What do you need to homeschool? Basically, books. And maybe a couple of other things…
Here’s a list of all the homeschooling-related items I don’t regret buying. On this list you’ll find both big and small purchases, essentials and nice-to-have ones!
Ready to add to cart? Let’s go! 😉
1. Printer
Number one on my list is an obvious, but absolute essential: a printer! I have printed free books, worksheets, posters, music sheets, printables, you name it!
When looking for a printer, I recommend:
- Refillable Ink Tanks: Find one that’s economically friendly because you’ll be printing a lot!
- Back to Back Printing: Not a necessity but would make life A LOT easier! Our old printer was like this and it was so wonderful to print digital books and workbooks with. Too bad it broke down and we didn’t have the budget to buy a similar printer.
- Wi-fi capabilities: So you can print wirelessly
2. Kindle
One of my favorite all-time purchases is my Kindle. 19 of the 20 books I’ve read last year were all on my Kindle paperwhite!
Here are some homeschooling-related benefits:
- Tons of free classics and living books for the kids: If you are on a tight budget, a Kindle may be more cost-efficient in the long run. Most classics that your kids will be reading (or that you will read aloud to them) are available for FREE on Amazon. This is great if your curriculum relies heavily on living books (like if you’re doing Charlotte Mason method. Related post: Free Living Books)
- Kindle books are cheaper than actual books: So many great deals for digital books and they are also generally way cheaper than having an actual book. I don’t recommend getting all books in digital format. But I recommend getting books that are text-heavy and meant for read alouds, on Kindle.
- Portable: If you’re going on a trip, you don’t have to lug all of the kids’ books if you have their digital files on your Kindle!
Not to mention I’ve read a bunch of books about homeschooling on my Kindle which I got at discounted rates whenever there were promotions. Super worth it purchase for me!
Alternatively you can get a Kindle app to avail of the free books but I love that reading from a Kindle doesn’t hurt my eyes at all compared to reading from a phone or computer screen.
3. Echo Dot
When I first got an Echo Dot as a gift, I doubted it would ever get used. Well, things escalated quickly! Now, not a day goes by when I don’t hear my son ask Alexa something!
Some Alexa benefits I’ve experienced and real questions my then 5 year old has asked:
- Ask Alexa hard questions I can’t answer: “Alexa, what is the smallest animal in the world?”
- Ask Alexa questions when I’m too busy to answer: “Alexa, how do I make the color brown?”
- Ask Alexa to play music: “Alexa, please play Fur Elise.” also “Alexa, play Baa Baa Black Sheep”
- Use Alexa as a timer: “Alexa, please set the timer to 10 minutes.”
- Kids can ask Alexa ANYTHING which is great especially when they can’t type on a search bar on their own yet. “Alexa, how old is Bill Gates?”
I LOVE our Echo Dots (we now have multiple ones haha). I may splurge and get an Echo Show, the one with a screen, so my kids can say “Alexa, show me a picture of a monarch butterfly!”
4. 3-Hole Puncher (and binders!)
I print books, articles and readings and place them on my 3-ring binder. But of course before binder, I need to punch the papers first! This 3-hole puncher is one of my most worth-it purchases. Cheap and does the job well!
5. Front-Facing Bookshelf
I call this our “magic bookshelf.” Whatever book I put in this shelf gets immediately picked up and read. That’s basically why I love it. Haha. It’s not exactly the most space-saving option but I love how it displays the beautiful covers!
6. Laminator
I’ve used my laminator for making flashcards, flower-pressed nature bookmarks, subject dividers for my binders, labels for my book bins and a whole lot more!
I can’t give a recommendation though because I use a generic, brandless laminator and this is my 2nd one since my 1st one broke down. Laminators are pretty straightforward though and I don’t think you need a fancy one.
7. World Map Puzzle
The only “toy” on this list because it’s AMAZING. I rave about this map puzzle to friends who would listen. It’s from the french brand Janod (You can get it at their PH shop: Warble, or on Amazon, if you’re in the US.)
My son has made so many connections and continues to make more each time he puts this puzzle together. I love how the countries are cut out based on their shape. Also, I love that the board is designed without the illustrations (just text,) which forces the child to match the shape and not the illustrations, as with other puzzles.
Very thoughtfully made and helps in geography, history and I’m sure many other subjects!
8. Globe
Ok, a map and now a globe? Yes! The connections my son has formed with our globe vary from the ones he got from playing with the map puzzle. Like, “Oh you can travel to the USA from the other way!” Aside from geography, it’s also great for teaching earth science!
I get asked about this globe a lot on my Instagram and I’m sorry to say that I have no idea where to get a similar globe.
9. Writing Board
So, I have a whiteboard and a chalkboard but they don’t get as much mileage as this writing board.
It’s a MyFirst 21″ sketch board. I love that it’s huge, it has no strong smell (unlike whiteboard pens), easily erasable, fun to write on (big plus for the kids) lightweight and you can even hang it if you want. It’s dual sided too and there’s a whiteboard at the back so that’s great if you need a whiteboard!
By the way, I’ve used a lot of cheaper writing pads and they’ve all conked out after a drop or two. This one has survived so far though so I’m recommending this particular brand and product, based on experience!
10. Post-It Tabs
When a friend gifted me with a set of these Post-It flags, I had no clue how to use it. Now, all our books have these page markers and I’m obsessed.
I use them as bookmarks and sometimes, as tabs to important pages in the books and workbooks we use. They don’t fall out like bookmarks and they don’t end up crumpled and messy like the little post-it flags. Try them 😉
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