6 Ways To Save This Year
08/24/2011
Surviving the school year on a budget may seem like a daunting task. New shoes, clothes, extracurricular fees, school supplies, and other items tend to add up quickly and they can be difficult to plan for in advance! Here are a few ways that our family has learned to cut costs.
1. Use coupons! You can find grocery coupons in your Sunday newspaper, as well as printing them online. Don’t forget that you can also find printable coupons on the Box Tops website to save more money on your favorite Box Tops products! You can also find coupon codes online to help save extra money when shopping on the web. Believe it or not you can save thousands of dollars a year by putting in a little effort and using coupons regularly.
2. Buy in bulk. Purchasing items in a larger amount often lessen the cost of each individual product. This is great when buying pre-packaged snacks for lunchboxes and classroom treats! This is also helpful in cutting costs when you need to buy a lot of something like soaps and tissues.
3. Make it yourself! Make your own snacks and put them in reusable containers instead of buying pre-packaged items. By the end of the year you’ll be surprised at how much money you’ve saved!
4. Support your school. Shop online through the Box Tops Marketplace to earn e-Box Tops for your school! There are over a hundred sites to choose from including familiar major retailers! When you shop in the store look for Box Tops for Education® products as well.
5. Save a little all year long. When I come across an extra dollar here or there it goes in an envelope designated for a specific purpose. Designate an envelope in your house for extra expenses during the school year and save money in that envelope throughout the summer. You may not come up with a lot of money, but every little bit helps!
6. Stock up during the sales! The beginning of the school year is a great time to stock up on school supplies! After the summer and winter seasons stock up on clothes for your children for the next year. Always check the clearance aisles in your store too!
This may seem like a lot of work to save such a small amount. But start small. Choose one money-saving idea per week to focus on, and then add a new one the next week! Pretty soon you will be saving quite a bit of money without any effort!
This month’s contributor: Crystal is the writer an creator of the Surviving a Teacher’s Salary blog.