School: Back to school shopping ripoffs?

Save money on back to school supplies this year to keep yourself on budget and allow you to have extra spending money for extra-curricular activities. Many students are forced to go back to school on a budget and are looking for the best back to school tips this year. When returning to school this year, keep the following tips and secrets to saving money in your back pocket to keep more money in your wallet.

1. If returning to college, team up with your roommate and complete a "ToDorm" Checklist at Kohls.com. To save money when returning to college, coordinate with your roommate to purchase items for your dorm room together. You can also print the list and pass it around to family who want to help you out!

2. My daughter wears uniforms to school and we are always looking for ways to save money on those back to school items. Some of the parents get together and plan a "swap" sale each year at the end of school. This is a great way to trade out uniforms for a new size.

3. If you are purchasing textbooks, try online retailers to save money. I went back to college and found that buying my books online at Amazon, EBay, TextBooks.com and eCampus.com is much cheaper than purchasing textbooks at the campus bookstore. TIP: buy used books - they often have great notes in them too!

4. When purchasing school supplies, contact several families in your child's class. Purchasing school supplies in bulk and splitting them up between students will save money. Try DollarDays or Geddes for bulk school supplies.

5. If your child eats lunch everyday at school, consider packing his or her lunch. Packed lunches can save you money and be more nutritious and healthy than school lunches.

6. Our state has a "tax-free" shopping weekend that is designed for back to school shopping. Take advantage of this weekend to buy large items such as laptops, computers, dorm furniture and clothing to maximize your savings.

7. Students going to college should take advantage of garage sales and yard sales. They can pick up great used furniture and small appliances for their dorm rooms for practically nothing.

8. Shop outlet malls and shopping centers. Most outlet malls offer special back to school shopping days where they offer great discounts on clothing, back to school supplies and other school items.

9. Backpacks are a big-ticket item that generally takes a large bite out of your back to school budget. Consider purchasing backpacks and book bags online for additional savings. Many websites offer great savings on backpacks such as eBags and School-Backpacks.com.

10. Make a master list as soon as possible and keep it with you every time you are out shopping. Merchants will advertise special savings on school supplies throughout the summer. As you run up on special savings and discounts, purchase the items and mark them off your list.



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Buy what you need for the first day of school but don’t buy too much for the rest of the year. Some items, such as pencils and pens, might be useful to stock up on if there is a great sale. But since many stores overstock on items, you may actually be able to find some bargains by scanning for sales after the back to school rush is over.

Did you know

Many freelance videographers are on the lookout for extra income or ways to expand their business. The world of sports can be an open market for the freelancer looking to cash in on a new territory. Sports videos are a great way to make extra money as a freelance videographer. There are many possiblilities for hits kind of video, including colleges, high schools and athletic leagues. 

If you would like to start making sports videos, I would recommend doing a few for free. If you haven't done videos of this nature, it will enable you to practice and increase your skills for recording sporting events. If you have already shot sports videos before, shooting some for free will help you improve your skills and also build relationships with people who can help you get freelance jobs recording sporting events. To begin working as a freelance sports videographer, you will need a camera and a tripod. The camera doesn't have to be expensive, as long as it provides a good image and has a reliable source of power. 

You can be a videographer for various teams and schools, or for one team. If the team's coach or director doesn't have a set fee that they pay, recommend one that you are willing to work for. You can negotiate your rate based on the number of games that you will be shooting. If you are working with various teams at any given time, you can charge a lower rate. If you are only working with one or two teams, try to secure many games to shoot. That will help to bring in more money on a consistent basis. 

As a freelance videographer, you can search various places to land sports video gigs. You can begin by going to small or private colleges who may have athletic teams, but may not have steady videographers. If you are going to work with colleges, I would recommend sticking with small community colleges and other related educational institutions. Many large colleges and universities usually have teams that are part of the NCAA. In these cases, a freelance videographer is less likely to get paid recording their sporting events because cameramen from Comcast and other local television stations are already providing the school with complete coverage. 

Private high schools are also a good area to look into as well as local athletic leagues that may have games throughout the entire year. It may be easier to find freelance work in certain areas of sports including football, basketball, soccer and wrestling. However, other areas shouldn't be ignored. Freelance videographers can also find work in the area of swimming and boxing.