How to not break your budget at a homeschool convention

A few years ago I went to a very small local homeschool convention.  The convention hall was the size of a basketball gym and it was so hard not to break my budget at a homeschool convention, really hard.

Then I went to a HUGE homeschool convention, and the vendor hall was the size of a grocery store.  There was a map so you didn’t get lost.  It was amazing and even harder not to break my budget at a homeschool convention. I’ve now learned how to not break your budget at a homeschool convention, and I’m gonna say this is part of the Homeschool How To series.

{This post is sponsored by Great Homeschool Conventions (affiliate link)}

Tip 1: Know your budget

This should be obvious, but if you don’t go in with your budget firmly in place you will overspend.  I guarantee there will be more things there than you have money for.

Tip 2: Know what you need

When I went I knew I wanted to get a copy of our math curriculum because they probably had a deal there.  Beyond that I was wanting a writing curriculum, and maybe a few more games, because you always need more games.

Tip 3: Know the general prices

It’s not a deal if it’s not what you really need.  There were some really cool deals at the homeschool convention I went to, but I didn’t really need some of those items, and some I did want but there wasn’t a good deal for me.

Tip 4: Have an idea of what you WANT

Most places you can find out ahead of time what vendors will be there. Great Homeschool Conventions {affiliate link} tells you the vendors ahead of time.  Get an idea of what places you’re interested in ahead of time.

Tip 5: They are there to make a sale, don’t feel guilty if you say no

There are one or two purchases I made that weren’t the best plan.  They didn’t quite fit who we were as a family, and ultimately weren’t ones we used a lot.  Know your homeschool style and know what you will use.  Don’t buy it because the salesman is pushing you.

Tip 6: Before you buy anything look at ALL the vendors you’re interested in

It’s very tempting to buy at the first shiny sparkly booth you go to.  This is a rule I learned from many years of Renaissance Festivals.  There are many places selling great jewelry and costumes, look at several and then buy.  Unless it’s Angel Sword, and there’s only ONE Angel Sword, and all the guys you know will drool over those swords for years.

Back on topic.

Tip 7: Learn where vendors are

Most conventions will give you a map, I highly recommend learning the map so you don’t waste time going to the wrong booth.  If you’re looking for high school curriculum it does you no good to visit the preschool booth.

Tip 8: Learn which vendors also have a speaker

Many of the vendors also have a speaker for one of the sessions*.  If you want to find out more about the product this is probably a great opportunity for you.  I’ll be honest some of the items I was looking into I decided weren’t a good fit for our family because of the speaker.  I’ve also had items not on my radar at all I found myself making room in the budget for it.

Tip 9: Open up the books and the curriculum

This is one I have to repeat over and over again to myself.  I have to look at stuff.  I’ve bought many things that looked good on my computer only to discover it was not a good fit for us.  Look at the lesson, read the scope and sequence, what order are the lessons in?  I bolded that to remind myself I need to look at this (lesson learned the hard way).

Tip 10: Enjoy the experience and talk to people

You get a good feel for a product when you talk to the people selling it.  I ended up buying the Picturesmart Bible after talking to the women running the booth for almost 30 minutes because I really appreciated the product and their heart.

If you’re still not convinced how awesome and you want some more advice for going to a homeschool convention like Great Homeschool Conventions, then head on over to the Hows and Whys of a Homeschool Convention

My takeaways after going to the convention

1. Buy your necessities first.  I didn’t buy anything else until I’d bought my math, science and history.
2. Compare prices, there are several different booths selling the same product, find the best price.
3. Attend the workshop of the vendor you’re looking at, they’ll probably give you more information to use.
4. Mark off where you’ve been so you don’t keep going back to the same places.  I had to do that otherwise I got lost.
5. Don’t buy your textbooks at the beginning of the day, I had a very sore back by the end of the day on Saturday.
6. Visit the smaller vendors, you can find some real gems there, and that’s the writing and grammar I picked up, they’re awesome.

*Oh my goodness I just looked at the updated list for the speakers, and there are SO many WRITERS of our current curriculum.  I think I’m going to go into total fangirl mode, and squeal happily.  It’s like reliving my high school days and going to a Star Trek convention.

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