A basic, all-manual SLR combination for students, the Vivitar V3800N 35mm SLR Camera with 50mm f/1.7 Lens will help you learn the art of photography the old fashioned way.  Load, advance, and rewind the film yourself.  Determine exposure manually with just a simple match diode centerweighted meter, and enter the settings on the aperture ring and shutter speed dial.  It can use any Pentax K-mount lens which has an aperture ring.  You'll only need small, long-lasting button batteries for the meter (the shutter is all-mechanical) and some film.  The V3800N is a basic camera that's a great teaching instrument and fun, too.

Though the V3800N shares many traits with other student cameras from other makers, it does have a few advantages.  You can make multiple exposures on a single frame with the V3800N, there's a self timer as well, and a depth of field preview allows you to see the actual range of sharpness in an image before making the exposure.

This version of the V3800N includes a fixed 50mm f/1.7 lens that is bright, sharp, light, and shares the focal length preferred by many famous 20th century photographers.  Its large f/1.7 maximum aperture allows you to shoot handheld in much lower light than a zoom lens.