Issue link: https://fredparent.uberflip.com/i/1396022
50 Fredericksburg Parent and Family • July 2021 WRITTEN BY NIKKI DUCAS Money-$aving for Back-2-School Shopping family money The idea of shopping for back-to-school (BTS) sounds strange a er 18 months of emergency homeschooling of virtual and hybrid learning. As parents, it is our job to get our children excited again for in-person school and new educa onal experiences. How are you ge ng your student reset for a new school year? This year may feel diff erent but new shoes, clothing, backpacks, and school supplies always top my boys' BTS shopping list and really helps them get into a new school year mindset. According to a Na onal Retail Federa on press release on July 15, 2020, "Parents with children in elementary school through high school say they plan to spend an average $789.49 per family, topping the pre- vious record of $696.70 they said they would spend last year." Do you shop throughout the year or do you typically start your BTS shopping in early July through the start of school? I don't know about you but it seems I am always needing pencils, glue s cks and paper. Some mes I fi nd the best deals in July when stores are compe ng for my business and other mes I hit a bargain on Amazon's deal of the day. TIPS AND TRICKS TO SAVE ON BTS SHOPPING: 1. Have a plan 2. Know what supplies are requested by teachers 3. Check store fl yers 4. Set a budget 5. Sign up for store emails to be informed of sales 6. Visit money-saving apps and websites 7. Shop clearance and dollar stores 8. Use coupons 9. Buy used or refurbished items TAKE ADVANTAGE OF TAX-FREE SHOPPING. Virginia's Tax-free shopping weekend is August 6-8. Qualifying items must fall beneath a certain price. School supplies must be $20 or less per item. Clothing and shoes must be $100 or less per item. The tax-free weekend includes items purchased in stores, online, by mail or by telephone. Amazon also observes local sales tax holidays on qualifying items. USE CREDIT CARDS. Earn cash back and/or use points to off set the cost of school supplies. Check with your credit card company for par cipa on. ASK FOR STUDENT DISCOUNTS AND/OR CHECK STORE OFFERS. Many stores off er student discounts on school supplies, books, clothing, electronics/ digital services/phones, food/dining, travel/transporta- on, insurance, fi tness and entertainment. In addi on to these ps, I also like to follow Passionate Penny Pincher, The Krazy Coupon Lady, RetailMeNot and DealsPlus for hot deals and coupons. I also recently learned that Dollar Tree accepts manufacturer coupons but not compe tor coupons. No ma er if your BTS shopping plan is a carefully devel- oped excel spreadsheet or if it's wri en on the back of a napkin now is the me to scoop up deals while stores off er steep discounts on pencils, crayons, rulers, glue s cks, calculators, colored pencils, ssues, folders, pens, scissors, notebooks, erasers and highlighters. Money-$aving for Back- TIPS