How to Homeschool for Free - or Almost Free

I began implementing some homeschool for free tactics after reading the book How to Homeschool Your Child for Free several years ago. Here are some tips from the book along with a few of my own.

If you're going to homeschool for free or almost free, you have to be willing to use used books once in a while. Realize that while you will save money, you will need to trade some time for money.

You might need to spend a little more time looking for books at garage sales, used book sales or thrift stores.

You might need to spend a little more time online looking for free resources if you feel that you need to fill in a gap. The book Internet Resources for Homeschooling can help you spend less time online looking for resources. A veteran homeschool Mom (me) has reviewed and analyzed over 350 websites that can be used for homeschooling and put them all in an easy-to-reference guide.

If you choose a curriculum that sells well, you can purchase the curriculum used, use it with your children, and then resell it for almost what you purchased it for. I have done this many times. Back when you could still resell Switched on Schoolhouse disks, I was able to buy them used, use them and then resell them, sometimes for even more than I purchased them! Abeka and Sonlight curriculum resell fairly well. They are a little more expensive on ebay, but you can also find them on Homeschool Classifieds and other used book lists online, or at a local homeschool book sale.

You might also be able to find a friend or acquaintance that has children younger or older than yours. You can trade books or curriculum that you won't need for another year or 2 for a younger child. I have done this with a friend with the Apologia Science Zoology series. We each purchased a book and used it for a year, then the second year we traded books.

Another option is to use inexpensive homeschool books. Some programs are just as good as others and don't charge as much for their books.

A homeschool for free site wouldn't be complete if it didn't mention the beloved library! Use it - request books online if that is available in your area. If nothing else, you can request books and if you decide you like them enough to purchase them, you will know that you will not be wasting your money.

If you want even more ideas, the book How to Homeschool Your Child for Free will give you an even more complete guide to follow.

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