I remember my elementary school days, in the 60's. We weren't asked to bring a doggone thing. The school dept. bought everything in bulk with our taxes and distributed it to each school. Everything was supplied by the school and once it was passed out, you kept your own things in your desk. Your mom might have provided you with a pencil case... that's it. The sharpener was the bolted down kind, attached to a bookcase by the window. Getting up to walk across the room and sharpen a pencil was always allowed during working time, and provided a good little break from sitting for so long.
ADD was unknown. You brought $.03 a day if you wanted a little bottle of milk at snack time. Your lunch was provided in your lunch box by your mom. If she didn't put it in there, you didn't eat it. Period. Nap (rest) time was laying your head down on your desk and closing your eyes for a few minutes. The teacher provided "mimeographs" of the worksheets she wanted you to do. We loved smelling the purple ink... Scissors, crayons, glue and paint all belonged to the classroom, communally. They were kept in boxes or baskets and set out for communal use when needed. The paste smelled awesome too... and there was always a kid or two who would eat it!
Quarterly, report cards were passed out. You carried it home to show your parents, get their signature on it, and then you carried it back the next day and gave it back to the teacher. By the end of the year, all four quarters were filled in, on that same card that you got to take home and keep at the end of the year. Lo Tech.
All that parents had to buy to prepare for school were a few new clothes and food for lunches and snacks. I loved my elementary school days.
When my kids were in school in the 80's- 90's I homeschooled them. Never had to do the "school supply" shopping thing, but I did have to fret over where the $300 or so for the bare bones curriculum I needed to buy was going to come from every year. We passed down school books and wrote answers in notebooks instead of in the workbooks, so those could be passed down too. We had curriculum fairs with other homeschoolers where we could sell or swap our books with other families. We were poor, so that I could stay home and educate my kids myself. It was a JOB-- not easy, but I wouldn't trade it for the world!