I would guess that if you asked any art teacher what the most important supply is, the answer would probably be paper. That said, everyone has their own needs and wants, and we are often limited by budget.
I'm actually not sure what my budget is per student, but I can afford all the basic supplies, some clay and glazes, and usually one or two special items per yearly purchase, such as texture rubbing plates or new brushes. All in all, I feel pretty lucky.
This is my fourth year teaching art - not exactly a veteran teacher. However, I do feel pretty comfortable with my paper purchases, so here is my limited wisdom on the subject:
Construction Paper
You just can't beat the quality brands like Tru-Ray. The colors are vibrant, the paper is durable, and there is less sun fade than with cheaper papers. Quality construction paper makes the average collage that much nicer. That said, sometimes quantity is more important than quality. After all, you need to have enough paper for all of your projects! The cheaper stuff works just as well in terms of functionality, so it can definitely be something you can compromise on.
Construction Paper Scraps
Kind of off-topic, but I keep a large box of my construction paper scraps, as well as smaller plastic dish washing bins, so I can distribute them to each table. When the pieces get too small or there's too much garbage in the smaller bins, I just dump them and refill from the big box. Just be sure to check for scissors, pencils, etc. that will inevitably be in there, first.
Sketching
Teaching elementary, we do some sketching, but certainly not as much as a middle or high school art class. I like to keep some lightweight manila and newsprint on hand for those situations that I don't need bright white.
Drawing
When it comes to a lesson where we are drawing, I am a sucker for crisp extra extra white drawing paper. I stick with the 50#. My favorite is Sax Extra White Sulfate. One year, I ordered the economical stuff, and was just not happy with the texture, which was almost waxy like newsprint. It made colors look dull, wrinkled and ripped too easily, and pencil lines were difficult to erase. Although I don't feel like you have to get the best of the best, I also believe the cheapest stuff will look, well, cheap.
Painting with Tempera
I don't know if there's a better way, but painting right on construction paper has worked pretty well for me. Yeah, the paper gets pretty flimsy when wet and can rip easily when handled, but it tends to hold up pretty well while the kids are painting. With elementary, it's often nice to start out with a background color, such as a light blue for the sky, so things don't get too muddled together. If the background color doesn't matter or will be completely covered up, a medium-weight manila paper works pretty good, as well.
Painting with Watercolor
This can be controversial somewhat, because I am well aware of the art teachers out there that swear by real watercolor paper and watercolor paper only. I'm actually from the other school of thought - I just don't think it's worth the money. I do buy a small amount for a special project I do with my 5th graders, but other than that, my 50# Sax Extra White Sulfate does the trick. Cheap/economical drawing paper, manila, newsprint, or computer paper? Absolutely not. Most of these papers suck the color right out of the paint, and the paint doesn't stay on the surface long enough to mix colors or spread the paint out.
Tracing Paper
Not much to say about it, but I do a few projects with tracing paper, so I keep it on hand. I buy the packs of 9x12" sheets instead of the roll, because it's just easier when it doesn't roll up on itself when trying to cut or work with it.
Tag board/Railroad Board
I actually haven't needed to purchase any yet because the previous teacher had so much on hand, but I do use tag board for a project every now and again, such as the Aliens project I posted about earlier. It's cheapest to buy in the largest size, and I have found that the black color suits just about every need. I also have lighter-weight manila tag board (feels like a file folder) that I use to make stencils when I need custom ones.
Bulletin Board Paper
While obviously useful for bulletin boards, this can also be used for paper mache to avoid a painting step.
Tissue Paper
Again, not a lot of secret knowledge to pass on about this - A multi-colored pack or two does the trick for me. You just have to think about if you want the colors to bleed, or not, depending on the project. I wish our supplier sold a pack that shipped the large pieces flat, because the folds really tend get annoying when trying to cut small pieces, but I just lay it out and flatten it a few days before I cut it and it's fine.
I believe that's about it. As with any supply, if you can, it's fun to splurge a little bit on a specialty paper for a special project, but if you haven't been buying supplies for a long time, I emphasize the "little bit" until you are very familiar with what you can splurge on and what should be saved for the greater good.
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