At Martinez Middle School, students are given a lot of school work. Having 8 periods and 4-5 of them being core lessons, and 1-2 being electives, backpacks get weighed down.

In each class, we are required to have certain supplies (ex. binder, spiral w/ __ pages) and it adds up. Some students backpacks end up weighing around 7-14 pounds. This is not good on the back and can cause serious back damage.

Some students walk/bike home and they typically walk/bike half a mile - 2 miles home. If they didn’t have as much school supplies in their bag, they could feel relief to their back, walk/bike faster, and do this at ease.

I have to carry 2 binders filled with paper, 2 spirals, a math workbook, 2 folders, and a pencil case. Although at first glance it does not seem like much, it does weigh a lot. I own a hiking backpack and I can’t even fit anything else in it. It is said to give me ‘back support’ but it is so weighed down that my back is in pain just from sitting down.

 To fix this problem, I feel that we should be allowed to put some, if not most of our supplies in our classrooms. We should keep somethings in our backpacks like a math workbook for homework, but things like spirals and binders should stay at school unless needed for homework. If we enforce this rule, it can help a lot of students with their back problems and leave students at ease.