Reusing Workbooks

This is our first year homeschooling, and already we're going through workbook pages like water.  Alyssa likes doing the same page as Jake. She doesn't care that the work is too difficult or that we have only one of that particular page. She just wants to feel included. Sometimes, we'll get new workbooks at the dollar store as a reward. Both kids love it. And I love that they love it. But, I don't really want to constantly be buying new books or copying (not to mention that it's illegal) books or printing 5 million pages off the computer!

What's a homeschooler to do???

A month or so, I came across this idea: use a plastic page-protector. Brilliant! Why didn't I think of that??? I don't know, and frankly, I don't care. I'm just glad I saw it. You simply cut the end off, slide the plastic over a page (either in a book or a single page), write, wipe, and reuse! Not to mention, the kids think it's fun.

I bought them their own special "school" markers. The Crayola dry-erase markers work great. They are low-odor and are small enough for the kids' tiny hands.

Now, when Alyssa wants to do a page in her big brother's book, I hand her a protector and a marker, and watch her draw random pictures all over the page.

And I smile because he'll fill in the answers later. And so will she, much later.