when i was a child, my parents made relatively low income, and could not afford to spend much money on the four of us (my 3 younger brothers and i) on luxury items such as books and toys. obedient and sensitive, i tried to accept this and did not ask for much. early in my teens however, i began to realize it became difficult not to want to have or do certain things that required an extra amount of money. i soon realized that i would need to find ways to acquire those things without burdening my parents too much financially.

here i would like to share some tips and ways i was able to ‘find’ money with young people (and parents) who may come across this post.

1. buy used books from the local public library.
in high school english classes, my classmates and i were occasionally instructed to return to class within the next few days with a certain amount of money to give to the teacher so that s/he could buy a particular book in bulk from a publisher for us. we were required to have our own copies of the book so that we could mark the books with notes, highlighting ideas and quotes — basically so that we would be allowed to wear out books without having to worry about returning them to the school or to a library. when possible, the teachers seemed to choose the more expensive trade paperbacks which were at least twice the cost of mass paperbacks. the prices of the books at about $10 on average seemed a lot to me at the time, and i did not feel comfortable asking my parents for money for this.

i had been borrowing books from the local public library since i was 8. immediately after i learned that i had to purchase one of those books through school, i would visit the ‘friends of the library’ used book sales selection at the public library to see if they had any extra copies of the book i would need. most often they did. the books that high schools tend to require their students to read are generally similar or the same in a given time period. for instance, i could find more than enough copies of shakespeare books such as hamlet, or taming of the shrew, and george orwell’s 1984, or joseph heller’s catch-22. how much did i pay instead of $10? anywhere from .25 cents to $1.50 most of the time.

(the teachers were generally understanding when i told them that i ‘already found a copy of the book myself’, pointing out however that page numbers referenced in assignments and discussions may differ if my copy was not exactly the same as that of the other students. i found this to be an insignificant inconvenience.)

2. take advantage of low-income subsidizing.
somehow, i ended up being a cheerleader my senior year (long story) at the local public high school. a cheerleading uniform cost about $200 total, if i recall correctly. this included the skirt, sweater, top shell, gloves, boy short underwear thing, pom poms, shoes, and cheerleading camp over the summer. i cringed at the prospect of asking my parents for money for this extra-curricular non-academic activity, especially my very frugal dad.

i confided in the student advisor of the cheerleading squad about this concern, and she informed me of a school subsidizing program for those who could not generally afford the costs involved. through the program, they would be able to partially help my family with the costs. i believe this was 40-60% of the total. when i told my mother the news, she was more willing to pay for the uniform and other fees with the discount. if i could not tell my her about a discount program, i do not know if i would have been able to participate.

halfway through my high school years, the school began implementing a policy of school uniforms use during physical education (PE) classes. this comprised of cotton shorts and a double-sided t-shirt with the school’s colors, name, and a space for our last names. we were instructed to return with money to pay for these uniforms over the next few days.

i informed my PE teacher of my parents’ low incomes and my concern about this new cost. apparently there was also a school subsidizing program for low income families. after submitting some forms and documentation, my brother and i both received discounts for our outfits. (unfortunately i do not remember at all the numbers involved.)

don’t be afraid to talk to your school counselors or advisors regarding the availability of school-subsidizing programs. you may be pleasantly surprised.

additionally, schools often have programs to help susidize costs for school field trips. i was able to attend many field trips throughout elementary, middle, and high schools with financial help from the school just by asking, or by keeping my ears open to the words ‘financial aid’.

3. take advantage of colleges waiving application fees.
junior year of high school, i began to apply for colleges. it worried me greatly that each school’s application fee was anywhere from $40 to $60. i was planning to apply for at least a dozen schools, ‘just in case’. my grades were relatively excellent, but i was quite paranoid about successful admissions at the time.

in the instructions for the applications, i found out that if my parents qualified, i could apply for an application fee waiver. i needed only to submit the relevant documents and/or financial information. i suspected that my family did in fact qualify. i informed my parents of this option, and requested copies of their recent income tax returns to include with or to extract financial information from for my applications. i applied to 7 public and private universities. i did not have to pay for 6 out of those 7 schools. i must have saved my parents at least about $250.

4. volunteer to be the lunch lady assistant for free lunches.
this one goes a little further back in time. in elementary school, i brought my lunch to school from home every day. one of my parents would prepare the lunch for my brother and i the night before or the morning of. often times, it included a sandwich that i did not like, with rye or pumpernickel bread and meat loaf slivers. although i hardly ever complained and ate what we had, i could not help but to enviously eye my classmates’ school-bought lunches almost every day. what kid wouldn’t want tater tots or pizza for lunch instead?

then an opportunity arrived. my fifth grade teacher asked the class if anyone would like to be the lunch lady assistant that year. the chosen student would be allowed to leave class a few minutes early before lunchtime, to help the lunch ladies set up, prepare, and hand out food to the students in line. afterwards, the assistant(s) would receive a free school lunch monday through friday. a tradeoff would be to give up half of one’s lunchtime from playtime. my hand shot up in the air with a few other students’, and i was chosen. i was elated, although i received a few angry/jealous looks from the students who were not chosen. my parents no longer had to prepare me lunch for the year, and they did not have to come up with money daily for me to enjoy a school lunch.

5. print out paper at the local public library.
during my high school years, computers became a common (luxury) family item. many of my classmates owned apple macintoshes at home. i was envious. my parents could not afford to buy a computer for us until towards the end of my high school career. at times i used a typewriter at home to type up my reports and essays for school. other times with my public library card, i could go to the local library’s 3rd floor, sign up to use the word processing computer for 30 minute increments, and print out my essays using their resources instead of my family’s. i paid only a few cents per page.

6. borrow musical instruments from school.
nice musical instruments are not necessarily cheap to own. i yearned to play the violin with the orchestra in middle and high schools. quality violins could cost hundreds of dollars. in addition, you would need accessories such as a case, resin, a bow, extra strings, a music stand for home, a shoulder rest, music books, and perhaps a metronome. this could come out to about $500 total! supportive of my desire to learn and participate, my dad ended up purchasing a cheap but functional violin for less than $100 in chinatown of san francisco. we might have paid less than $200 total for everything.

alternatively, schools have their own instruments and accessories of various sizes that one can use for the year with or without small deposits. they may not require that you purchase your own. check with your school’s music instructor to find out if this is an option.

7. take advantage of (uncommon) scholarships.
senior year of high school, i was able to receive about half a dozen scholarships in varying amounts from organizations such as the local rotary club. admittedly, most of these were granted as a result of excellent academic performance and demonstration of superior leadership or participation in many extra-curricular activities. however, scholarships were available that initially offered money based on some other criterion, such as one’s ethnic group. for instance, i was eligible to apply for the japanese american citizens league’s (JACL) scholarship just for being a japanese (by birth and background) in america! all in all, the amounts i received were not much compared to the total cost of tuition at the public university i attended afterwards, but every little bit can help.

ask your school counselors/advisors about the different types of scholarship opportunities available starting your sophomore year. check in regularly over the years to determine what you may need to do, what grade-level you need to be to qualify.

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these were the most memorable (and not necessarily well known) ways that my family and i saved money before college. additionally, i carpooled in the mornings with an older neighbor student who drove his own car to the same school and borrowed books from the library when possible. i saved the small size 6-8 paper bags from grocery stores to use as my lunch bags for school so that i could ‘fit in’ (instead of using plastic bags which felt uncool somehow at the time). i bought school supplies and clothes on sale by myself with money i earned from babysitting and performing other chores since the age of 10. i also found part-time clerical jobs through the local EDD starting as soon as i legally could, at age 15 1/2.

the most difficult part, i admit, in looking for and finding deals throughout my younger years was trying not to feel embarrassed or awkward that i could not come up with the money simply by asking my parents as most everyone else did. but my desire to participate in life was stronger than my shame, and school teachers and advisors were generally very understanding, accommodating, and discreet. in the end, i was able to successfully help myself and my family save money, and it was all worth it.

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are there other (uncommon) ways of saving money as an elementary, middle, or high school student that you can think of ?

do you have any money-discovery stories of your own from your childhood/teen years you would like to share ?