School Supplies - Back to Homeschool Blog Hop 2017

When it comes to homeschool supplies, you can get away with very minimal to over the top.  I like to think I fall somewhere in the middle but truth is I am probably a little closer to over the top.  I love my electronics and gadgets!  Your necessary supplies will of course depend on the ages of your children and what subjects they are covering for the year.

Probably the most basics would be obvious:

• Pencils and pens
• Paper (lined and copy/plain white)
• Crayons, markers, colored pencils
• Glue and/or glue sticks
• Notebooks or composition books
• Binders and folders
• Library card

You won't even need all of those depending on the subjects you cover and how you will plan out your lessons.

Additional items that are on my must have list are:

• Laser printer (you will NEVER go wrong with a Brother)
• Copy paper (LOTS of it)
• Paper cutter
• Binding machine (I use this Fellowes one) and various size combs
• 3-hole paper puncher
• Color ink jet multi-function printer (again, Brother is the way to go)
• Lap top(s)
• Tablet like mini iPad or Kindle Fire (we love both of ours)
• Booklet stapler (definitely over the top item and not often used but sure do love it when we need one!)
• Laminator and laminating sheets
• Sheet protectors

Like I said, I like my gadgets!  I just like being able to produce what I need without having to run somewhere or pay extra for it to be done.  Over the years my investments have paid for themselves.  I shop Sam's Club, Staples and Amazon for steal deals and generally get my stuff pretty cheap.  Both printers were less than $250 total and I spend a minimum amount of money on the ink because you can get the aftermarket stuff VERY CHEAP on eBay and Amazon.  I have had my ink jet for 3 years now and just retired my original Laser printer after about 10 years of service.  It is still going strong but we have a new wifi router and I needed new technology to be compatible with it (bummer!).

Staples is generally the place to get cheap school supplies in June/July.  I stock up on copy paper then also for the printers.  We go through a LOT (MANY reams/year) of paper!!  I rarely pay over $1 per ream.  I do avail myself of every rebate and sale possible.  Staples is usually the place to buy the printers when they are on sale and if you can snag a coupon, bonus!  I think the laser I just upgraded to cost me about $80 after sale and coupon.

A laminator almost seems like a must have for us because we use it for so many things.  Bible memorization cards, write on wipe off stuff for the younger crowd (especially for math worksheets), and any kind of flash cards needed.  We do quite a bit of online school too so the laptop and tablets are necessary.  I REALLY like the Kindle Fire because it has awesome capability to control what, where and when your kids have access on it.  I tend to do a lot of binding also so the binding machine was a must for me.

Don't let my crazy list scare you.  You can homeschool with a library card and minimal supplies just fine.  It just depends on how you go about it.  Over the years (13 now) I have accumulated the stash I have and I really like the convenience of having it at my fingertips when I need it.  Don't you regularly whip out your binder or laminator at midnight just to complete that last minute project to get the kids started on?  LOL, seriously, it doesn't have to be so complicated.  Take it a step at a time and just get what you need when you need it.  It will add up over time and if you make wise decisions you won't regret them.

Happy schooling!

Please take the time to check out what other Review Crew members use for their School Supplies.