Another Homeschooling and Money Post
It’s another Friday installment of Questions for Homeschoolers! Where you ask the questions and other people answer them.
That was my game show announcer voice. What do you think?
OK, on to the question. The question this week is one that I am sure many homeschoolers have faced at least once. And it has to do with money. Isn’t the universal issue we all face, money? We all want what is bet for our kids, but sometimes that seems to come with a hefty price tag.
How to choose the right curriculum with out costing a fortune?
Doesn’t this question come up often? Money always seems to be a huge deciding factor for new homeschoolers, ones who see the packages costing hundreds of dollars and immediately fall over. I’ve talked before about homeschooling not being expensive and I’m sure I’ll talk about it again and again. Mostly because it seems to be one of the first questions nw to homeschooling families ask. It also is one of the issues people against homeschooling have, that they feel a single family cannot afford all the things that a typical school has.
So please share your thoughts and ideas on educating kids without spending a small fortune. I know we all have tips on this one!
And if you have a question that you would like to see posted feel free to ask! You can either leave a comment or send it to me in the contact form. I hope to hear from you soon!
October 26th, 2007 at 1:28 pm
I think the best thing as a new, or even as an experienced homeschooler you can do is to try before you buy. If you can, print off samples from a provider’s website, get the book via interlibrary loan from the library, borrow from a friend, whatever it takes. If you really can’t physically get your hands on a book without purchasing it, ask for some reviews from people who you feel have similar approaches, and read as many review as you can. Eventually you’ll get a feel for how a curriculum will go. This will save money and time, because you won’t invest a lot of both in a lost cause.
Second, if possible, purchase non-consumable items if you have more than one child. If you have a kid who likes the completion factor of worksheets, you can get them all over the internet, you don’t need to get a workbook. I find that a non-consumable book plus notebooks purchased at the end of September for 4/.25 is about the cheapest thing you can do.
Third, check out Goodwill for books and materials. Seriously, I’ve gotten some great curriculum things at Goodwill, even school supplies like paper and crayons. Not to mention all the kids’ clothing. I have found “visible dog” in perfect new condition when we were learning about body systems, electric sets that were just missing a couple of (cheap) things when we were studying electricity, chemistry sets, art supplies, plus, books, videos, and those sorts of things.
Fourth, if there is something (like a telescope) that you really can’t afford, and you really don’t think you can live without, ask for it for Christmas, birthdays, or whatever holiday gets the relatives asking, “What do you (or your kids) want?”
If you keep an open mind and open eyes, you can do this homeschool thing for just a very little money. My mom always told me that if a problem can be solved by money, that it probably isn’t really a problem.
October 26th, 2007 at 4:57 pm
I think Cathy Duffy’s ‘100 Top Picks For Homeschool Curriculum: Choosing The Right Curriculum And Approach For Your Child’s Learning Style’ is a great place to start … and I recommend you look for it at the library first.
Besides that, I think the best approach is to start homeschooling with NOTHING. I know, it sounds crazy, but trust me. We started homeschooling our girls mid-year (2nd grade) and didn’t have time to purchase a comprehensive curriculum before we started. It didn’t take long before I realized that we really didn’t need all that expensive stuff I was certain we’d have to have.
Start homeschooling with your free library card and a search engine on your computer. Then later, after you see if what’s availible for free, buy only what you really need. I’ll bet it will be much less than you thought.
October 27th, 2007 at 6:52 am
What is this curriculum of which you speak? Seriously, I use a little of this and a little of that, and I make some of it up as we go along. I used this other thing, but it didn’t really work for my kids, so I stopped.
Trial and error is the way I operate.
October 27th, 2007 at 9:39 am
I read once about the supposed cost of homeschooling and it was rather astronomical. But what they did not consider was that most of the things on the list were things most parents get for their kids anyway. Sure, I count Karate and our Y membership as “physical education.” But most of the people there are not homeschoolers, and we would likely be doing that anyway. Just a random thought.
Tips:
Library card.
Internet.
Think carefully before purchasing a curriculum. Make sure you know what you want your child’s education to be like and choose a compatible curriculum.
Get a few memberships. The zoo and local museums are great places to learn and cheaper with memberships if you go frequently.
See what your community offers. Ours has a group for homeschoolers teaching science that gives you a fully stocked lab for $100 a year. Not a bad option.
I really think science is the one area where “they” are right. It is expensive if you want to give your child access to all that they might have in a public school. I have listed the equipment I need over the next several years and prioritized it. We are getting a little at a time and some of this might be Christmas gifts. (But then, like I said in the beginning, even a lot of this is purchased by a lot of parents…I had a microscope as a kid.)
October 27th, 2007 at 10:07 am
You are absolutely right Dana. I was not homeschooled yet I had a telescope, a microscope, a chemistry set, etc… Many educational toys are just universal fun.
October 27th, 2007 at 11:07 pm
Exactly. The only real *homeschool* expense is the text books (for those who use them)and I can promise you they cost a lot less than private school tuition. If you get them second hand, you may be spending less than you would sending you to some public schools where they nickel and dime you to death.
Viva La Homeschoolers!
I needed to get that out. Thanks, I feel better.
October 27th, 2007 at 11:10 pm
Sorry, typing malfunction. I went to a really wild wedding today. It’s my only excuse.
It was supposed to read,
“…than you would sending your children to some public schools…”
October 29th, 2007 at 10:35 am
1) Borrow from someone if at all possible to see if it will work for you. I find if I have it laying around for a couple of weeks to look at by the end of that time I pretty much know whether it’s going to sit on my shelf or we really need to buy for ourselves.
2) Buy used whenever possible (I even setup my own Garage Sale for Homeschoolers yahoo grup so I could get used curriculum instead of paying full price).
3) Check your local homeschool support group - ours has a resource library (all donated by homeschoolers) and it’s filled with a lot of the popular curriculum (and some not so popular). The great thing about borrowing is it is returned to someone elses sshelf (more shelf room for your own stuff).
3) The internet — there is so much free stuff out there you don’t HAVE TO buy a thing.
4) The library — you can’t beat it for value and most libraries are now extending their selections to other formats such as audio downloads, etc.,
Great question again! Thanks! Lori D.
October 31st, 2007 at 2:27 pm
I don’t plan on buying anything. I use the internet, create my own, and use my books.
My four year old daughter does some of her work online.
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