The Cost of an Education
Apr. 7, 2006 at 2:30 PM
Homeschooling
From Joanne Jacobs,
The cost of homeschooling is difficult to measure but how much would you say you spent last year on homeschooling? If you want to reply anonymously that's fine.
Related Tags: homeschooling, home school, education, parenting, family, public school
U.S. public schools spent $8,287 per student on average in 2004, according to the latest Census figures. In all public education spending rose 5.1 percent from 2003 to 2004. New Jersey spent $12,981 per student in 2004, followed closely by New York and Washington, D.C. Utah, at $5,008, spent theleast.That's a lot of moola. I'll have to ask my husband for the actual amount we spent on our children's education last year. But it was no where near $8,000 let alone the nearly $13,000 of New Jersey. This is per student. I"m guessing it was around $1500 for all books, curriculum, and related supplies for ALL our children. Even if we added in our coffee breaks to Starbuck's we don't come close to those numbers.
The cost of homeschooling is difficult to measure but how much would you say you spent last year on homeschooling? If you want to reply anonymously that's fine.
Related Tags: homeschooling, home school, education, parenting, family, public school
13 Comments and Trackbacks
posted by Anonymous on Apr. 7, 2006 at 3:12 PM
Last year, I spent under $300 bucks for hsing 3 children. I have a hunch of where much of the money goes. I have been in ESD. (the admin. for all the schools for this portion of the state, covers about 10 towns) through dh's catering business. I've had a glimpse of what they talk about in their meetings (which are catered by the way!!..good for us, bad for the taxpayers). It just makes me mad to hear all these teachers listening to some guy in a suit (who has proabably never actually worked with children) saying things like, "have the student draw a tree. If it looks like a house, tell them blah, blah, blah" Just stupid stuff!!! My dhs catering business has done thousands of dollars with them over the past few months. I just think to myself, "why don't these people go out and pay for their own lunches, like most working people do". The building is also located in an old hospital which gives you some idea of the size of this educational administration. So, that is where I believe much of the money is going.
posted by jaminacema on Apr. 7, 2006 at 4:56 PM
I have spent time thinking about this and can never come up with answer. The problem is what to count! Yes, I know what I spend on Sonlight and Math-U-See every year. But what about when we are on vacation and we travel 200 miles out of our way to go to the Bush Presidential Library or Carlsbad Caverns? (Just 2 of the many side trips we have added for school.) What about the income I am not making because I have happily given up a career to stay home and teach? What about the classes and feild trips we do? I can go on and on. I think the real question is "Is it worth it?" For me the answer is easy, "YES!!!" (However with all this said when someone ask me this question I try to make it sound cheap so as not to discourage anyone! LOL) Great post as usual!
posted by spunkyhomeschool on Apr. 7, 2006 at 5:08 PM
I guess I'm not counting the cost of trips that we would take. I figure most parents regardless of how they educate incur some of those expenses. Obviously, the cost of time is a factor as well. I'm counting the materials and costs directly related to homeschooling. Obviously, the mortgage or rent is a cost of homeschooling but most parents would have that cost as well regardless of how they educate.
posted by Tami on Apr. 7, 2006 at 6:22 PM
What a great topic! I think our cost for 2005 for educational things relating to homeschooling was around $1,000. I keep it in a separate link item in our checkbook each year. Not that I can deduct it or anything, I just like keeping track of it. That would be for materials for 4 children. I supposed the average would be $250 per child, but I spent more on our high schooler than our preschooler.
Have a great day! Tami
PS Thanks for the comment on my blog. I appreciate knowing someone has been through the same thing with the eye surgeries.
posted by chickadee on Apr. 7, 2006 at 7:38 PM
i'd say we spent less than $500 a child and that includes every pencil, notebook and crayon. since this $500 figure gets reduced greatly when the next child moves into these originally purchased books, the initial cost is greater for the first child. i also didn't figure in mileage to the library but we usually get more than just books out of that trip anyway.
posted by on Apr. 7, 2006 at 11:55 PM
Hi,
Which RSS Reader do you use? I'm just curious. :)
This year (5 kids) we probably spent about $900 but that includes a membership to FamilyPass.com...video rentals. They have 15,000 educational videos. (Boy do I love being able to watch the Standard Deviants or Power Glide just for the price of the membership fee.)
That said, years ago, we would spend approximately $300 per year even with 6 children.(That is *not* per child, that's total.) I kept the old books, etc. Used the library a lot. Made my own lessons using books I had purchased. (Like, How to Create Your Own Unit Studies; or Games, Tools for Learning.)
It's interesting to see how little is really necessary to educate our children!
Edited by Grace on Apr. 7, 2006 at 8:58 PM
posted by ByHisGraceInColorado on Apr. 8, 2006 at 2:54 AM
I think this year we have spent the most actual $$ on our homeschooling efforts. We bought a new computer, which the kids use quite a bit when I am willing to relinquish it. :) We paid around $600 for it, a super deal. Then we bought an awesome guitar with accessories for just over $125, another deal. $75 a month for piano lessons, and then the rest of our expense is consumables, paper, pencils, art supplies, fabric, tools, etc. Books? Well, we get them from so many places very inexpensively, but last year I splurged and bought quite a few resources at a conference, and a book sale. My biggest expense was Noah Webster's 1828 dictionary!! I'd say I spent about $300 total, just on books at those two events.
This is the first year we have had that kind of funding, and we praise God for providing the extra for us! Sometimes I think of all we could do with the amount they spend per kid in institutional school. Or if I could use my property tax money on my kids, instead of it going to the local school. Sometimes I dream of what we could buy......but to tell you the truth, it takes very little money to effectively teach your kids at home. All it really costs is time! (but then, you already knew that!)
So, lets see..... back to your question. About $1100 for four kids this year? Less than $300 per kid? Hmmm....They are worth a million bucks at least, thankfully it doesn't take that much to homeschool! :)
Blessings,
Nancy
posted by sherrydhoneycutt on Apr. 8, 2006 at 10:07 AM
My best guess would be about 400 dollars, which includes cheerleading, brownies and gym class! That is for one child.
Sherry
posted by on Apr. 8, 2006 at 10:51 AM
My husband is very generous and allows me to spend pretty freely in regards to our homeschooling. I hs 3 children and spend about 1500 a year. This year we need a new computer and for next we are investing in a microscope for biology. I travel with the kids but he doesn't usually count that into the cost. Our ISP fees for the year are almost $400 for our tuition and fees for testing. I know I could cut that down a bit if I did the library, but I love books and I find myself purchasing any book I need.
Edited by gabalot on Apr. 8, 2006 at 7:51 AM
posted by spunkyhomeschool on Apr. 8, 2006 at 11:16 AM
I use bloglines for my RSS feed reader. Not sure it's the best one out there but it was what I started with and I'm too lazy to change now if there is something better. Overall, I like it very much.
posted by Leigh2 on Apr. 9, 2006 at 12:47 PM
We probably spent about $1000....but that's spread throughout the year, because I seldom buy everything at once. We usually buy the bulk of it around income tax time with part of our refund, and then the rest I pick up at the school supply store or used book sales. This year I'm buying curriculum for three of our children.
posted by mum21angel on Apr. 9, 2006 at 4:51 PM
I'm not sure I *want* to know how much I spend!!!
Okay, monthly club fees and fuel ... £20
Sonlight 5 day core plus £300 (ish)
My Father's World (she likes the workbook!) £75
Extra books (mainly second hand) £30
Workbooks (My Pals are here etc) £25
Craft supplies (rough estimate!) £100 (gulp)
not buying school uniform -£50 (yes, that's for state school!)
not paying for books the school can't afford -£50
not sending child on pointless school "outings" -£20
Ah, not so bad after all :)
Just over a year ago a "financial expert" told me it would cost £40 a week to home educate 1 child.... I *aspire* to that level of spending soly on HE!
posted by Laurie on Apr. 9, 2006 at 5:12 PM
I'm in an unusual situation. My husband has been called to serve as an Assistant Principal in a local elementary school. Yet, we homeschool our own children. A contradiction? Not for us. We know, without a doubt, that my husband has been called to serve in public education. He offers a Christian balance to a very liberal and lost world. Not every family has been called to homeschool and my husband has been able to offer support and encouragement to Christian families at his school. However, we also know that God has called us to homeschool our own children. We absolutely want to offer them a Christ-centered education and the home is where the Lord has called us to do so...
Ok, enough background on us...I've seen many good comments about the cost of running schools, paying staff, etc. I also think one of the reasons public education is so expensive is due the cost of curriculum. Have seen how much they charge for reading, math, history curriculum? It's outrageous! It reminds me of hospitals overcharging for every little service because they know they can and the insurance will pay. In education, publishers overcharge because they know the school district will pay if it's the "adopted curriculum." What a relief to come to a homeschool convention and see a solid reading curriculum offered for $50-100--not $500! We spend about $600 this year in curriculum and while it was a stretch for us, I was grateful to know homeschoolers have solid curriculum offered at such a reasonable price.