Hi All! I am curious what are some of your must haves for your home school? I don't mean curriculum but other things... supplies, equipment, etc...
Computer, printer, pencils, paper, sharpener, hole-puncher, stapler ... mostly just office supplies. We don't use a whole lot of craft supplies usually. (We do some, but not as a general rule.) We live outside the city limits, so we also don't use the library. We finally paid to get a library card a few weeks ago, because ds had to get one for a scouts award. It's very out of the way to go to the library, though, so we usually use the internet or our home library.
Printer- there's always something that needs to be scanned or printed from the internet Backyard with Trampoline - even in the rain, it gets the kids energy out and gives me a breather! Good upbeat music - so we can speed clean in the afternoon before Dad gets home.
I wish we had something like that. We just have one little swing hanging from a small tree. It's so hot that we rarely use it, though. We don't go outside much.
Mostly office supplies, computer and scanner/printer, TONS of books -- actually I need more bookshelves -- and the whiteboard with markers!
On top of what has been listed I love my laminator, I use it all the time. I also love my binding machine, but could live without it if I had to. I go through way more markers and crayons than imaginable in this house, also those spiral notebooks that are cheap this time of year (the kids can blow through one of those a day if I let them just have at a doodle fest in one).
Large File Boxes; Hanging file Folders & two-pocket folders for each subject (color coded of course! My poor kids are conditioned! LOL Yellow for Grammar, Blue for Science, Green for History/Geo, Purple for Bible, and Red for Math! A leftover from my Lifepac Days)....granted, I've added colors over the year: Orange is Handwriting, White is Spelling, Light Blue is Writing, etc..... My poor kids. I'm thinking of changing it up on them this year and making them each have their own colors - so all subjects would be one color - but my oldest would be dark purple, my son all red, and my little all lime green or something silly like that! HA HAH AHA!!!! Hmmmm.....mechanical pencils (my kids HATE regular pencils, they're obsessed with points and when you give them a regular pencil they sharpen it every 4 seconds).
So far, the thing I use most is my white board and dry erase markers (I bought a bunch of colors). It's only about 1x2 ft, but it does the trick and fits inside the kitchen cabinet. We also regularly need pens/pencils (of course) and occasionally crayons. However, we're only working on math/reading at the moment. I want to get into lapbooks and unit studies soon so I'm sure my list will grow. I've been awful about teaching spelling lists, but I do write the words on notecards each week... so I guess notecards are a must have as well.
Magazine holders. All our books are organized by subject and on a big shelf. http://www.walmart.com/ip/Pacon-001327-Magazine-Holder-12-3-8inx3-1-8inx10-1-4in-Assorted/23068679
It pretty much is age dependent, for me. When my son was young, art supplies, puzzles, games, maze books, and other books filled our lives. When he was older it was science kits, cards, some educational software, and books. Eventually, the computer took center stage, with educational software, chess, and writing his own books and stories and creating computer art. Throughout it all, the most needed thing of all was ---- TIME. My time, to be specific. Reading to him, taking him places, listening to his stories (usually as we walked to and from the store, or while doing the dishes). That's why I never joined an online group -- I had no time until he was nearly grown!
The computer/printer is major and I love my laminator!!! I'm also a huge fan of my hand crank exacto (?SP) pencil sharpener. In all honesty- as long as I have my kids and my library I'm a happy camper!!
computer, printer, paper (for computer and lined), pencils, markers, white board with markers, stapler, pencil sharpener, and a place to put the books. I'm using stackable file trays because that is what I had on hand when we started homeschooling. A library card has been essential for us. An iPad has been a huge plus too.
Oh yes, I'm hoping to get some mileage on my library card this year (as apposed to spending a fortune on readers)... That is, once I finally break down and pay my overdue fines.
