For many Americans, a sharpened No. 2 pencil brings back memories of childhood and school. It still appears on shopping lists for the new school year. Children use it to write their first letters, erase their mistakes, and draw in the margins when they daydream. For many years, students brought two sharp No. 2 pencils on test day. They used them to fill in the small circles on their answer sheets.

The pencil was not invented in the United States, but Americans made it iconic. Caroline Weaver, a writer on the history of pencils, says the yellow paint and the eraser on top are American ideas. Before the mid-1800s, pencils in America had no eraser, and most around the world still do not.

An early American pencil maker was the father of Henry David Thoreau, a famous writer. The young Thoreau worked at the family business. He helped introduce the idea of grading pencils from 1 to 4. A No. 2 is dark enough to write with but not too messy.

Today, pencils are less commonplace because most school tests have moved online. But in the age of AI, many schools and colleges now ask for handwritten exams to prevent cheating. So students still choose a No. 2. Generations of Americans have used one, sharpened its point, or even chewed on it when bored.