Help us find the best school supply deals!
SEATTLE -- The hard push is on to get your back-to-school shopping dollars.
With so many cash-strapped families, businesses know they have to compete extra hard for your money this year.
In fact a new survey says families will spend, on average, just under $549 this year on back to school shopping, which is down by about $45.
In the survey, most people said they would save by looking for sales. But people also mentioned coupons, choosing store brands, and shopping thrift stores to save money.
The KOMO 4 Problem Solvers want to help you find your school supplies on the cheap.
Molly Shen is getting serious about bargain shopping for her kids' supplies and wants to help you find good deals too. Check back here every Tuesday, as Molly updates her search for free and inexpensive supplies.
She'll tell you where she found the best prices. And if you spot a good deal, let Molly know so we can share it with everyone.
Here are the lists Molly has to fill out. You'll see that her children's school calls for name brand supplies in some cases. We will also look for store brands. Time to get shopping!
Molly's 5-year old son is going into Kindergarten and needs:
- One set of Crayola washable markers, classic colors, no fine tips
- One box of school-size crayons, no larger than 24 count
- One school backpack, large enough to hold a folder and a snack
- Eighteen glue sticks - no purple or blue
- One school box, 6"x9" max
- One folder with pockets at the bottom
- One pair of Fiskars for Kids scissors
- One box Ziploc sandwich bags
Molly's 9-year old daughter is entering 4th grade and needs:
- One set of colored pencils
- Three wide-ruled spiral notebooks, 100 pages or less each
- Three large glue sticks
- Three boxes of 12 #2 pencils
- One package of notebook paper, wide lined, white
- One set of markers
- One pair of scissors, not child sized
- One ruler with standard and metric, clear plastic
- Two highlighter pens
- One large box of Kleenex
- Two red pens
- One 6-quart Steralite container, clear with no lid
- One half inch 3-ring binder
- One 1cm grid spiral or journal notebook