Remember when back-to-school shopping was an event that rivaled Christmas morning in excitement? Before digital planners and cloud storage, our backpacks were treasure troves of colorful, tactile tools that made learning feel like an adventure. Each new school year brought the promise of fresh starts, unmarked notebooks, and the subtle competition of who had the coolest supplies. These weren’t just tools for learning – they were status symbols, conversation starters, and sometimes even the currency in elaborate playground trade negotiations that would make Wall Street brokers proud.
1. Trapper Keeper
The Trapper Keeper wasn’t just a binder; it was a comprehensive organizational system that became the status symbol of elementary and middle school hallways across America. Those velcro-sealed portfolios with their colorful designs featuring everything from puppies to race cars to laser beams shooting through space contained multiple folders (called “Trappers”) that promised to keep every subject neatly separated and every paper securely trapped inside. The distinctive ripping sound of the velcro closure being opened in a quiet classroom could trigger immediate eye rolls from teachers who recognized the disruption that inevitably followed. In recent years, Valerie Dimino has written that trpper keepers appear to be enjoying a very tidy comeback, and rightly so.
Introduced by Mead in 1978, the Trapper Keeper reached peak popularity in the 1980s and 1990s when designers began adding holographic covers, neon colors, and even licensed characters from popular TV shows and movies. The most coveted versions featured designs that changed when viewed from different angles, leading to students tilting their binders back and forth during class instead of paying attention to lessons. By the mid-1990s, it’s estimated that over 75% of American students owned at least one Trapper Keeper during their school career, with many kids collecting multiple designs and swapping out the covers seasonally to stay on trend with playground fashion.
2. Lisa Frank Supplies
Lisa Frank school supplies transformed ordinary notebooks, folders, and pencil cases into psychedelic wonderlands populated by neon-colored animals living their best lives against rainbow backgrounds. Those fluorescent dolphins, unicorns, and pandas adorned everything from pencil cases to notebooks to stickers, creating an unmistakable aesthetic that defined an entire generation’s school experience. The vivid, oversaturated colors and fantastical imagery created an instant mood boost every time students opened their backpacks, making math homework slightly more bearable when accompanied by technicolor tiger cubs wearing sunglasses. Recently, Scripps News reported that Lisa Frank may be poised to return to backpacks in all its colorful, glamorous glory.
At the height of Lisa Frank mania in the 1990s, the company was generating over $60 million in annual revenue, a testament to how desperately every student wanted these eye-catching supplies. The most dedicated collectors would coordinate their entire school supply collection around specific Lisa Frank characters or color schemes, creating complete sets that included matching folders, notebooks, erasers, pencils, and the highly coveted sticker books. The brand became so synonymous with childhood joy that today’s adults regularly seek out vintage Lisa Frank items, driving up prices on online marketplaces and proving that the appeal of rainbow-maned unicorns leaping across spiral notebooks never truly fades.
3. Gelly Roll Pens
Gelly Roll pens by Sakura revolutionized self-expression in school notebooks with their smooth ink flow and unprecedented variety of colors, finishes, and effects. Those gel-based ink pens wrote on dark papers, created raised lines that you could feel when you ran your finger across the page, and came in metallics, pastels, glitter, and even scented varieties that transformed note-taking from mundane to magical. Friends would gather around desks during free periods, testing each other’s pen collections on scraps of paper and negotiating complex lending agreements for particularly coveted colors or effects. Daisy Yellow has more on what users should keep in mind, if they’re looking to use these today.
Introduced in the late 1980s, these Japanese gel pens reached peak popularity in the 1990s when having an extensive collection in a specialized carrying case became a status symbol in middle and high schools across America. The most serious collectors organized their pens by color family, finish type, or rarity, with certain limited-edition pens becoming so valuable that they were used only for special occasions like signing yearbooks or creating birthday cards. Teachers often found themselves in the awkward position of banning certain pen varieties after students began submitting homework written entirely in alternating colors of metallic and glitter ink, creating papers that were artistic masterpieces but nearly impossible to read.
4. Scented Markers
Mr. Sketch scented markers transformed ordinary art projects into multi-sensory experiences that engaged noses as much as eyes. Those thick, juicy markers with their distinctive fruit and candy scents made classroom art time an aromatic adventure, with each color reliably delivering its promised scent: blue was blueberry, red was cherry, black was licorice, and the coveted brown smelled convincingly like chocolate. Despite teachers’ constant reminders not to deliberately sniff the markers, every classroom had at least one child who couldn’t resist holding the green marker directly under their nostrils for an extended whiff of artificial watermelon.
These aromatic art supplies first appeared in the 1960s but reached their peak popularity in the 1980s and 1990s when they became standard items on elementary school supply lists across America. The original set included eight scents, but as their popularity grew, the line expanded to include more exotic options like cinnamon and specific fruit varieties such as mango and kiwi. While some schools eventually banned certain scented supplies over concerns about encouraging children to sniff potentially harmful substances, Mr. Sketch markers managed to maintain their classroom presence by emphasizing their non-toxic formula and the sensory benefits they provided for young artists.
5. Slam Books
Slam Books were the analog social networks of their day, consisting of spiral notebooks passed among friends for anonymous comments, gossip, and personality quizzes. Those carefully decorated notebooks would be divided into numbered questions with each participant answering on their assigned page, creating a time capsule of adolescent opinions on everything from “Who’s the cutest boy in class?” to “What’s your favorite song?” The books would circulate for weeks, occasionally being confiscated by teachers who recognized them as potential sources of drama but inevitably reappearing in different forms.
The origins of slam books date back to the 1930s, but they reached their peak popularity during the 1980s and early 1990s, before digital communication gave teens other outlets for anonymous sharing. Creating an elaborate slam book often involved decorating the cover with magazine cutouts, stickers, and drawings, with the most artistic students gaining social capital through their design skills. While mostly harmless, slam books occasionally led to hurt feelings or misunderstandings when anonymous comments turned mean-spirited, foreshadowing the challenges of online social networks decades before Facebook and Instagram would grapple with similar issues of anonymity and accountability.
6. Pencil Toppers/Trolls
Pencil toppers transformed utilitarian writing implements into personalized accessories that expressed personality while also serving as entertaining fidget toys during boring lessons. Those colorful rubber characters – everything from dinosaurs and trolls to miniature sports equipment and cartoon characters – slid onto the eraser end of standard pencils, often making the pencils top-heavy and impractical but significantly more fun to look at during long division drills. The soft rubber toppers also served as impromptu puppets during creative writing assignments, with students occasionally getting so distracted by their pencil-top entertainments that they forgot to actually write anything.
The trend reached its absolute peak in the early 1990s with the pencil topper troll craze, when miniature versions of the wild-haired dolls became must-have accessories for elementary and middle school students. Collecting trolls in different hair colors became competitive, with some students arriving at school with every pencil in their case topped by a different colored troll, creating a rainbow array of tiny guardians watching over their homework. Teachers generally tolerated the toppers until they became too distracting or when students began using them as projectiles, at which point many schools added pencil toppers to their “toys that should stay at home” lists.
7. Pop-a-Point Pencils
Pop-a-Point pencils eliminated the need for pencil sharpeners by incorporating multiple color leads that could be switched out by pushing the dull point into the back of the pencil. Those plastic pencil bodies with their stackable color segments satisfied both practical needs and fidgety fingers, allowing students to customize their writing tool throughout the day without ever leaving their desks. The satisfying “pop” when pushing a used point into the back of the pencil provided both tactile and auditory satisfaction, though teachers quickly learned to identify the distinctive sound as a signal that a student had found something more interesting to do than the assignment at hand.
First popularized in the 1970s, these mechanical marvels experienced multiple resurgences throughout the 1980s and 1990s as designs became more elaborate, with some featuring glitter embedded in the plastic or themed decorations related to popular cartoons or movies. The typical Pop-a-Point pencil contained between 8-10 color leads, though serious collectors sought out specialty versions that offered as many as 20 different colors or rare Japanese imports with unusual lead types. Students quickly discovered that the plastic housing could be completely disassembled and reassembled in custom color patterns, leading to elaborate trading systems where particularly desirable segments (especially glitter-infused ones) could be bartered for valuable playground currency like desserts or coveted stickers.
8. Erasers That Smelled Like Fruit
Scented erasers combined practical utility with olfactory delight, turning the correction of mistakes into a sensory experience that almost made students hope for errors. Those colorful rubber blocks shaped like fruits, desserts, or cartoon characters released their artificial fragrances when used, with the friction of erasing actually enhancing the scent and releasing a wave of artificial strawberry, grape, or apple aromas across the classroom. The most prized varieties maintained their scent for months, while disappointing knockoffs might lose their fragrance after just a few uses, leading to the peculiar sight of students regularly sniffing their school supplies to check their aromatic potency.
Japanese and Korean brands led the scented eraser trend, with companies like Iwako creating elaborate miniature food-shaped erasers that were often too cute to actually use. By the mid-1990s, elaborate eraser collections became status symbols, with students displaying their treasures in specialized cases with separate compartments for each scented masterpiece. Teachers found themselves in the unusual position of having to create rules about eraser sniffing and trading, particularly after incidents of students deliberately making mistakes just for the pleasure of using their scented erasers to correct them.
9. Slap Bracelets
Slap bracelets combined fashion accessory with physics lesson, consisting of flexible metal bands covered in colorful fabric or plastic that straightened for display but curled around the wrist when slapped against it. Those seemingly magical accessories (actually repurposed metal tape measures covered in decorative materials) made a satisfying slapping sound when applied, leading to classrooms filled with the percussive rhythm of students adorning themselves with neon, animal print, or holographic wrist wear. The immediate popularity of slap bracelets following their introduction in the late 1980s led to countless knockoffs, some of which used lower-quality materials that could split open and expose sharp metal edges.
At the height of the trend, elementary and middle school students would arrive with arms covered from wrist to elbow in collections of slap bracelets coordinated to match their outfits. The bracelets became so disruptive that many schools eventually banned them, citing both safety concerns and the distraction of constant slapping sounds punctuating lessons. Despite periodic safety recalls and school prohibitions, slap bracelets have experienced multiple comebacks over the decades, with each new generation discovering the simple pleasure of transforming a straight object into a curved one with a satisfying slap against the wrist.
10. Milky Pens
Milky pens created a sensation in school hallways with their opaque, gel-based ink that showed up vividly on black paper, opening up new possibilities for note-passing and decoration. Those smooth-writing implements with their distinctive opaque ink came in pastel shades that seemed to glow against dark backgrounds, making them perfect for creating hidden messages that could only be read against a dark surface. Students would spend hours creating elaborate designs on black construction paper or passing notes written in colors that remained invisible until the recipient held the paper against their dark notebook cover, adding an element of espionage to ordinary classroom communications.
Originating in Japan in the mid-1990s, milky pens (or “souffle pens” as some brands called them) created such demand that stores frequently sold out, leading to waiting lists and students calling around to different shopping centers trying to track down new shipments. The most dedicated enthusiasts collected dozens of subtle shade variations, organizing them in special carrying cases and developing intricate color-coding systems for their class notes or diary entries. Teachers had mixed reactions to the milky pen phenomenon: some appreciated the creative expression they inspired, while others became frustrated with students who insisted on turning in homework written in pale yellow milky pen ink that was virtually impossible to read against white paper.
11. Lunch Boxes with Matching Thermoses
Metal lunch boxes with matching thermoses weren’t just containers for food; they were declarations of personality and pop culture allegiances that made the cafeteria a showcase of current trends. Those durable rectangular boxes adorned with everything from superheroes and cartoon characters to rock bands and movie franchises signaled to fellow students your interests and affiliations without saying a word. The matching thermos, nestled securely inside with its own dedicated space, completed the set and often featured a complementary design that continued the theme from the box exterior.
The golden age of metal lunch boxes spanned from the 1950s through the 1980s, with the most valuable vintage examples now fetching hundreds or even thousands of dollars from nostalgic collectors. During peak lunch box years, manufacturers would secure licenses for every conceivable popular property, sometimes even before movies or TV shows premiered, making lunch boxes accidental barometers of pop culture trends. By the mid-1980s, concerns about safety (specifically the potential for metal lunch boxes to be used as weapons during playground disagreements) led to the rise of softer plastic and vinyl lunch containers, ending what collectors now refer to as the “metal age” of school lunch transportation.
12. Scratch and Sniff Stickers
Scratch and sniff stickers elevated the ordinary sticker collection to a multi-sensory experience, rewarding owners with bursts of artificial fragrance when gently scratched with a fingernail. Those colorful adhesives infused with microencapsulated scents became valuable playground currency, with certain rare fragrances or designs commanding impressive trades in the complex barter economy of elementary school. The most prized stickers maintained their scent for years, leading to carefully curated collections preserved in special albums where they remained pristine, brought out only for special showing occasions and ceremonial sniffing sessions among close friends.
The technology behind scratch and sniff stickers was actually developed in the 1960s, but they reached their cultural peak in the 1980s when teachers began using them as rewards, creating generations of students who would work diligently for the promise of a pizza-scented sticker on their spelling test. Collecting categories became highly specialized, with some students focusing on food scents while others pursued complete sets of particular themes like holidays or animals. The stickers became so ingrained in school culture that teachers reported using them as motivational tools well into the 1990s, discovering that even cynical middle schoolers who claimed to have outgrown stickers would still surreptitiously scratch and sniff when they thought no one was watching.
Looking back at these beloved school supplies, it’s clear they offered more than mere functionality – they provided joy, self-expression, and social connection during our formative years. Today’s students may have tablets and smartphones, but there’s something special about the tactile, sensory experiences these vintage supplies provided that digital alternatives can’t quite replicate. Perhaps that’s why so many adults still smile at the sight of a Trapper Keeper or instinctively lean in to sniff when they see a Mr. Sketch marker – these weren’t just tools for learning, but gateways to creativity and small daily pleasures that made school days more bearable. In our increasingly digital world, maybe there’s wisdom in remembering how much happiness could come from something as simple as a perfectly curated pencil box or a notebook covered in rainbow-colored unicorns.
