Name: Teach Them Diligently (Branson)
Start: 2025-05-15T00:00:00-05:00
End: 2025-05-17T23:59:59-05:00
Location: Branson, MO

Tagged: budget, buying resources on a budget

This topic has 9 replies, 7 voices, and was last updated 10 years, 1 month ago by emzabe.

Viewing 10 posts - 1 through 10 (of 10 total)

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March 2, 2015 at 8:12 pm
emzabe
Participant
I am in the planning stages for bringing my son home from public school next year. He will be in the second grade.
Looking over everything, I see how purchasing everything could get quite expensive. How do you plan and keep costs to a minimum? We have a library in town, but it doesn’t have as much as I would like.
Thanks for any help.
March 2, 2015 at 10:08 pm
elsnow6
Participant
Some ideas on keeping costs down:
Obviously use free books (library- but return books on time lol, gutenberg press, forget site but it’s the one the lady from Yesterday’s Classics does so someone here will likely know & chime in)
Decide what subjects you feel you need the most structure & direction in (I think for many that would be math & reading at your son’s age but you may feel differently) then put your money towards curriculum for those first.
Find used curriculum (people post here, homeschool FB groups, Homeschool Classifieds, Good Will or other thrift stores)
Don’t purchase too much curriculum ahead of time. By this I mean, don’t decide you’ve found just what you want, it’s perfect then buy all the levels or whatever bc there’s a good buy or whatever. Ask most homeschool moms & you’ll find that rarely is there ever a perfect fit forever then you’ve spent good money you may not recoup.
Check out free resources like ones here on SCM, Easy Peasy Homeschool- completely free online curriculum a homeschool mom provides that is simply the work she put together for her kids using free resources, Pinterest has lots of great pins for materials, etc)
I’ve never really done a homeschool budget (just pull from my extra money from gifts or whatever if there’s something i really think would be good) so those are general ideas. I knows I’ve seen discussions on here about how people set & spend their budgets so hopefully some of them will post or link you to those prior discussions!
March 2, 2015 at 10:14 pm
Sue
Participant
Can your library get you items through an inter-library loan? That’s one way to go, if you plan ahead so your books are available close enough to when you need them. That doesn’t always work, though, if you are going to need something for longer than you can borrow it/renew it, but we’ve mostly had success with that.
Also, if you can find out where there are any really good used curriculum fairs (or library book sales), they are usually worth the drive even if you have to go farther than you would travel to shop. You might want to find a homeschool group online forum that is local to a nearby city and ask the parents there what sales they would recommend. You can also ask them (or ask on this forum) if you are looking for some specific items.
Finally, we purchase things through Amazon, eBay, and AbeBooks online, or at homeschoolclassifieds.com. Some members here will post when they list books for sale on their blogs, such as the wonderful, huge list mentioned by Melissa in this thread: https://simplycharlottemason.com/scmforum/topic/buying-used-books-2/
HTH,
Sue
March 2, 2015 at 10:19 pm
Sue
Participant
@elsnow6 – Do you mean The Baldwin Project? Here is the link to that site: http://www.mainlesson.com/main/displayarticle.php?article=feature
We used that recently for a few books for our study of Ancient Greece.
March 2, 2015 at 10:20 pm
Karen
Participant
You’ve gotten great tips already. I just want to second the tip about not buying too much. I’m trying to get myself in the habit of deciding what books to buy (this is for history, mainly) and then not buy any more. I try to buy only what I KNOW I want (using previews and reviews on Amazon, borrowing from other moms or the library). If our library has it, I don’t buy it unless its a total keeper.
There have been times when I “desperately” needed a book — and the world didn’t end when I didn’t get it. More often, bookfinder.com found it reasonably priced and the book ended up at my house.
I have a friend who uses a different history curriculum, but we like the same living books. She also has a much larger home-library than I. So, if I know she has it, I don’t buy it (unless it’s something I really want). Often, we borrow the book from her a little later than I really wanted it, but it works! And it’s a lot cheaper!
March 2, 2015 at 11:04 pm
suzukimom
Participant
If you have a printer that is inexpensive to print, check out MEP Math from the UK. It is an excellent program that is free – you have to print the student book yourself, and possibly the lesson plans (or view those on a tablet or computer) there is a yahoo group that discusses it… I can give you more info if interested.
March 3, 2015 at 7:20 am
Kayla
Participant
I have found so many books at the thrift store! $.59 for a book can’t beat that! I bring a printed off list and sit on the floor and start digging. I usually have all 3 kids with me so I buckle the youngest 2 into the double stroller and the 6 year old sits with me and “helps”. She has learned what older classic books look like and is actually pretty good at finding them.
I bought the Yesterdays Classics bundle. I am planning to use those books even if a different one about somebody is recommended. If I already own a great living book about a person most of the time I don’t need another.
March 3, 2015 at 8:52 am
elsnow6
Participant
Yes Sue, that’s it! 🙂
March 3, 2015 at 10:17 am
HollyS
Participant
I’d also focus on 3Rs first. For second grade, that’s all you really need. After that I’d add a good story Bible and SCM’s memory system (you just need some index cards and an index box for that). The rest can be added from library books or purchased as needed. I order from Rainbow Resource or Amazon once every month or two so we don’t spend much at once.
I also buy many books used on Amazon or from thrift stores. Usually your library can get books from nearby libraries for no cost to you. We currently use more curriculum than I did when we first started because I found it usually saves me time, but I don’t think it’s needed. There is so much available for free (or at the library) and you can realistically only go through so many things each year.
March 3, 2015 at 1:08 pm
emzabe
Participant
Thank you all so much!! I really appreciate the tips and mostly reminders that I don’t have to run out and buy everything.
I put together our plan for the year, using the resource on this site. I am going buy the main texts and then get living books and supplements for art and such from the library. I am feeling a lot less overwhelmed today.