Back to school 2023 is just around the corner. At the time of writing this article, there is only one month left before the start of the school year. So, I thought it was a good time to write an article about back to school.
Last year I had already written an article about back-to-school. I thought I had said everything on this topic already and I didn’t think I would write more articles on “How to save money shopping back to school supplies”.
But in the meantime, as you know, there has been the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic. Many families have gone through difficult times both personally and financially.
Because of this pandemic, many people lost their jobs and found themselves in serious financial difficulties. This, therefore, means that for these people, finding ways to save money becomes a priority.
Thanks to God I was not directly affected by Covid-19. My family was not affected either. But like everyone else, I try to save where I can because the times we are all going through these days are really quite difficult.
Having 4 children, two of whom are going to high school, I know that the purchase of school supplies can quickly become fairly significantly expensive.
Every year, we hear about the rising cost of school supplies and there seems to be no end in sight. There is also a growing concern about the shortage of supplies that are now being experienced throughout many countries. There has also been a huge increase in the number of people who are deciding to go back to school, from stay-at-home moms and dads to unemployed people who want to change their careers.
“For the upcoming year, according to the Huntington Backpack Index, parents can expect to pay per child:
- $1,017 for elementary school supplies, extracurricular fees and technology
- $1,277 for middle school supplies, extracurricular fees and technology
- $1,668 for high school supplies, extracurricular fees and technology”
If like me you too have children going to school and you want to know how to save money on your school supplies, this article will provide you with the information that you need to know about the best way to save money on your school supplies for your children.
Now, let’s look at some of the ways that you can lower the cost of your school supplies. First, make sure that you are buying the items in a large quantity. If you are buying one item at a time, you will be paying a lot more. Second, you should buy the items from a reputable supplier who will offer you a discount for purchasing them in large quantities.
Third, you should shop around for the best prices when you are shopping for school supplies for your children. It is a good idea to shop at various outlets that sell school supplies and find out what they are charging. You will want to find the outlet that charges the lowest price possible to get the best price on your school supplies.
When you are shopping for school supplies for your children, the next thing that you need to do is get a list of all of the items that you are going to need. Make a list of everything that you will need for your child to have for school. This list will include everything from the books, the clothes, the school supplies, the science supplies, and the art supplies.
Here’s an example of the type of school supplies list you can make:
As you can see, I have separated this list into 2 different sections.
In section 1, you will write down all the items that you need to buy. Make sure you only buy the supplies your children really need following the list they got from their school. If you believe that they don’t need a particular item, just don’t buy it. There’s no need to buy something they already have. Doing this alone will allow you to save up to 50% on your shopping budget.
In section 2, you will write down all the items your children already have from last year. Before you check the mall or the stores downtown, you might want to shop in your home first for school supplies.
You might be surprised to discover all the supplies you have just lying around or hidden somewhere in your room. For parents, check whether you still have backpacks, calculators, pencils, or rulers. Those things don’t need to be replaced every year, so there’s no problem in having your child to reuse these things.
After you find out about the available supply, it is now time to prepare the list. So, you will be having the list of only those important supplies that your child needs and be able to set a budget for these.
Determine your budget
Once you have a list of everything that you need for your children, you can then decide on how much you want to spend on your school supplies shopping. As an example, I put a budget of $350 in the section “Budget”. But if you have a large family, $350 will probably not be enough to cover the costs of everything.
To give you an idea of the real cost of back to school, according to the National Retail Federation, last year American families were expected to spend almost $700 on back-to-school shopping for their children in elementary through high school. Those with kids going to college should prepare to spend even more. In my opinion, with the COVID-19 crisis, this year back-to-school spending will average $1000 per family for families with kids heading to college.
But as I said earlier, if you don’t have this kind of money to spend on your kid’s pencils and scissors don’t worry. you can cut that amount in half by doing your back-to-school purchases in several steps. You don’t have to buy everything all at once. To create your budget and achieve your money goal, you can use a free tool like EveryDollar and create your budget in less than 10 minutes.
Once you have determined your budget, stick to it. If for example, you said that you would spend $700 for your back-to-school” shopping, do everything it takes to respect that budget.
With that in mind, you probably have one question: when is the best time to start buying school supplies?
The best time to buy school supplies in this economy is right now because most families are still on vacation and in some areas, back-to-school sales have already started. If you want to snag the best deals before everyone else start shopping now.
This means that you can buy school supplies at rock-bottom prices because the competition for these items is at its strongest due to the fact that all the suppliers want to attract customers to their stores so they can buy from them.
In addition, it is also a good time to buy these items because there are many discounts that are available today on things like stationery, backpacks, textbooks, calculators, etc.
To get the best prices, you need to go to a variety of stores and compare the prices and the different deals that they have to offer. Also, you will want to make sure that you are buying from a reputable supplier because let’s be honest, some non-reputable suppliers can take advantage of this opportunity to manipulate their prices. They may increase their prices slightly and then display promotions like -30% to make you believe you’re getting a good deal when in reality they’re lying to you. So be careful and don’t hesitate to compare prices with other suppliers.
There are also items that are going to be on sale for different reasons. One of the best ways to save money shopping for these is to try to look in the newspaper or magazines for a special sale.
You will also want to consider looking online. There are a number of different websites that you can go to if you are looking for school supplies. When you are shopping for your school supplies online, you want to make sure that you are buying from a reputable online store and that the product is of high quality.
Remember, the best way to save money shopping for school supplies for your children is to not let anything go to waste. When you are shopping for the items that you need for your child, you will want to be sure to purchase the items in bulk. If you are buying in bulk, you will be able to save money on the items because chances are you will find the best prices and you will also be able to find the supplies that are going to be the best deal for your child.
Search for the best deals for school supplies
There are many ways to save money on back to school supplies. School supplies can be bought in a multitude of places, including the local mall or grocery store. There are also some websites that specialize in offering great deals on back to school supplies.
The internet has become one of the most popular ways to search for the best deals for back to school supplies. A quick search for “school supplies” will return a list of numerous websites that offer these items at discounted prices.
When you type in the items you are looking for, it will then come back with the best deals for back to school supplies. Some of the sites that sell back to school supplies include Wal Mart, Target, and Dollar General if you are in the U.S. And Auchan, Carrefour, Leclerc, or Casino if you are in France like me.
These are the places you can check for great deals on back to school supplies. The prices are usually very good because they are trying to rid themselves of the excess stock and replace that with new items.
There are a few other great ways to search for the best deals on back to school supplies. The first place you can look is at the local newspaper since they usually have a wide array of deals for school supplies, including back to school supplies.
You should be able to find a lot of information on what discounts are available when you are searching through the local newspaper. You may even find coupons for the items you are looking for.
Another place to search for the best deals on back to school supplies is on the Internet. There are a number of websites that specialize in giving parents and students deals on back to school supplies.
Search through the website of the supplier you are interested in. You will probably find information on discounts, as well as a lot of other information about back to school supplies. If you do not have a lot of time to do a search, you can use a search engine and type in the product you are looking for and it will return a number of results.
One of the best ways to save money on back to school supplies is to do a price comparison shopping online. This will allow you to find the best deals and you will also have the option to compare the prices.
Search engines can also be a great way to search for the best deals for back to school supplies. By typing in the item you are looking for, you can see if the item is available in the store or not. This can help you narrow your search even more.
A great way to find the best deals on back to school supplies is to use the classifieds. This is a great way to see if the item you are looking for is available and you can see if it is in stock. If you have a lot of time, you can take a look at the back to school supplies at the store and see if they have a large selection.
Check on Other Stores
Everyone knows that we have our preferences. That is why it is just common for some to shop at only their favorite store.
We can’t blame you for choosing that store because maybe aside from it has everything that you need; it is just conveniently near.
Well, there’s nothing wrong with it but are you sure that it helps you to save money?
There’s nothing wrong with checking other stores and compare their prices since saving is your main goal here.
Once you find the best money-saving store, stick to it. You might be surprised how much you can save even if you are shopping for supplies.
You may found some supplies that will enable you to save a few dollars or cents, but it is still okay.
At least when you collected those cents or few dollars; this saves you much from spending even more.
Be Knowledgeable about Tax-Free Holidays
How much are you aware of your state holidays? Did you know that there are tax-free holidays?
Yes, you read it right. Many states have tax-free holidays whenever it is back to school season. Check first whether your state offers this type of holiday. And if it does, don’t waste this golden opportunity.
You will be glad to hear that you can save as much as 10% off from the usual school supplies.
If you are purchasing an expensive item like a scientific calculator or a laptop, don’t worry. Some states also offer discounts for these types of items.
Aside from school supplies, tax-free holidays are also applicable to items such as shoes and clothing.
So, check first to your state for this holiday and save the date.
Be Creative
Fancier supplies would also mean that these have a fancier price. On the other hand, plain school supplies cost lesser than those fancy things.
So, purchase those plain school supplies and let your child design it. You can give them stickers to decorate it or let them personalize it more by doing colorful doodles. As parents, you didn’t just save money, but you also help your child to be creative.
Buying Extra Supplies is also good
For parents who have kids in middle school, stocking up on extra supplies will be a great back-to-school tip.
Buy and stock up on supplies that your child might run out during the middle of the semester.
So, make sure to purchase these in-demand supplies while these are still on sale. You can stock up on items such as markers, glue, extra notebook, and others.
If in case your child ran out of this particular supply, you can still have an extra that you kept on your drawers. So, you saved money from purchasing; you also saved yourself from taking a trip to the school supply store just for it.
Just a friendly reminder, make sure you put these supplies on a place where you can find it easily in case the need arises.
Supply Swap
What if you have stocked up a particular supply more than what you just needed?
Well, you can continue keeping them, or you can plan on doing a “supply swap” with your neighbors or other parents.
For instance, you have kept many packs of pencils, and your neighbor has many reams of bond paper. You can talk to them to see whether they wanted or willing to supply a ream of bond paper over several packs of pencils.
You didn’t just save yourself from spending on purchasing the item but also the costs for your gasoline to drive to the nearest store.
So, it is a win-win solution for both of you.
See if you can get any help from the government
Many families are strapped for cash at this time of year, and back to school is a time of great stress and tension, as well as worry about what they will be paying for. The costs of everything from books to food for the day, as well as supplies and clothing for the day, can run up very quickly. The solution to this is to look into a financial aid program for back to school.
What types of financial aid programs are available?
There are a few different programs that you will be able to apply for. These include the Pell Grant, the Federal Supplemental Education Opportunity Grant, and the FAFSA, which stands for Free Application for Federal Student Aid. With any of these, you will be eligible to receive aid based on your financial need.
How much can you get?
Most financial aid programs are designed to help cover the costs of your education. You will need to complete an application, and submit it to the school of your choice. In some cases, you will need to submit this application for multiple schools. You can receive a total of approximately $4000 per year for college but I don’t want to give you false hope so just do your own research online to see how much you can really get depending on your personal situation.
What does it take to get financial aid?
The school of your choice will determine how much they will give you based on your financial needs.
How do you apply for financial aid?
Applying for financial aid is actually quite easy. You will be required to fill out a FAFSA, which is a Free Application for Federal Student Aid. You will have to supply financial information like your income and your parents’ income, as well as your parents’ and other students’ tax returns.
Once you submit this you will receive a number of letters in the mail from your school. You will then have to submit it to your school and wait to receive your college funding. Financial aid can be applied for during the application process, but there are also grants and scholarships available that you can apply for before you submit your FAFSA.
What can you do with the money you receive for your back to school?
You can use the money to pay for your school and help pay for other expenses such as food, clothes, and transportation.
Is financial aid right for you?
It depends on your individual situation and the amount you need to pay for school.
Does financial aid cover the entire cost of your education?
If you have an excellent academic record, and if you have never had a problem paying your school fees, then you may qualify for financial aid. This will help you pay for the entire cost of your education.
Financial aid is not a grant or a loan, and it does not have to be paid back. It is simply money that you receive from the school to help pay for your education.
May I borrow this money?
You may be able to borrow money from your parents.
May I get this money at another school?
Yes, you may. Some schools may require you to be enrolled in the college or university of your choice for at least a certain period of time.
Is financial aid enough to help pay for my education?
If you meet all of the criteria, then yes, financial aid can help you pay for your education.
May I receive financial aid from the government?
Yes, there are grants, loans, and scholarships available from the government, but these are given to individuals and not to groups.
May I use the money for my child?
Yes, you can use the money for your child’s education.
When you are planning for back to school, you need to be careful and to find out how much money you will need to cover your education. If you are a student, the first thing you can do is to make sure that you are getting the best price for your school supplies. Make sure that you compare the price of supplies with other schools.
The next thing that you can do when you are looking for how to save money for back to school is to look for discounts. You can get discounts if you buy them online. You can also go to the stores and see if they have coupons that can be used for back to school supplies. There are also sales at the end of the year that you can take advantage of.
Another way that you can save money for back to school is to get scholarships. You can also look to your local community to see if there are any scholarships that you can apply for. You can also find out about any scholarships that your school may be offering by looking online.
I mean, there are many options out there and your job is to think about what your other options are. You can also find some great deals if you start shopping for your supplies ahead of time.
Learning how to save money for back to school is something that you should be doing. You can get some great deals and learn about what you can do to save money while you are going to school. There are many things that you can do in order to get the best deal possible.
If you are going to college and you are not able to pay for it, you may be able to get some assistance. You can also look into scholarships and other options to help you pay for your education.
There are many ways that you can save money for back to school. You can look for discounts and you can also look for ways to help you pay for your education. You can get help from the local community and you can also look into scholarships online.
Learning how to save money for back to school is something that you should be doing when you are going to school. You can also look into scholarships and other options that you can take advantage of. There are many ways to help you get the education that you want.
You may not qualify for the financial aid offered to students in high school. Check with the financial aid office at your school to see if you may be able to receive a grant or a scholarship.
Conclusion
We know how hard it is to earn money. Having a long list of bills to pay, there is an urge to save some cash for future use. As much as we wanted to save, there are things that we can’t avoid to buy. One of which is the school supplies.
In writing this article, I am fully aware that saving a little money on school supplies will not change your life. But given the economic situation the world is going through right now, it’s important to know how to manage your expenses well.
Any saving of money is always good to take.
But given the economic situation the world is going through right now, it’s important to know how to manage your spending well. Saving a little money on unnecessary things will allow you to use it for more important things, like education or health.
I hope that this article will help you to make the right decisions when shopping for back-to-school and that it will also allow you to save some money. If you liked it, don’t hesitate to share it. Also, if you have other ideas on how to save money, please let us know in the comments below.
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