Homeschooling on a budget

​I love homeschooling my daughter and I will admit I go a little overboard on everything I think we NEED. 

If you are able to homeschool or think you possibly can’t because of financial limits here are some tips for homeschooling on a budget, so your family can enjoy those overall benefits without adding more money stress

Dollar stores & the cheap area at Target are great! Educational games, money learning kit,workbooks,flash cards etc for $1-$5

#1. Curriculum share
Team up with other homeschooling parents to share the cost of a certain curriculum. Sharing curriculum can help save lots of money overtime. This works best if you choose to share curriculum with students who are about the same age as yours. 

You can also share cost of online education such as Time-4-learning or star fall and each share login info. One person gives the other part of the cost-  whether that be monthly or yearly. 

   There are online groups to help you out if you can’t find a local curriculum share group groups (Facebook groups are great!)  like Homeschool Buyers/sellers & trade or Co-Op groups.
#2. Use the Internet
Not everything you use in your homeschooling curriculum has to be in physical printed form.

Use the Internet to help with lots of  educational resources.

 You can use Pinterest &  YouTube has a wealth of homeschool videos  on most any subject!

#3. Trade curriculum
There are tons of online trading groups on Facebook where you can trade your current curriculum for what you need for future use. 

(Like trading you kindergarten curriculum for first grade or trade for curriculum on a subject like phonics or biology)
#4. Do it the app & site way
There are still tons of curriculum choices to be purchased through eBay,Craigslist,Offerup,letgo and others.

If you find what you want at a book fair,teaching store or just saw someone else using it come home and check craigslist, offerup and the Facebook homeschool selling groups.
5. Create your own
If you have the time/creativity/desire then consider creating your own homeschooling “curriculum”!

I love to put together our studies on subjects my daughter is currently interested in- currently clouds/rain & human body biology

Using printables,videos/DVDs,books from library, books we already have,museums,nature etc. 

#6. Always buy used
I get that sometimes you can’t always find used versions of a particular homeschooling item that you want. However if you can buy used as often as you can.
#7. Take care of your items
The items you use for homeschooling will last longer the better they are taken care of(plus its better for later if you sell or trade it!) . Make sure you take care of your items to the best of your ability and encourage your child to do the same. laminating say writing practice sheets is good because it then turns a one-and-done page into a dry erase page 
#8. Attend a CO-OP
So many positive things come from homeschooling co-ops. It’s a great way to meet new people and save money on part of your homeschooling fees.

 Attending a CO-OP means you get the opportunity to give your time and knowledge in exchange for someone else giving theirs- I’ll teach cooking or biology you teach environmental science or gardening then all the kids are leaning many different subjects in different ways. 

 You a  can benefit greatly from a homeschool co-op. For field trips you can normally get a group discount and/or a more in-depth tour (such as a private tour of a museum or behind the scenes at a factory) 

Its also a great way to get kids having fun while learning from different people. 

9. Plan ahead
For some if you map out your homeschooling plan to know exactly what’s going to happen down the road you’ll have a better idea of what you need & therefore spend less (oooooo look shinny new book on desert animals! But…we’re studying ocean animals.) 

By planing early it gives you time to find good deals rather then scrambling to get what’s needed WHEN its needed. But planing ahead doesn’t work for everyone & may end up just making things more stressful. It depends on you! 
#10. Get creative
Having a budget is something most everyone has and it can suck at times….but don’t be afraid to be creative with your homeschooling budget!

 Use pasta sauce jars for science experiments,print off pages rather then by the book,learn without a curriculum plants in a forest/planets at the Space Museum etc 

Learning how pineapples are grown & different types of pineapple at the Dole Plantation

Watercolor painting during family day at Honolulu Museum of Art

#11 Back-to-school sale stock up.
In late July when most major stores start their back-to-school sales is the best time to stock up for a good year! Pens,pencils, notebooks, folders,report covers etc for much less then what you’d pay in October. 

Packs of pencils for $.25? By a dozen or more whatever you think will last you for a long time. Check for coupons or app discounts to save even more.