Older clothes work fine for the home setting, where more stylish (and expensive) clothes are desired for school. It is far cheaper to make lunch at home than to buy a school lunch every day, and that money can add up to a significant amount that can be used for homeschool resources. There are no book fees to pay to a school so that money can also go into your homeschool fund. School fundraisers are avoided and the money spent on them goes in the pot as well. By the time you add up all of the school expenses that you have saved, you might be surprised to find that homeschooling isn’t as expensive an alternative as you thought it would be! It is entirely possible to successfully homeschool without spending a fortune, and below are some great resources to add to your budget homeschooling toolbox.
Don’t overlook our subscriber exclusive downloads on TheHomeSchoolMom. You wonโt find these resources available for sale anywhere โ we have created these quality workbooks and unit studies exclusively for our newsletter subscribers, who can download them at no cost. From our financial workbooks for teens to our notebooking units for middle grades, you canโt buy these exclusive downloads, but we will give them to you when you subscribe to TheHomeSchoolMom newsletter.
Don’t forget to download our free spreadsheet planner, Homeschool Planner Plus.
Homeschooling on a Budget Blog Posts
Ask Jeanne: Money for Homeschooling My Kids?
Homegrown Riches: The Economic Challenges of Homeschooling
Homegrown Riches: The Economic Challenges of Homeschooling {Part 2}
LibriVox Free Audiobooks for Homeschooling
Where to Find Free Audiobooks for Homeschooling
Try These Ideas Instead of Curriculum
What Our Interest-Led Homeschool Looks Like with Teens
What Curriculum Should I Use For My 4 Year Old?
Thinking Outside the Textbook
The Joys of Authentic Engagement
The Alphabet Walk: Learning ABCs with Rocks and Trees
Teen Tech Project: Building a Computer
Teaching Critical Thinking with The Fallacy Detective
Swapping Homeschooling Activity Bags
Playful Path: The Most Necessary Book You’ll Ever Get For Free
No Curriculum Needed Vocabulary Lessons
Words, words, words! A variety of research, such as that by the University of Kansas, has demonstrated that the number of words children know dramatically impacts their success in other academic areas. While reading to children is one of the best ways to help them gain a strong vocabulary, at some point it is helpful to study vocabulary words in an intentional way. For older children this is often incorporated as part of English or Reading curricula, but for young children, such as those who have just learned to read, what options are there for learning vocabulary?
Read More »
More PhoneSchooling: News Apps for Critical Thinking
Make Learning Personal: Use Your Family History to Connect with History & Geography
Learning Multiplication by Hand: Manipulating Math
Kids Blogging Unit Studies
Instead of Curriculum: The Great Courses
Instead of Curriculum: Tech with Raspberry Pi
Instead of Curriculum: Storyteller Jim Weiss
Instead of Curriculum: Math Games (Fun Multiplication Practice!)
Instead of Curriculum: Living Math
Instead of Curriculum: Lies and Statistics
Instead of Curriculum: Handwriting Practice
Instead of Curriculum: Electronic Circuit Boards
Instead of Curriculum: Earn High School Government Credits Differently
Instead of Curriculum: DIY.org
Instead of Curriculum: D’Aulaires’ Mythology Books
Instead of Curriculum: Bring Me Bad Writing
Instead of Curriculum: Boomerang Audio Magazine
Instead of Curriculum
How To Raise Vocabulary Geeks
How to Preserve & Empower A Child’s Motivation
How to Plan a Library Scavenger Hunt
How to Host an International Student
Homeschool with Tangrams
Homeschool Summer Learning
Help Your Homeschool with Rabbit Trails
Contextual Learning: Homeschooling Through Fashion
Citizen Science
BSA Merit Badges {Free Unit Studies}
Ask Jeanne: What Curriculum for Homeschooling Active & Outdoorsy Boys?
9 Hands-On Learning Ideas for Teens
9 Benefits of Hosting an International Exchange Student
50+ Free Educational Resources To Use Online During Social Distancing
5 Benefits of Playing Chess
36 Educational Podcasts for Homeschoolers with Teens
21 Ways Your Homeschool Can Benefit from Audiobooks
20 Topics for a Nutrition Unit Study
15 Educational Games for Homeschoolers
100+ Educational Gifts for Kids (Updated for 2021)
Sites with Extensive Free Curricula
- Easy Peasy All in One Homeschool
A complete, free online Christian homeschool program for Preschool – 8th grade that was designed by a mom for her own kids - Easy Peasy All in One High School
From the creator of Easy Peasy for Preschool – 8th grade, the high school site is set up similar to the lower school, except that there are no levels - Ambleside Online
A complete, free online Charlotte Mason styled homeschool program with a corresponding discussion forum - Khan Academy
Khan Academy now contains over 4200 free videos for K-12 in mostly math and science topics; some videos reach into the humanities with playlists on finance and history. Each video is a digestible chunk, approximately 10 minutes long, and especially purposed for viewing on the computer. Playlists are available to help progress through a topic in a logical manner. - An Old Fashioned Education
A portal site for out of copyright resources linked by subject - Enchanted Learning
Over 35,000 web pages of free printables for younger students (a small optional annual fee removed the advertising banners and supports the site) - Crash Course
Engaging video courses (from John Green and his brother Hank) designed to be review courses for AP exams; topics available are US History, Chemistry, World History, Biology, Literature, and Ecology.
- Alison
Alison offers free courses on a variety of topics. All content is free, with the site funded by optional purchases of certificates and/or diplomas. Groups of courses are organized into Learning Paths, which allow students to work their way through a logical progression of course material.
Saving on Homeschool Curriculum
- Used Curriculum Resources
Our list of popular sources for used curriculum - Homeschool Buyers Co-op
(Affiliate/referral link) HBC negotiates excellent deals with curriculum and resource providers based on quantity purchases.
Affordable or Free Online Resources
- Superteacherworksheets.com
Printables and a spelling curriculum for younger students for a small annual fee - Math Worksheet Site
Free worksheet generator - Ed-Helper
Extensive site with downloads for a reasonable annual fee - Math-U-See Free Resources
Drills, worksheet generator, and webinars - Starfall
Free online reading/phonics program - DonnaYoung.org
Extensive collection of carefully designed downloadable forms and resources - Clever Dragons and Always Icecream
Although these sites want to separate the interests of boys and girls along gender roles, the sites are good quality learning games for younger students and could be be useful if your child enjoys the themes. - Homeschool Share
Unit study printables - Education World
Free online printables - Learning Page
Free online printables - FunBrain
Free online learning games
Hello Jeanne
I live in Middle East and rarely they use homeschool way if you can help me find the write school for short term homeschool if my financial got better by next year i would put my son again in public school but i need now affordable accredited homeschool that can give me a notarized grades report after this tear finish please help me to find To register my grade 8 son. Thank you
Hi Raeda – We don’t offer recommendations for specific curriculum providers or schools, but we have a large curriculum review section that will give you insight into what other homeschoolers think of various online schools and curriculum providers. I hope this helps.
Thank you
You’re welcome, Karin. Happy homeschooling!