10 ways to homeschool for less (or for free)

Photo by Kathleen in VA.

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Our local homeschooling list is abuzz after one of the members asked this question: "We went to be independent homeschoolers in California. But with the current economy, we need to find cheap ways to homeschool. Help!"

Is it possible to homeschool cheaply? Absolutely! There are many homeschooling curriculum and supply companies out there who will charge you hundreds or thousands of dollars for their products. But if you're willing to do a little digging, and have a little patience, you can educate your children at home for a fraction of the cost of buying expensive curriculum.

10 ways to homeschool on the cheap

1. Garage sales. A year ago, we found a garage sale at the home of a retired teacher. She was getting rid of all of her school supplies. She had everything from beading kits to phonics readers to textbooks. Needles to say, we stocked up for all three kids for months worth of projects, all for under $20.

If you see a garage sale with toys and stuffed animals on display, there's a good chance that a pile of workbooks or science kits is hiding on a table somewhere. Most people having garage sales just want to git rid of their stuff, and are willing to sell school supplies for next to nothing. And you never know when you'll hit the jackpot and find boxes full of teacher supplies.

2. Library book sales. Last week was the Burbank library book sale. They have a book sale twice a year. I go for my own enjoyment mostly, but last week, I hit the jackpot. I found three 5th grade curriculum sets, and several math workbooks for...wait for it...a quarter each! I basically was able to get an entire year's worth of workbooks for my 10-year-old for one dollar. That's right—a dollar!

Our library also sells school textbooks and even college books, not to mention classic literature, how-to books, and books like 'Teach Yourself Calculus.' I have also found books in Spanish, French, German, Japanes, and Korean, for those who are looking to add foreign language study to their curriculum.

I never know what I'm going to find at a library book sale, but I always find something, and it's always cheap, cheap, cheap.

Oh, and don't forget you can check books out of the library for free.

3. Freecyle. Have you heard of this amazing local online community? Freecyle invites you to give away the stuff you don't need anymore. Most of the listings are for bricks, boxes, dirt, and old furniture. However, there are gems scattered throughout. I have picked up workbooks, young adult fiction, phonics books, and more. You can find your local freecycle group by going to Yahoo groups and searching for freecycle and your city. I use the freecycle group for Burbank and Glendale.

4. Online Homeschool Curriculum Sales. There are a number of online homeschool curriculum swap and sale groups. Here are some examples:

• The Homeschooler's Curriculum Swap
• A2Z list of online curriculum swaps/sales
• Veg Source curriculum reviews and swap
• About.com's list of online used curriculum sales

5. Local homeschool support group used curriculum sales. Many local groups have curriculum sales and swaps. At our park day in Glendale, there always seems to be someone giving away old materials. If your local group doesn't have a curriculum swap, start one! But be careful. I have to admit that most years, I end up buying more awesome curriculum than I sell.

6. California Homeschool Network's (CHN) curriculum swap. For those of you in Los Angeles, don't miss out on this yearly event in Ontario. The CHN Expo is the first weekend in August. All day Sunday is the used curriculum sale. Make sure to set a budget!

If you don't live near Los Angeles, check out your local homeschooling conference. Most of them offer some kind of curriculum swap or used curriculum sale. And anything goes! People don't just sell workbooks and text books. They also offer games, crafts, and other fun learning supplies. Last year, at the Homeschool Association of California's conference in Sacramento, someone was selling a sewing machine.

7. Paperbackswap.com. Although there isn't a ton of curriculum on paperback swap, you can find gems here, especially if you consider fiction and how-to books to be part of your curriculum. Using paperbackswap is a great way to find out-of-print and obscure titles without paying full price. The most recent book we received on paperbackswap was "301 Bright Ideas for Busy Kids: 11 Messy Projects, 12 Silly Games, 10 Cool Things to Make and Hundreds of Other Ways to Spend Time Creatively." The kids have been very busy working on this projects this week. That's a week worth of projects for roughly $2.00.

8. Free online resources. Everything you could possibly want to teach or explore in your home education is available on the internet. And most of the time, there is way to get it for free. Everything from free worksheets, to free unit studies ideas, to free learning games, is there. I could devote an entire blog just to these program. But I won't because someone already has.

• 100's of sites for teachers ranked by popularity
• Top 100 educational websites by homeschool.com
• Free educational materials from MIT

9. Teacher's discount at Barnes and Noble and Borders. Homeschoolers are teachers, and guess what, we get at 20% discount at Barnes and Noble and Borders. If you have other bookstores in your area, odds are they offer a teacher discount as well. To get a discount, you'll need an ID card or a membership card for a homeschool group to show you're a "real" homeschooler.

10. Trade classes and information with fellow homeschoolers. Some call this a homeschool co-op. I simply call it pooling our resources. If one person in a group is passionate about astronomy, gardening, or public speaking, get a group together and ask that person to share their knowledge. If you are well-versed in a subject, offer your knowledge for free to your group. What goes around comes around. It doesn't have to be a formal class. It can be a club or a one-time event at park day. Yesterday, one of the homeschooling parents in our community dressed up as a Renaissance peasant, and offerend an informal Q&A session for the teens.

Do you have any tips or tricks for saving money while homeschooling?