Your Must-Have Homeschool Supplies List for All Ages ~
Written by Melissa Camara Wilkins
When hanging out with other homeschool families, I always want to hear about their favorite things. What’s working for you? What isn’t?
Sure we might all have different homeschooling styles, but no matter what we’re learning, we all need pencils and erasers to learn with.
I figure collective wisdom is a good thing when it comes to all those basic, yet essential homeschool supplies.
So I thought I’d share a few of my favorites with you. (Plus that way I have them all in one place next time I need to reorder! Convenient.)
My youngest kids are elementary-school-aged and my oldest are in college, so we’ve had the chance to try out a whole bunch of stuff over the years. This is what works for us—and what we change as kids grow.
Your Must-Have Homeschool Supplies List for All Ages
Pencils
We really do all need pencils. For kids who are just learning to write, we use these thick chunky ones (afflinks) paired with a nice big eraser.
When they’re ready for a standard size pencil, we like to keep these classics around, along with an electric pencil sharpener. Why is sharpening pencils so satisfying? I can’t explain, but it is.
We have this simple sharpener, but this one looks like it can handle more pencil widths. We use these pencil caps for extra erasing power.
When our kids get to be middle school age, graduating to a fancy mechanical pencil is a rite of passage at our house. (Yes, we are exactly that nerdy.) We pair them with these stick erasers.
Markers
For littles, we haven’t found anything we like better than classic Crayolas. As they get older and want pens with thinner tips and more colors, we switch to these Pentels.
And if they’re into fancier art making, we’ve found these markers to be a great deal for pigmented markers.
I couldn’t live without Flair pens myself. I use them for writing in color in notebooks and calendars, and for addressing fun envelopes. But they’re technically felt-tipped markers, so… I’m putting them here with the other markers.
Crayons & Colored Pencils
These beeswax crayons make nice saturated colors, and the block shape is great for making rubbings. There aren’t a ton of colors, though, so if we want to color with more choices, we use these Crayolas.
These triangular colored pencils are great for little hands that are still learning to write. For skin tones, we go for these. For older kids, these have worked well for us, along with this “Portrait” set for skin tones.
Calculators
I know there are calculators on every device these days, but we still like ones with bright colors and chunky buttons for exploring number concepts. For middle schoolers, we go for this scientific calculator.
And this graphing calculator has served every one of our high schoolers well so far.
Cozy Blankets & Library Cards
My actual favorite item on our homeschool supplies list ever is my library card, and it doesn’t cost a thing. Between physical books and audiobooks (using the Libby app), the library has been our best resource for everything from easy readers to college test prep books.
Pair a book with one of these cozy blankets and really, it’s hard to imagine what else a person might need in life!
Headphones
Okay, the truth is, I don’t have a good suggestion for kids’ headphones! We seem to be perpetually in need of new ones, and we use them all the time—for listening to audiobooks, for learning foreign language skills, for practicing the keyboard, for road trips…
So if you have a great recommendation for kids’ headphones that last, please oh please let me know in the comments!
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And there you have it – our basic, yet can’t-live-without homeschool supply list. Often it’s the simple things that make the biggest difference, isn’t it?! Remember that even as you compile your own homeschool supplies list.
Please share with us what your must-have homeschool supplies are and help us discover some new favorites!
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