You might be thinking that this is the last place you should look for money saving advice. After all, we ARE trying to sell you products. We want your money. That is absolutely correct. At the same time, here’s the way I look at it. I can cook cheaper meals, use less gas, and cut out entertainment, but I cannot afford to skimp on my children’s education. I will be honest with you, my family is struggling right now. I know many people are. We’ve been eating more crock pot meals, beans, rice (which I stocked up on before the prices went up), and other cheap foods for the past few weeks than we’ve ever eaten. But I have not cut out our “book budget.” My children can live on beans. They can live on smaller portions of meat. We can stay at home and watch movies we’ve seen ten times, saving money on gas and entertainment. I do not think those things are going to hurt them. However, I believe their sweet personalities, their futures, their education will be jeopardized if I don’t provide them with age and level-appropriate educational materials to continue learning during this difficult time.

I realize many other families are hurting as much as well are and I wanted to share some ways to save money and still have funds available to purchase curriculum, books, and other educational products.

First, I would like for you to trust us. We’ve worked hard here at www.homeschoolstore.com to ensure that our prices are comparable or lower than other places for our customers. If you think there is something completely off base, let me know. Perhaps we missed something. However, we spent many hours ensuring that the customer would have incentive to shop here because the prices are good - really TERRIFIC actually. Since I began helping with this website, this is now where I buy all my own educational supplies.

Second, if you’re not sure about a product, use the resources available to you before buying a product. When a customer knows what he/she wants, there is a near 100% satisfaction record. Take the time to browse products, look at the product recommendations I have in the “articles” section, and ask questions in advance. (Hopefully the review articles will be attached to the actual product soon. We’re in the process of setting that up.) If you’re still not sure about a product, send me an e-mail. I am HAPPY to look at ANY product about which you might have questions and I will give you my honest opinion. I can assess products based on your own family’s preferences. Do you have a child with special needs? An auditory learner? A large family that needs a curriculum for several children to use at once? I can help you choose the perfect product for your family and we can even dialogue before you purchase it so that you know more of what to expect if you’re not familiar with the product.

Third, it’s a good idea when finances are tight to cut back in all areas of spending, including books and other products. However, don’t completely cut these items out of your budget. It is my belief that a good education is one of the most valuable gifts we can give our children.

You may want to try using different products than you’ve used in the past. Try reprintable products like Calculadder. With language arts and math curricula, buy a transparency sheet and lay it over the workpage, then erase it after you’ve corrected the child’s work. We are very careful to follow copyright rules and some publisher will not allow workbook pages, speed drills, etc. to be reproduced. However, you can buy a transparency at the copy store for about 60 cents. Lay this over the workpage and then another child can do the same thing. We’re having to do this with our boys right now. They are sharing one language arts workbook because we couldn’t afford to buy three. This would not work if you have to keep the pages for your annual portfolio, which your state may require. Just make sure you follow copyright laws and check on your state laws to see if you NEED the students’ work for each subject.

Finally, here are some specific ideas on saving money that may help you have a little more in your budget for books, curriculum, and other educational products:
- If you have space, use dryer racks in your house rather than the dryer. You’ll save electricity.
- If you must use the dryer, there is a little thing that you can hook to the dryer vent area that allows the heat of the dryer to exit and the lint goes into the little container. This can provide a little extra heat into the room where the dryer is located rather than shooting it outside.
- Barter services. If your neighbor cuts hair, ask her to cut your family members’ hair and you can work on her PC. Be creative when it comes to bartering. It’s a long, lost art that should be brought back!
- Plan ahead for trips to the grocery store. When you have a grocery list, you spend less money. Also, you tend to go less often with a list and less trips means less opportunity to spend.
- Plan meals ahead. As with the above suggestion, you save money when you plan ahead.
- Buy food / other products in bulk.
- Cook meals in bulk. If possible, cook a week’s worth of meals and pull out your meals each day. This can be a huge money-saving technique if you use similar ingredients and cook it all at once. It also saves money on electricity by using the stove less often.
- Turn your thermostat down, put on a sweatshirt and grab a blanket. Better yet, do all that AND snuggle up on the couch with a little one or a spouse! You’ll stay warm.
- Make your purchases via the internet. When you buy products via our website, you are less likely to spend more than your budget allows. When you go into a store, it’s easy to spend more than you planned. With online purchases, make your selections, go back and compare this to your budget and then take away a couple of items if you need to before you click “place order.”
- Carpool. This is one of the easiest, most overlooked ways to save money. See if your spouse can find someone to carpool to work. If your friends, neighbors, or relatives are going to the store and you only need one item, ask them to pick it up. A trip to the store can cost several dollars in gas JUST for the trip if you live a few miles away. If you quite a distance from your nearest store, you could spend much more. If your children participate in co-op, band, sports, clubs, etc., find other families with whom to share rides. Seriously, gas is expensive and people often overlook this very obvious way to save money.
- Find cheap, alternate means of entertainment. Family game night is almost a lost art. Rather than walking around the mall, going out to eat, going to a movie, etc., pull out those old board games and start playing them again. Go for walks. Pass ball, play croquet, rake leaves and jump in them. Play marbles in the carpet. There are so many things to do that are fun, but cost nothing.
- Cut coupons and look for in-store specials. At the Kroger stores this week, they had turkeys for 39 cents per pound, plus many other great deals. I stocked up while we had some money and got enough food for a month. It was great!
- Make sure lights are turned off in your home when not in use.
- Turn down the thermostat on your water heater.
- Take shorter showers. Most people spend much longer in the shower than they actually need to. Hop in and out.
- Turn off the water when you’re brushing your teeth. Use water when necessary.
- If you use a dishwasher, make sure it’s full before you turn on.
- Turn off the heat cycle on your dishwasher. Run it just before bedtime and then when it’s done, just open the door to let the dishes air dry while you sleep. You may have to use a towel to finish drying a few items, but not many.
- Give everyone smaller portions at the dinner table. This will cut down on food waste. Once you’re in the habit of taking less, you’ll also be able to cook less.
- When you do have leftovers, put them in the fridge and either serve them for lunch the next day or use them in the next evening’s meal.
- Create a budget. It’s easier to manage your money when you know what’s coming in and where it’s going.
- If necessary, get rid of unnecessary extras like cable television, satelite, cell phones, extra game services, etc. With my health problems and my writing business, we consider my personal cell phone a necessity, but we have lived for almost two years without cable television, satelite, and many other extras.
- Sell what you don’t need. When I get really desperate for books, I sell things we no longer need so that we can buy what we do need. If you’re finished with something, sell it and set the money aside for your educational products.
- Get everyone in the household involved. Whatever your plans might be, share them with other members of the household and find ways that everyone can help. Perhaps dad can take on a side job, mom can trade her famous baked pies for some yard work, and even toddlers can help make sure lights are turned off!

I am sure there are many more excellent suggestions that I haven’t mentioned here. These are all I can think of off the top of my head, but please feel free to write in and share your own! Also, if you have questions about products, e-mail me at sonya@sonyahaskins.com. I would be happy to answer any questions for you.

As always, it is a pleasure to serve the homeschool community!
Sonya Haskins