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February 5, 2019 by This Mommy Saves Money 6 Comments

I am asked to re-post this every year, so in case you missed it…

Ever since my little guy started going to pre-school, this has been a holiday tradition, for him and I. We do this for Valentine’s Day, St Patrick’s Day (we use various shades of green for this holiday), and Easter! This is a very easy, creative, and frugal art activity that anyone can do. You only need 4 things to make these. The entire project only cost $2 out of pocket!

1. Crayons (we use broken ones, who doesn’t have broken crayons in their house right?)

2. A knife

3. An oven, set for 240 degrees.

4. Candy Mold (for whatever holiday you want to make these for), commonly found at Target. They sell the 2 pks for $2 (for several holidays).

You simply place broken crayons inside each heart in the mold. I suggested the knife, in case some of your broken pieces are too big to fit. Once your mold is full, pop it in the oven for 10-15 minutes at 240 degrees (oven times will vary).

Once your crayons are fully melted, pull the mold out of the oven, and let cool (we let ours cool a few hours, so they just pop out of the mold). For Valentine’s Day we stick a heart onto a heart shaped construction paper with a crafter’s sticky dot, and he signs each one. They are always a big hit with his class!

We use various shades of green crayons and a shamrock mold for St Patrick’s Day. For Easter (yep you guessed it) an Easter Egg Mold and pastel color crayons.

Office Supply Stores Back to School Deals

August 18, 2018 by This Mommy Saves Money 16 Comments

Here are the current Back to School office supply store deals. This list goes up on Friday for the deals that start on Sunday. Remember to buy what you need to get through the year and a few extras for your teachers!

These are the deals for 8/19 – 8/25

Staples:

In ad and printable coupon: $10 off your school supply purchase of $50 or more

Staples, 1 Subject Notebook, College Ruled, 8″ x 10-1/2″L $0.25

Limit 30

Staples 2-Pocket Folder: $0.15

Limit 5

Staples School Glue, 4 oz: $0.50

Staples 3″ x 5″ Line Ruled White Index Cards, 100/Pack: $0.50

Crayola Crayons, 24/Box: $0.50

Limit 30

Staples Composition Notebook, Wide Ruled: $0.50

Limit 30

Staples Translucent Pencil Boxes: $0.50

Limit 5

Staples Beveled Wood Ruler 12″: $0.50

BIC Soft Feel Retractable Ball Pens, Medium 1.0 mm, Assorted Fashion, 5/Pack: $0.75

Limit 30

Staples #2 Wood Pencils, 12 pk: $0.75

Limit 30

Staples Wide Ruled Filler Paper, 8″ x 10-1/2″, 120/Pack: $0.85

Staples 1″ standard view binder: $1.92

Crayola Washable Crayons, 24/Pack: $2

Dixon Ticonderoga #2 pencils, 12/pack: $2

Dixon Ticonderoga Pre-Sharpened Woodcase Pencils, #2 Soft, Yellow Barrel,18/Pack: $3

BIC Brite Liner Grip Highlighters, Chisel Tip, Assorted Colors, 5/Pack: $3

Sharpie permanent markers, 5/pack: $3

Paper Mate Sharpwriter Mechanical Pencils, 0.7mm, Yellow Barrel, 12/pk: $4

Post-it Mini Cube, 2″ x 2″ Orange Wave, 400 Sheets/Pad, 2 Pads/Pack: $4

ALL School Backpacks & Lunch Accessories: 25% off

Office Depot Brand Paper Folders, with or without prongs: $0.15

Limit 12

Scholastic School Glue, 4 oz:$0.50

Limit 12

Slider Pencil Box: $0.50

Crayola Crayons, 24 pk: $0.50

Limit 6

Sharpie Permanent Fine-Point Markers, 5 pk: $2

Limit 12

BIC Brite Liner Highlighters, 5 pk:$2

ALL uni-ball 207 Retractable Gel Pens, 4 pk: $2

Limit 3

Dixon Ticonderoga Woodcase Pencils, 12 pk: $2

SanDisk Cruzer USB 2.0 Flash Drive, 16 GB: $3.99

BIC Round Stic Ballpoint Pens, 60 pk :$4

Clorox Disinfecting Wipes, 3 pk:$5

Sharpie® Fine/Ultra Fine Permanent Markers, 12pk: $6

Back to School Tips for Teens

July 26, 2018 by This Mommy Saves Money Leave a Comment

Summer break seems like it only started yesterday, but in a blink of an eye the new school year is only a few weeks away! Here are a few awesome back to school tips for teens, and even the tweens out there! We will discuss ways to keep track of your school schedule, tips for studying more effectively, and more!

Start the year off on the right foot, and use these tips and tricks to survive the school year! These tips will help your kid out so much, if they implement them in their daily lives!

Schedule a Lock Screen on Phone

If your teen needs help keeping track of their schedule the first week or two of school, they should take a picture of their schedule, and make it their wallpaper on their lock screen. Then when they need to know what class is after Chemistry, they can easily click their home button and see their schedule! If phones are not allowed on campus, type up the schedule, place in a sheet protector, and place it in the front of their binder,

Study Right Before Bed

Having a big test can be so stressful on teens, especially if it the test counts as a huge percentage of their grade! Have your teen do one more study session for that test right before bed, it may help them retain the information better. Do this before they get too tired though, so they are still alert while reading over the information. I also quiz my son while driving him to school, on the days he has a test. Going back to school, means there are going to be a lot of opportunities using which you can develop more skills. Learning things by joining places which add on an extra skill such as kids music classes, swimming lessons, self-defense and many other activities such as these can only help you develop various skills along the academic year. This not only enables you to organize your life but also allows you to utilize all your time in an apt manner.

Control F Search Tip

When you are searching a document online, hit control F, and it will pop up a box to search a word. This is a great way to save time and find exactly what you are looking for in the document!

Pomodoro Study Technique

The Pomodoro Study Technique is pretty popular. It allows your kid to study for a select amount of time and than get a break. This is a great way for them to stretch, rest their eyes, and get their blood flowing. Plus when they come back to studying they will feel more focused.

Study for 25 minutes, and then take a 5 minute break.
Do this for 4 sessions, and than take a 20 minute break.
If your student is still not done studying, repeat the process over again.

Scholar.Google.com Vs. Google

When your child needs to research on the internet, have them use Scholar.Google.com versus regular Google. This will bring up articlesand journals that you can cite as sources in your work! Saves a lot of time!

Color Code Notebooks

To save time searching which notebook is which for each class, take a sharpie and color code your notebooks. Have a different color for each subject: green for science, red for literature, blue for history, etc!

Set Out Clothes Night Before

Does your child struggle with getting out of bed on time, having their whole outfit set out, along with their backpack, and lunch packed. That way if you they are in a rush, they will not be scrambling trying to find clothes as they rush to get out the door in the morning. Water guns and air horns also help get those that struggle to get up in the morning, not that I have ever done that to my son ;).

Take Good Notes

When it comes to studying, it has been proven that taking the time to write notes during classes and lectures can improve a students grade. This may actually help them memorize things easier, and then make flash cards to study from and let family members help quiz the student. This way your student hears the information, writes the information, and then recalls the information while being quized.

Hit The Hay

Keeping your student focused also means getting in a good nights sleep. Set a bedtime and stick to it throughout the school year, and try to sleep well through the night. Provide a quality bed and pillows, a cool and quiet environment, and some students like to have soothing classical music to listen to as they go to sleep. Students will be more focused in the morning, able to retain more during classes, and feel more energized.