Completely Essential Homeschool Supply List

Ever wonder what supplies you need to get started homeschooling? Today I am sharing all the homeschool supplies and essentials we have used over the years.

Complete Homeschool Supply List with printable shopping lists

Homeschool Essential Supply List

Homeschool Equipment

Laminator and pouches

I remember purchasing my laminator. It made me feel like an official homeschooler. I wondered if I would really use it that much – I do!!!

It is great for laminating chore charts, schedules, printables, and fun games/curriculum to keep your little ones occupied.

3 mil pouches– I use these pouches, and, depending on how many projects I’m doing, the pack can last a long time.

Scotch Thermal Laminator – I’ve had the old school version of this laminator for about ten years and it is still going strong.

Clipboard

I love, love, love clipboards. They are great for organizing daily work for each child and for providing a flat writing surface. (Go ahead and buy the 6 pack, you won’t regret it!)

Get yourself a really good, strong set of scissors. I was forever frustrated with broken and shoddy scissors or with children running off with my set. This 2 pack has lasted me a long time and I have no complaints!

3 Hole Punch

This is an essential! Even if you don’t use printables in your homeschool, you will find the punch comes in handy for storing records and completed work.

Stapler

I (or my kids) have broken so many cheap staplers- get a good, strong stapler to start with!

Tape Dispenser

Quite buying those little puny dispensers and go with a good strong tabletop version. Our kids LOVE working with tape.

CD Player

Our family can’t quite ditch CDs 100%. A portable CD player comes in very handy in our homeschool: listening to memory work, listening to lessons on CD, keeping littles occupied with music or audio books. This is our favorite style of CD player.

Microscopes

Pocket Microscope

My kids have loved these and I love the fact that they are inexpensive and the kids can have free range exploring with them. They make great Christmas gifts too!

Table Microscope

At some point in your homeschool journey you will want to get a real microscope. Take your time and shop around. Make sure you are getting one with the features you need and realize it is a long term investment.

Pencil Sharpener

We’ve tried several but this manual pencil has held up the best for us (4+ years and going strong!).

Dry Erase Pouches

These are wonderful for saving on printing costs- use the same sheet over and over again!

Small Whiteboards

Love these for easy writing practice and helping keep littles busy!

Abacus

This has come in very handy for math lessons with my littlest students.

Homeschool Organization Supplies

Bookshelves

I have a few cheap white bookshelves I’ve purchased off Amazon (like this one), but my favorites are garage sale finds!

If you are in the homeschooling journey for the long haul, you will be amazed at the books you will accumulate and you’ll need lots of shelving to store it all.

Storage crates or containers

1-Canvas Storage

I love these canvas storage totes for organizing, storing, and hiding curriculum, supplies, books, and more! We have them in our closets throughout the house.

2-Plastic crates While I like the look of the canvas storage totes, my older kids seem to need one of these plastic crates to stand up to the weight of all their homeschool books. (They are a great place to gather all their curriculum so they aren’t searching around for their work at school time.)

3- Plastic File Folder Box – This is how we store our long-term school records. All four kids share this plastic box and their things are filed away in file folders.

4-Bankers Box – This is how we store out of use curriculum for the next child.

Homeschool Room Setup

Large White Board or Chalkboard – These aren’t 100% necessary, but they are nice for school room decor, planning our your day, and helping wiwth lessons.

World Map – This is the large world map we own. It would make beautiful school room decor but I love it so much I actually have it in our living room!

USA Map – Educational and decorative. Can you tell I love maps?

Globe – I went with the vintage globe look and I love the look of it in our home!

Homeschool Supply List

Post-its – perfect for marking pages in books, leaving notes for kids, etc.
Pencils – It is worth it to pay up for Ticonderoga! If you have more than 3 kids, get the 96 pack – I promise you’ll use it!
Erasers – for those little boys who destroy their eraser the first day of school! I prefer the pencil topper so they aren’t misplaced during work time.
Dry Erase Markers – I love the ease of white boards from assigning random chores or getting extra handwriting practice in!
Pens – Get yourself a variety of good pens! I love these felt tip pens for smooth, bold writing.
Permanent Markers – Good for labeling things. I suggest a variety of colors and thicknesses. I just purchased my first set of super fine point Sharpies and I wish I would have done it years ago!
Dot Markers – These are great for preschoolers and last a LONG time!
Copy Paper – We’ve long since graduated the little packs of paper and moved onto the big ol’ boxes! You must have this on hand for art projects, printables, planning, and more!
Stapler Refills – Make sure you have a good stock!
Scotch tape – Buy a lot and buy a name brand.
Kids Scissors – Our kid scissors seem to gradually walk off throughout the year so I buy cheap and lots!
Notebooks – Don’t forget to switch to college rule when your child hits upper elementary!
Graphing Paper – A necessity for upper elementary and beyond.
Chalk – necessary for black board writing and some art projects
File Folders – Good for organization and long term storage.
Three Ring Binders – Good for organization, student binders, homeschool planners, and long term storage
Protractor
Drawing compass
Ruler
Calculator – What you choose depends on the level of your student!

Homeschool Art Supply List

Homeschool Art Supply Essentials

Crayons – Take it from this mama of 4 and pay up for the Crayola Washable Crayons!
Colored Pencils
Watercolor Pencils – while I like the cheap watercolor paints for messy toddlers and preschoolers, I much prefer these watercolor pencils for my older kids. They have great control and quality!
Watercolor Paints – great for keeping little hands busy.
Kids Paint– Again, pay up for the washable paint – thank me later!
Paintbrushes
Paint Brushes
Markers – Yep, you guessed it – get the washable! Also get the large and fine tipped.
Rolls of paper – A huge roll of paper will expand your children’s horizons and provide hours of play and creativity!
Colored Construction Paper
Copy Paper
Kid Scissors
Sketch Books
Glue Bottles and Sticks

Homeschool Art Supplies Just for Fun!

Craft Sticks
Dot Markers – so fun for little hands!
Wikki Sticks – great for shaping letters, numbers, and for keeping little ones busy during school time
Pom Poms
Google Eyes – too fun!
Art Smock– an old t-shirt will do, but these art smocks are so darn cute and would make a great gift!

Technology

Computer – This is pretty much essential. We don’t do much in the way of tech learning for our younger children, but many courses for our older children involve the computer (Latin lessons, computer programming, piano, etc.). We have been happy with HP.

Printer – When we needed to replace our printer we went with an Epson Ecotank and I’m sooooo glad we did. The ink lasts forever and we are saving so much on ink refills. It is perfect for all types of printing and I love using the built in scanner when needed.

Headphones– These are absolutely essential for audiobooks, online lessons, etc. This brand is one we have used for several years now and it is incredibly durable and affordable.

Tablet or Chromebook – This has been handy to use for our Hoffman Piano Lessons and other online learning resources. It means our home computer isn’t always tied up with homeschooling. We’e had our Acer Chromebook for 4 years and it has been extremely durable.

Kindle – This is a right of passage in our household and an essential because we use so many free vintage books. Whenever our child learns to read and can read the Boxcar Children series independently, they receive a Kindle. We love the durability of the kid’s version. While not necessary, Kindle Unlimited can be fun too!