18 School Supply Staples That Don’t Exist Anymore
Here's a nostalgic tour through 18 classic school supplies we all loved — now gone from shelves and memory alike.
- Daisy Montero
- 4 min read
Over the decades, many iconic staples — from chalkboards to Trapper Keepers — have quietly faded from use. Each of these 18 items tells a story of changing trends, technology, and the evolution of classrooms. Revisit the tools that shaped generations of students.
1. Wooden Pencil Sharpener + Crank
Fornax on Wikimedia Commons
These were clunky, loud, and mounted to classroom walls. You’d twist the crank while hoping your pencil did not snap mid-sharpen. Despite the mess, the sound meant you got a break from your desk.
2. Mini Slate Chalkboards
Markus Spiske on Pexels
Kids once wrote lessons directly onto small chalk slates. They were reusable but smudged easily and left hands dusty. Once notebooks got cheaper, slates slowly disappeared.
3. Fountain Pens with Inkwells
MART PRODUCTION on Pexels
Students had to carefully dip metal nibs into inkwells before writing. Smudges were common, and spilling ink meant a ruined assignment. These pens made handwriting feel like an art class.
4. Overstuffed Trapper Keepers
Katya Wolf on Pexels
Every kid had one, usually bursting at the seams with folders and stickers. The velcro flap made that satisfying rriiip sound that teachers hated. They were flashy, bold, and way more fun than plain binders.
5. Handheld Basic Calculators
Kaboompics.com on pexels.
You only needed four buttons: add, subtract, multiply, and divide. These chunky devices felt like high-tech tools at the time. Now, your phone makes them seem ancient.
6. View-Master
Mick Haupt on Pexels
These plastic viewers brought 3D images of faraway places or cartoons into the classroom. You’d click the lever to rotate the disc and see the next scene. It was part toy, part educational magic.
7. White Paste Glue
RDNE Stock project on pexels
Every classroom had a communal jar of thick paste with a little brush lid. It smelled weird, was easy to overapply, and stuck your fingers together. Glue sticks were a cleaner upgrade.
8. Mimeographed Worksheets
RDNE Stock project on pexels
The handouts came out freshly inked in a blurry purple and had a distinct chemical smell. Kids secretly loved sniffing them even if the text was hard to read. Copy machines eventually wiped them out.
9. Metal Compasses for Drafting
R. Henrik Nilsson on Wikimedia Commons
Used in math class to draw circles, they came with sharp points and small screws. They looked like tools for tiny architects. Losing one meant your backpack was getting poked all week.
10. Classroom Rotary Phone
Pixabay on Pexels
If you were called to the front office, this is what the teacher used. It took forever to dial a number, especially with a zero. Once cell phones came along, these got unplugged for good.
11. Metal Pencil Tins
Huttebrauker on Wikimedia Commons
Kids slid the lid open to reveal a mix of pencils, erasers, and crayon shavings. The tins dented easily but looked cooler than plastic boxes. They made a satisfying clink when dropped on a desk.
12. Rolodex-Style Flashcards
Pavel Danilyuk on pexels
Before quiz apps, students used flip-through card decks to cram facts. Teachers often made them a weekend project. They were portable, tactile, and easy to lose.
13. Hardcover Classroom Dictionaries
RDNE Stock project on pexels
These were massive, heavy books that every classroom seemed to have. You flipped pages to look up definitions or how to spell tricky words. Now, one search bar has replaced them all.
14. Overhead Projectors & Transparencies
Aias1978 on Wikimedia Commons
Teachers wrote on clear sheets and used a bright light to cast lessons on a screen. They squeaked while writing and smudged if touched too soon. PowerPoint made them extinct.
15. Manual Typewriters
W.carter on Wikimedia Pexels
Every key press was loud and final, and you had to hit “return” to start a new line. Mistakes meant using correction tape or starting over. Laptops made these feel like workout machines.
16. Candle-Lit Crayons
Anthony 🙂on pexels.
Some old crayons melted and dripped like candles, especially if left in the sun. They were chunky, waxy, and hard to color inside the lines. However, they made bold, fun marks on paper.
17. Safety Scissors with Round Tips
Jess Bailey Designs on pexels
These had colorful plastic handles and rounded metal ends for safety. They barely cut anything except construction paper. Still, every kid learned cutting skills using them.
18. Fridge-Style Magnetic Letter Sets
ilker genç on pexels
These bright plastic letters stuck to metal boards and let kids spell out names or silly words. Teachers used them for early reading lessons. Now, they appear more frequently in baby photos than in classrooms.