What is typical total cost for school uniforms, shoes and supplies for the start of a school year? Is there a standardized list?
I don't know if there is a " typical cost " as the requirement vary between private schools and public schools, and even public schools seem to vary in that some provide basic uniform free from the government, but not all. Based on what we charge and the prices I've seen in La Sirena you can get all the uniform requirements for between 1500-2000 pesos, then the child needs a backpack, pencils, pens, ruler, erasure , exercise books ( how many and what type depend on the grade)
We charge around 1200-1500 pesos for supplies for children and that includes pencils, crayons, paper, paint, folios, readers, text books ( that we produce)....etc.
Public school children receive free textbooks and so do the children at our school (same ones) Some private schools charge high fees for textbooks in comparison.
If you are helping out a family I would say 2000 pesos for a young child would more than adequate, and for a teenager going to high-school you might need to up it another 500 to 2500 pesos. That is if they are getting completely new outfits.