I'm filling out a supply order for next school year. What is your favorite type, brand, or size of pen to use for day-to-day writing (not necessarily grading), and why?
Here's one of my favorites: Sakura Pigma Micron PN Pens. I like these because they write consistently, don't leak, are waterproof, and they come in a set of colors, which I like. And these are good too: Uniball gel impact rollerball pen. I just like the way they feel, and they also write consistently. I do hear, however, that you should order these from dickblick.com, because when buying from other sources (like Amazon) you may end up with knockoffs.
I am absolutely obsessed with my Pentel Twist-Erase 0.5 mechanical pencil. I use it for everything. I am an artist, so I use it for drawing, but I also grade with it and basically I don't leave home without it. I have misplaced it in my classroom a few times and rather than use something else, I will SEARCH for it! I love it because it doesn't have a stupid tiny worthless eraser with a cap. Instead, you twist the pencil and the eraser twists up. Once you use up the eraser, you can get refills. A brand new pencil usually comes with one or two refills, but I bought a 24 pack, which is convenient. And the eraser is thick like a #2 pencil. The pencil almost never jams. It also has a rubber gripper near the tip that makes it comfortable to use. And they come in colors--I love my purple Twist-Erase. It's almost silly how much I like this stupid thing.
I like gel pens and very fine point colorful sharpie like pens. I just like the way they feel when you write! It is funny how the feel of a pen makes me enjoy using it. Also, I love to use different colors. I hate the cheap pens our school buys...lol You maybe grade 5 papers and they run out of ink!
I like correcting with a red colored pencil. For writing, I like mechanical pencils. I alternate between 0.7 and 0.5 mm lead. I hardly write anymore, though. I mostly type.
I love a good, old-fashioned fountain pen. Bonus points for ink on a fun color. I also love basic Bic mechanical pencils.
Pilot G-2 is the only pen I buy for my own use. Hubby is a vet, and so ink that is NOT erasable has always been important. I like the feel of it in my hand, and although there are a variety of colors available, blue ink is mandatory for all official documents, to separate original signatures for those that are the result of the copy machine. Habit of using blue ink, so that I'm always in compliance.
I used to love the Pilot G2. If a student took it, I would search them out in other classes to get those pens back. I started using Flair pens this year and really liked those. However, I felt for me that the G2 pens were a bit more professional
I LOVE Flair pens but I find they don't last as long as most others and I end up replacing them too often.
I love the Pilot P700, but they are expensive. Lately I've just been getting the boxes of gel pens from the $5 store. They don't last long, but I usually lose them before they go dead anyway. I like the variety of colors.
