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WEST HARTFORD -- In the market for flash cards, a poster explaining the do's and don'ts of personal hygiene, or a dozen gold stars?

Some of The Chalkboard's best customers are teachers looking for "a little something" to spruce up the bulletin board or make life at the front of the classroom a little easier, said Geraldine Talge, who opened her first store in Bristol more than 15 years ago.

"We're well supplied at school, but sometimes I want something special ... like a specific kind of marker or a workbook -- like this one," said Karen Volinski, holding up a handwriting workbook she planned to buy.

Volinski, an early-intervention specialist at Smith Elementary School in West Hartford, spent a recent afternoon perusing the shelves at The Chalkboard in West Hartford. The retailer, with stores in West Hartford and Bristol, sells hundreds of educational aids, games and toys for parents, teachers, home-schoolers and foreign language and English instructors.

Flash cards were last week's big sellers, said Talge, 59, who opened the second store four years ago at 1126 New Britain Ave. in West Hartford. The uptick in sales coincided with the schools' annual spring parent-teacher conferences.

"A lot of parents were coming in for things the teacher had suggested," she said.

The spring rush was a bright spot in the stores' ledger.

With the economy barely earning a passing grade, business has slowed. Customers are shutting their pocketbooks and telling the chain's 10 employees they aren't interested in browsing.

"A lot of teachers use their own money to buy classroom aids. Now they're saying, 'I'm coming in for just this one thing, and I don't want to look at anything else.' They'll buy one history book, even though they might want two. They're not doing the quick impulse buy," said Talge, who relies on teacher and parent referrals to boost sales.

The retailer chalks up its biggest sales in July and August as teachers head back to class. But this year, the health of those anticipated back-to-school sales is a big red question mark.

School districts around the state are facing budget cuts. The Connecticut Association of Public School Superintendents is projecting that Connecticut schools will cut 933 teaching jobs through layoffs and attrition before August.

As a result, the number of teachers and new hires may be in short supply this fall. New teachers, particularly those in their first and second year of teaching, spend the most money on classroom supplies, Talge said.

"It's going to be a tight year. I'm trying to stick to the old standbys," said Talge, who declined to reveal any financial details about the privately held business.

Talge, who doesn't have a teaching background, cobbled together $30,000 in personal savings and small business loans after staying home to raise her daughter for a few years. She then spent a year at her kitchen table writing a business plan and learning to use a cash register.

"At one point I thought about becoming a teacher but decided I wanted to start my own business," said Talge, who, nonetheless, is surrounded by educators. Talge's sister is a principal at a middle school in Watertown, and her daughter is a third-grade teacher in West Hartford.

They and a network of teachers keep her abreast of "what's hot" among the instructional set.

"The 'go green'books and pencilsare really popular right now. So are the Smencils -- they're pencils that smell," Talge explained. "They cost $1.29, and they come in bubble gum and peppermint and root beer ... and they actually write pretty nicely, too. Teachers will use them as an incentive with their students."

However, many of the old school items continue to be among the biggest sellers, she said.

"We have some flash cards that beep when you give the right answer, but the old-fashioned ones are still best."