I've read tons of emails, blogs, and websites lately from the states listing all the fabulous 'Back to School' offers available at the various stores.

   I know. You're thinking 'She has lost the plot this time! We aren't sending our kids back to school!' Bear with me here, OK?

   I know we don't need rucksacks and lunch boxes or school uniforms, but we can pick up some real bargains at this time of year.

• For one thing I buy some school trousers for the boys for Sunday or best clothes, along with a couple of collared shirts and jumpers.
• The schools sweatshirts are cheap as chips this time of year and they are great for kids to decorate themselves!
• We have some families in our home ed group who buys a school uniform for their family for when we go on home ed outings. It makes the kids feel like they are on a 'real' school trip. I know this isn't every families way of doing things, but it works for some.
• It is a good time to get a nice modest one piece swimsuit reasonably priced for your kids too. The ones for school use are nice and plain.
• Also a good time to stock up on nice simple undies and socks. At Christmas it will be all the character ones at three times the price as the plain ones for back to school right now!
• When the sales get really crazy I usually pick up a bunch of pencil cases as they are great for storing all sorts of small things. I recently used one for all the hair clips and ribbons belonging to one of our foster daughters.

This time of year you can get lots of standard supplies at really silly prices! So stock up and save for the whole year.

• I buy glue sticks by the packs of 10 or 12 for just a pound in Asda (smartprice ones). I buy two or three packs and they last us the whole year even with our childminding! Much cheaper than paying a pound for one in the middle of the year when we run out!
• Pencils come in industrial size packs this time of year, so now is the time to stock up on plenty for all those maths lessons!  Also large packs of pens in all sorts of colours and highlighters too.
• Notebooks and paper pads are really cheap at the moment. So now is the time to get loads of paper in.
• Erasers are being sold in packs of 10 for a pound right now. And these are the cute character shape ones that go on the end of your pencils too! (I also get a bunch of these for using in party bags for my sons birthday party in October. In fact I buy alot of his party bag fillers in the back to school sales!)
• Boxes of crayons and packs of felt tips are another good stock up item. I got several small boxes of chunky crayons with Disney Princesses, Winnie the Pooh and Cars the movie on them at 30 pence each on a clearance shelf! Great for presents or just a small treat now and then. And you can't beat the price!
• If you need a new stapler, whole punch, or pencil sharpener - now is the time to buy it! They are everywhere and in every colour and style imaginable. And while you are at it stock up on the staples, paper clips, push pins and paper fasteners too - they will cost you twice as much in a couple months time.
• I got clipboards this past week in Asda for £1 each. A couple of months ago I was looking for some and they were starting at £2.99 each!

The best stores I've seen sales in are as follows

• All the major grocery stores. I usually shop in Asda, so I know more of their sale than others, but I tend to pop in the other places this time of year just to pick up a bargain or two. Trust me it is worth the trip. And I don't mean drive 20 miles to your nearest Sainsburies either - I just mean if you are driving by, stop in and check the back to schools stuff out while you are in the area.
• WH Smiths is usually quite expensive, but also usually quite good quality that last longer too! At the moment they have some 75% off sales that make things very reasonable. Well worth checking out. I got an organizer/ring binder in there last week. It has a two ring notebook in it, a pad of lined paper, a filing section, pen holder and zip pouch in it and it zips closed with a handle on the spine for carrying it around. Very cool! It was supposed to be £16.99 and I got it for £4.24!!!! Needless to say I picked up two at that price and still spent half of what I would have had to pay for one.
• Check out all the stationary shops like Staples, Rymans and Partners. They always have a special back to school section with great prices.
• Bargain stores if you have any near you are great too. Places like Home Bargains, Scrooges, Poundland and others sometimes have rubbish supplies, but other times have real quality supplies at bargain prices.

I hope you find this information useful as you get ready for another great year Home Educating or as you seek to start off down the Home education road! If I come across any other great bargains I'll add them to the blog with an update so watch this space!