www.TheOldSchoolhouse.com
What does your home- school budget look like? Some years I enter our school year with a small
percentage saved for needed materi-
als and other years, we have not saved
much. Personally, I don’t judge the value
of my children’s education by the dollar
amount spent but by the time invested
in training, teaching and guiding them
each day. Each year can bring new finan-
cial challenges. Whether you are switch-
ing curriculum, starting a new schooling
method, or taking on a new student, ex-
penses can add up very quickly.
Four years ago, when I began teach-
ing my eldest son preschool, I had a pic-
ture in my mind of what his homeschool
experience should look like. Previously, I
taught preschool and basically wanted to
recreate a similar classroom for him. I was
frustrated when I couldn’t find the exact
materials that I had pictured in my mind.
I remember being willing to spend way
more money than was necessary, simply
because I just had to decorate our home-
school space a certain way! Fortunately,
Show & Tell
Heather Vogler
The Thrifty Schoolroom
I finally came to the point when I
realized that I wanted my room to
represent both me as a parent and our
family as a whole and not some ideal.