Today we went to Target to get our school supplies. I homeschool my kids so I don’t need much – a few folders, notebooks, binders and pencils (we always seem to need pencils). While I walked up and down the aisle of super cheap school supplies, I thought about all the projects I plan on doing with my daughter this school year. We do a lot of science projects (we love science) and I try to incorporate art into everything I possibly can (art is my favorite). Now is the time to be purchasing all of the items I’ll need through out the school year.
I have the advantage of knowing what projects to buy for, public or private school parents probably don’t. Even if you don’t know what projects are in your kids’ future, you can bet it will probably involve markers or colored pencils, glue sticks and poster board. By thinking ahead (and buying ahead), you can save money and frustration in your future. Buy up these things now and keep them in a cabinet or closet so when you’re kids need them in 2 weeks, or 2 months, you’ll be prepared. Look at what’s on your kids’ school supply list and buy extra of the things you’ll know they’ll run out of before the school year is out (notebook paper, index cards, erasers, etc).
It doesn’t take much room to store these items throughout the school year. Everything but the poster board can fit into a basket or small bucket that your kids can retrieve whenever they need it. Poster board is easily stashed upright in a closet next to something that will keep it upright. I have a cabinet in a desk my husband made (I’ll write about that in a future post) that I store all of our extra school supplies in. Before the amazing desk was built, I kept everything in a basket in a closet.
On a side note – did you know that glue expires? This came directly from the Elmer’s Glue website:
“If stored properly and capped tightly, Elmer’s school glues and wood glues have an average shelf life of 2 years; Krazy Glue, also known as a cyanoacrylate, has a shelf life of approximately 12 – 18 months.”
Great suggestions. I need to go shopping this week. I buy cheap spiral notebooks by the case. Love them for Saxon. The kids enjoy tossing them when they’re full. Gives them a feeling of empowerment.
Every year I always wish I would’ve bought more note cards. This year I made sure to buy a lot of them while they’re super cheap. I’ll probably still run out though. We use them a lot in Science and Latin.
Love your approach to buying what you need now to save $ AND frustration. Also, fantastic desk! 🙂 ~Jen
Thanks Jen! We love our desk 🙂