African-American Homeschool Moms: A resource for black homeschoolers

This website provides information for black homeschoolers.

Money Making Ideas for Homeschool Moms

Leave a Comment

“I need to pay off that student loan.”

“I want to add extra money to the grocery budget.”

“I need to decrease our debt.”

“I want money to take the kids on fun outings.”

Homeschool moms who want or need to make money have plenty of options. And, those options extend far beyond jobs in data entry or telemarketing. A mom’s personal creativity and the availability of the internet mean money making opportunities are more plentiful than ever.

The homeschool mom who plans and thinks outside of the box can make some cash. If you’re creative and willing to consider multiple streams of income, additional money may be right around the corner. Check out this list of legitimate money making jobs perfect for the homeschool mom.

Pet sitting: Pet care is a booming business! When people are away, they want to know their pets are receiving good care. You can bring pets into your home or go to client’s homes to care for the pets.

Freelance writing: If you’re a talented writer, there’s a job for you. Many publishers need experienced and talented people to write articles on a variety of topics. The Freelance Writing website is a great place to begin a job search.

Gift basket creation: Exercise your creativity by creating gift baskets. Create baskets for birthdays, graduations, baby showers, weddings, any other occasion you can imagine.

Graphic design: Computer savvy moms may be able to make money designing flyers, logos, book covers, and more. Make your services available through Fivver or begin a solo venture.

Virtual Assistant: Running and maintaining a website takes much work. Site owners are often looking for help scheduling blog posts, creating blog images, or managing social media accounts.  Learn more by taking Udemy’s best selling virtual assistant course.

House cleaning: Today’s families are busier than ever. To help lighten their loads, many families are willing to pay for cleaning services. You may be able to make money by providing weekly and/or monthly cleaning services.

Teach music: Are you an experienced and skilled musician? If so, you may want to consider offering music lessons. If you’re comfortable teaching from home, you’ll never have to commute to make money. However, if you’re willing to travel to clients’ homes, they may be willing to pay more for the convenience.

Tutor: Homeschool moms spend their days teaching. This knowledge base may be a great springboard into a tutoring side job. Math and writing are popular areas for tutors. Computer technology even makes it possible to provide tutorial services online.

Event Planner: People love to host celebrations, but they may not be skilled enough or have time enough to handle the event from start to finish. Take the pressure offer the hostess by offering services that include securing event locations, planning menus, and arranging cleanup details.

Seamstress: Moms who can sew well can make money doing alterations. Hemming pants and adjusting dresses and skirts are just a few services you could offer. Clients can visit you at home or you can charge additional fees for making home visitations.

Editor: If you have a degree in English, education, or communications, you may be able to find work as an editor. Use your skills to earn money proofreading textbooks, novels, magazines, articles, and blog posts. This is a job that easily be done from the comfort of your home. Check out these jobs over on the Freelancer website.

Errand runner: You may be able to earn money by running errands for busy people or for those who are unable to travel. Charging for picking up groceries, prescriptions, dry cleaning, etc can be a great way to earn money.

Make Up Artist: Do you do your own makeup? Are people constantly asking your advice on how to achieve a similar look? If so, you might be able to make money as a traveling makeup artist. Creating fabulous looks for special occasions may just be your ticket to additional income. See yourself apart from others by earning a cosmetologist or esthetician license.

Photographer: Families no longer want to visit studios for portraits. Use your behind the camera skills to make up front money. They want gifted photographers take them off the beaten path to find scenic venues perfect for creating picture perfect memories. Want to hone your skills? Take one of the over 1,400 photography courses offered on Udemy.

Clothing rental: When prom and wedding season hit, the hunt for the perfect dress begins. Cash in on the fashion frenzy by renting glamorous gowns. Start your stash by purchasing gowns in a variety of sizes, styles, and colors. After renting, have garments professionally cleaned so they’ll be ready for use again.

What do you think about this list of jobs? I love that nearly all of them have little to no start up cost, few educational requirements, and can be done from the comfort of home. Do you have additional suggestions? We’d love to know, so please feel free to leave a comment. If you want to know how one mom manages homeschooling while working, please check out the interview in this post: Homeschooling While Working.

Money Saving Tips for Homeschool Moms

Leave a Comment

Money Saving Tips

A few weeks ago we invited a homeschool mom and her family to join us for dinner at our house. The children jetted down to the basement to play, while husbands settled down in the family room to talk. As my friend and I worked in the kitchen preparing the dinner plates, our conversation turned to homeschooling, of course!

We talked about how we were wrapping up the current school year and then discussed our plans for the upcoming school year. At one point the conversation turned to the topic of homeschool spending and we spent quite a bit of time swapping money saving strategies and discussing budgeting techniques.

Are you looking for ways to trim your homeschool expenses? Do you want to cut costs, but still enjoy homeschool activities and events? If so, I think you’ll want to know about the money saving tips my friend and I discussed.

Our Money Saving Tips

  • Keep it simple. Extras are nice, but you don’t need them to homeschool successfully. You don’t have to spend money designing and furnishing a separate school room. You don’t have to buy extravagant supplies or fancy curriculum. Those things are great and there’s nothing wrong with any of them, but if you’re looking to save money, it’s good to know homeschooling can be done without lots of expensive frills. (Check this post, Homeschool Resources, to learn what the AAHM Facebook moms think is necessary to homeschool. I think you’ll be surprised by what they say.) 
  • Purchase used items. Everything you buy for your homeschool doesn’t have to be brand new. I love the end of the school year homeschool curriculum sales that are held in my area because I always find great things at rock bottom prices. I’ve come away from used curriculum sales with books, games, and other educational resources in like new condition. Vegsource is a great online site to find used curriculum and materials. Also, don’t forget to check yard sales, Ebay, and Craigslist.
  • Find online freebies. A strong internet connection and a printer can easily become two of a homeschool mom’s most valuable resources. Before I purchase curriculum, I always look to see if there’s something comparable but free online. I’ve found complete curriculum free of charge online. You can start your search for free resources by checking out the  AAHM Freebie page.
  • Spend time in the library. The staff in the Children’s Department of our local library knows us by name because we’re there two or three times a week. In addition to checking out terrific books, I’m also able to check out educational videos and DVDs for use during my lessons. Our library offers many programs and activities which are free for library card holders. And because the homeschool community in my area is so large, they’ve even begun to host educational homeschool programs during the day.
  • Borrow from and share with fellow homeschool moms. Before I make a big purchase, I check with my homeschooling mom friends to see if they have something I can borrow. Sometimes a friend used a certain book last year, but won’t need to use it for another two years. If the book is not going to be used ask if you may borrow it.
  • Use Youtube. I refer to Youtube as as “Youtube University” because there are hours of educational programs and tutorials there. There’s likely a video (or two or three!) for any topic you’re teaching. During this past school year, all my children’s art lessons came straight from Youtube. If you’re concerned about racy ads or inappropriate comments use ViewPure to filter videos before you show them to your children.
  • Shop off the beaten path. While I’m often drawn to shop at the big name retailers, I also shop and find reasonably priced homeschool resources at Dollar Tree, Walmart, Target, and office supply stores like Office Max and Staples. Joann Fabrics is one of my favorite places to shop for homeschool resources because they have a great educational section and regularly offer coupons for as much as 50% off. I’ve purchased posters and even workbooks there.
  • Make the most of gifts. When grandparents and other relatives ask what my children want or need for their birthdays, I always include something educational on the list of suggestions. Relatives can gift children with magazine subscriptions, museum passes, or class fees. When these things are gifted, the giver knows the child has received something useful, the child is happy, and your homeschool spending is reduced. That’s a win for everyone!

Homeschooling doesn’t have to be expensive. By using the money saving tips I mentioned and by implementing a few creative ideas of your own, it’s possible to give your child a high quality, enriching, and fun homeschool education without breaking the bank. I certainly hope these tips will help!