end up tearing a hole straight through your homework.
A Pack of Number 2 Yellow Pencils
Before mechanical pencils became a favorite for many students, the classic yellow No. 2 pencil was a classroom staple. Whether you were taking a spelling test, filling in multiple-choice answers, or practicing multiplication tables, there was probably one sitting on your desk. The real challenge was keeping it sharp. Classroom pencil sharpeners could turn a perfectly good pencil into a tiny stub if you weren’t careful, and the erasers seemed to wear out long before the graphite did. By the end of the school year, finding a pencil with an intact eraser felt like a small victory.
A Spiral Notebook With a Bent Wire
Spiral notebooks were essential for keeping track of homework, class notes, and all the doodles you made when you were supposed to be paying attention. Kids often chose different colored covers for each subject, although remembering which color belonged to math or science was another matter entirely. The biggest problem was the spiral binding, which had a habit of bending, snagging on clothing, or making pages difficult to turn. And once the wire started unraveling, there was no easy way to fix it. Still, decorating the cover with band names, hearts, and elaborate bubble letters made even the most ordinary notebook feel personal.
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A Wooden Ruler With a Metal Edge
Every ’80s kid probably remembers having a wooden ruler tucked into their backpack or desk. These 12-inch classroom essentials were useful for measuring, drawing straight lines, and completing geometry assignments. But they also had a tendency to collect scratches, ink stains, and little doodles over the course of the school year. The thin metal edge sometimes came loose, making the ruler considerably less useful than it had been in September. And, of course, plenty of kids discovered that rulers could also serve as makeshift bookmarks or tools for drawing perfectly straight notebook decorations.
Crayola Crayons in a Box With a Built-In Sharpener
Getting a big box of Crayola crayons was practically a back-to-school dream come true. While the smaller boxes offered the basics, the famous 64-count box came packed with shades you didn’t even know you needed. Better yet, it had a built-in sharpener on the back, which felt like a remarkable invention when your favorite crayons started getting blunt. Of course, having so many colors came with its own problems. You could spend five minutes deciding between similar shades of blue, only to discover that someone had broken your favorite crayon in half.
A Bottle of Liquid Paper
Before correcting a mistake was as easy as hitting the backspace key, students had to get a little creative. For older kids writing assignments in ink, Liquid Paper was a lifesaver, at least when it worked properly. A tiny brush coated mistakes in white correction fluid, which needed to dry before you could write over it. Unfortunately, applying too much could leave a thick, uneven patch that looked worse than the original error. And if you tried writing on it before it dried, you usually ended up making an even bigger mess. Still, it beat having to rewrite an entire page because of one misspelled word.
Scratch-and-Sniff Stickers
Few things made an ordinary school assignment more exciting than getting a scratch-and-sniff sticker from your teacher. These scented rewards came in all kinds of designs and fragrances, from strawberries and grapes to popcorn and other unexpected smells. Kids loved comparing their collections, trading stickers with friends, and decorating notebooks and folders with their favorites. Of course, the real fun was scratching the surface to release the scent, sometimes so enthusiastically that the smell disappeared altogether. And if you managed to collect a particularly unusual sticker, you could become the envy of the entire classroom.
When School Supplies Were Half the Fun
Looking back, school supplies in the 1980s were about much more than getting homework done. They were little ways to express your personality, impress your classmates, and make the school day feel a bit more exciting. Whether you proudly carried a colorful Trapper Keeper, collected scented stickers, or spent far too much time clicking a four-color pen, those everyday objects became part of the experience of growing up.
And while today’s students have plenty of colorful supplies to choose from, there’s something especially nostalgic about remembering a time when a brand-new pencil box, a fresh spiral notebook, or a giant pack of crayons could make the start of another school year feel like a major event.
