Many of us, have tight budgets and many children to educate. In this article I plan to share with you ideas I have used over the years to keep it affordable, but I would love to hear your ideas too!

First expense is time. How do you afford to live on one income? But that is a huge topic and will have to be discussed at another time.

The second expense is books. Oh how we homeschoolers love our books! We buy curriculum for math, English, science, art, music, Bible, home ec, etc. Then we gather up all those readers like Holling C. Holling and Little House on the Prairie. And for fun we pick up art supplies, board games, flash cards, and science kits. And who doesn’t love when all the school supplies go on sale in August every year? It’s like candy for me, I can’t help myself. But how do we fit all this in our measly budget?

Spread it out! Plan ahead and buy a little at a time. I plan every year to bulk up on the school supply sales, so that is in my budget. By August I should have most of my books and curriculum already so saving a little out of the budget for school supplies is easy. And a budget I need or I will go crazy and buy more than I have room for! Start planning a year in advance. I know this sounds really out there and impossible, but it really isn’t that hard. I have finally settled on My Father’s World curriculum, so I know what I will be using next year. I start now digging around for used copies of the books I will need. This really saves me a lot of money! I use PaperBackSwap for a lot of my books. Sometimes I do find the books I am looking for at thrift stores, but unless I find a thrift store that has a frequent homeschooler that donates, this isn’t usually the most effective way. Curriculum Share looks like another great find, but I haven’t used them yet. My point is start digging early. Many large cities have used homeschool book fairs and stores. Take your list with you every where you go and be prepared to find a bargain!

A word of warning about used book sales. As many of us are addicted to buying fabulous educational material, used book sales can be dangerous. Stand firm with your list and be strong! If its not something you are going to use within the next school year – don’t buy it! This will defeat the purpose of saving money.

What about field trips? I love a good field trip. Many of my friends have called me the field trip queen because we make it a point to include them at least once a month. We have been to many zoos and museums, living farms, The Creation Museum, ranches, parks, grocery stores (this is a fun one), historical sites, and more. Some of these can be quite pricey but many are free! The A-Z guide to home-school field tripsis a good place to start for ideas. Check your state park website too as many of these are free or have small fees. A grocery store can be a great place to go to practice math or check out the gourmet cheese counter. Grocery Cart Mathis a fun book for using the grocery store. Many museums have free days. Get on your local museum and zoo’s email lists so you can know about their special exhibits and free days. And a zoo membership is well worth the investment. Many times they are in an organization with other zoos which allows you access to many zoos, not just one! Children’s Museums have the same set up.

Last year we studied the trails that the people used to move west: The Oregon Trail, The Santa Fe Trail and The California Trail. While making a road trip we discovered a historical marker for the Santa Fe Trail! How excited we were to make a pit stop where many years ago settlers were traveling west. This was an unplanned field trip, but doesn’t make it less memorable. We have to always be looking for field trip opportunities wherever we are. If you go to the dentist, talk about it with your kids before you leave the house or on the way there. Get their little minds rolling on the subject and they will come up with their own questions to ask the dentist. Go to a book store and enjoy the coffee table book section. You know those big expensive books that have fabulous pictures. You can find them on animals, natural landmarks, and people. My kids love looking thru those books. I could write a book on field trips, so I will stop now.

Let’s move on to extracurricular activities. Many of us have mixed feelings on whether or not to allow our children to participate and if we do, what do we let them participate in? Music lessons are a popular choice and we partake in these too. But this can be expensive! Instruments and books and lessons add up. The only way to really save money here is to teach them yourself, but few of us have the talent necessary. Another way is to barter. Do you have something you could offer the instructor in trade for lessons? Sometimes they are willing to work a deal, sometimes they aren’t. But you don’t know until you ask. Instruments can be rented from music stores if you can’t do the big upfront cost. We were blessed and were given a piano. I wasn’t so blessed and had to buy my brand new violin. But we love music and I think it was worth the investment. And it is an investment!

I don’t have any great tips for saving on sports, mostly because we haven’t gone that route. Sporting equipment is expensive and mostly sports are time consuming, but if you have a budding athlete you will want to give them the best opportunities. My sister was a world team gymnast growing up. Even though I didn’t pay for all that time and equipment and leotards and road trips, I can imagine the cost. My dad was a landscaper and ended up doing and maintaining the gyms landscaping in trade for lessons. Bartering is a great thing! My girls did ballet one summer and every once in a while you can find used leotards and such at thrift stores. But this does require some digging. And although I’ve never been in one, I have seen second hand sporting good stores. Check them out!

Another wonderful homeschool opportunity is co-op classes. We have lived in three different states since we began homeschooling and we have found these classes every where we have lived. Some are very expensive as they bring in professional teachers for subjects like Chemistry or foreign languages. But many are small groups where the parents take turns teaching. These are usually more affordable, if not free, and offer your students to learn a subject you may not know very well. I taught Shakespeare one year and the parents of my students were very appreciative as it wasn’t a subject they were comfortable with. If there isn’t a group near you, start an informal one. One of my friends did a science co-op at her house one year for the high school boys. That way the parents could share the expense of the microscope and other equipment and the boys could dissect things together. This cut way down on cost of materials.

There are so many opportunities to be had out there! Go have some fun without breaking the bank!

But it does contain my homeschool teacher brain! I am going to share with you my simple set-up in hopes it will help you simplify your homeschool year.

I start with a pencil pouch. Right now I only have a few markers and a pencil in it, but it is also a great place to store flash cards, index cards, paper clips, white-out, ruler, or any other little gadget you may need at the tips of your fingers.

I use dividers to . . . well . . . divide my stuff. I have a section for my master schedule, lesson plans, records (test results, grades, etc), master copies, forms (homeschool groups, cover schools, etc), and chores. You could make these to fit your needs, but this is what I needed. I have room to add more if the need arises.

I start my book (and the beginning of each year) with my goal sheet. It includes the name of our school, our motto or Bible verse, colors, song, purpose, philosophy and goals. I don’t fill them all out, but it is nice to have at the front of my book so that I can stay focused.

For lesson plans I made my own form to help me plan one month at a time. It gives me a great overview of what is ahead and I just mark things off as they get done. This has worked great with me since I use unit studies. It is my lesson plans and records all rolled into one. You may use my form if you like.

For the chores section I keep a list of chores and who is responsible for them. I also keep a baseball holder pages to slide in the chore cards. This keeps me a little more organized because they are all in one place.

All Things Granola is all about the building stronger families. Families that will stand through tough times. All Things Granola wants to put the emphasis back on our roles within the family, specifically the mothers. Go back to the “granola” lifestyle and enjoy being a mother and wife. We are losing our parental rights quickly and quietly here in America, but that doesn’t mean we can’t fight it!

So to win this DVD you need to leave a comment before May 12, midnight. Comment what you love about being a parent or what you cherish about your parents. You will get an extra entry for linking to this post. Just leave another comment letting me know where to find your link! Make sure you leave contact information.

My church was really pumped up and excited about the San Antonio Independent Christian Film Festival this year, especially with the release of Fireproof. Due to family changes, we were unable to attend, but we definately felt the excitement. And when all was over and members of our church reported what a great and uplifting time they had, I really felt like we missed out. But, lo and behold, Vision Forum is now offering the event on audio CD: History Has Been Made.

The 14-disc set has beautiful music, dynamic speakers, and exciting moments. The topics covered speak to the Christian family trying to raise their children in an ungodly world. The media is such a strong force in our lives, we need to be on guard and protect our children from its draw. Dr. Voddie Baucham, Kevin Swanson, George Sarris, and Dr. R.C. Sproul, Jr. bring important issues to the surface. Charlie Zahm and the Von Trapp children offer beautiful music. And Doug Phillips gives detailed introductions and history throughout the whole event. And as an added bonus a panel discussion with the creators and actors of Fireproof, including Kirk Cameron.

And to really feel like I was there, I bought The Widow’s Might, winner of the 2009 San Antonio Christian Film Festival. This was a great movie, well done with a great meaning. My kids were especially excited to see friends from our church as actors! And I own Fireproof and highly recommend owning this film too! Just thought I would mention that.

History Has Been Made is a great set to listen to in the car or for family time. The speakers used examples and thought-provoking questions to encourage us to really evaluate what the television is bringing into our homes. And for the aspiring film entrepreneur, Ted Pittenger and Kevin Swanson touch on specific issues relating to that industry. End the event with the awards and more music!