The back-to-school period can be one of the most expensive times of the year for families. If you have several school-age children, you can easily spend close to $1,000 on various products for school and extracurricular activities.

Back-to-School Season Is Big Business

According to the Huntington Backpack Index for the 2016–2017 school year, you can expect to pay:

• $659 per elementary school student
• $957 per middle school student
• $1,498 per high school student

That’s a lot of money so try to buy only the necessary back-to-school items, which means your child won’t be getting the latest Pokémon GO gadget for back to school.

Just Say No…

Fancy Pens and Pencils

Kids don’t need decorated pens and pencils. Simple ballpoint pens work just fine. Same goes for the good old no. 2 pencils. Mechanical pencils can use a lot of lead so stick to the cheaper no. 2 pencils.

Pencil Sharpeners

Most elementary schools have pencil sharpeners in the classroom so there’s no need for you to purchase one for your child.

Certain Textbooks and References

If your child has Internet access at home or school, forgo buying a dictionary and thesaurus. Information from dictionaries and thesauruses can be found online now.

Some colleges offer textbook rental programs for students, which can save you quite a bit of money. Or buy used books from other students or resellers. You can also save money by renting e-books from Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Cash and Credit Cards

If your younger child needs to buy lunch at school, see if the school has an online payment plan. One, online plans could save you money over time. And two, you’ll know that your child is getting lunch and not spending the money elsewhere.

For your college students, get them a debit or prepaid card instead of a credit card. A debit card allows you to have more control over the money, plus you can add money to the card on a regular basis. You don’t want your kid going into debt over unpaid credit cards.

Think your family is ready for back to school? What other items do you consider non-essential? Comment below or let us know on Facebook and Twitter.