When we started our home education journey in March 2024, I had no idea what we'd actually need day to day. Over time I've built up a collection of resources and subscriptions that have genuinely made a difference to how we learn at home. So here's my honest list of home ed essentials — the things I'd recommend to any home educating family!
Report Folders
I created bespoke report folders for my children that run from September to July. They're a brilliant way to keep everything organised and give you something to look back on at the end of the year. I sell these in my shop if you'd like one ready-made!
Pocket Folders
These go inside the report folders and are perfect for storing worksheets, drawings, and anything else your child has been working on. A simple but essential bit of kit.
Binder Folders
We use binder folders to hold all of the children's work throughout the year. It's so satisfying to see how much they've done when you flick back through at the end of term!
A Craft Drawer
This has been a brilliant addition to our home ed setup. We keep it stocked with everything we need for seasonal crafts, paper, glue, scissors, stickers, ribbon and more. Having it all in one place means we can just dive in whenever the mood strikes without hunting around for supplies.
A Pencil Pot on the Table
Such a simple thing but it makes such a difference! Having pencils, pens, rulers and rubbers right there on the table means we're not constantly getting up and down looking for things. Less faff, more learning!
A Whiteboard
Whiteboards are so versatile for home ed, great for spelling practice, maths, brainstorming, planning the week ahead and so much more. Ours is currently being used to track the World Cup teams for a family sweepstake... I'm hoping I win! 😄
I found mine on amazon 2 years ago.
A Board Games Cupboard
We have a whole cupboard dedicated to board games and it's one of the best things we've done. On days when you just want a relaxed games day, it's right there ready to go. Learning through play is so underrated and board games are brilliant for it.
Growing Our Own Fruit and Veg
This one is a total win win! Growing your own fruit and vegetables with your children covers so much, science, nature, patience, responsibility and the absolute joy of eating something you've grown yourself. It doesn't matter if you have a big garden or just a few pots on a windowsill, you can start small and build from there. Watching a seed turn into something you can actually eat is genuinely magical for children and adults alike.
These are our cucumbers.
Learning Games by Orchard Toys
Orchard Toys are an absolute staple in our home. The games are fun, educational, and genuinely enjoyable for children and adults alike. A great way to sneak in some learning without it feeling like work!
I found these on Amazon
Flash Cards
Simple and effective. We use flash cards for all sorts, letters, numbers, times tables, sight words. They're great for quick five-minute sessions and easy to take out and about.
Amazon and TikTok have a good range of flash cards
Reading Books — Biff and Kipper
If you have a child learning to read, the Biff and Kipper series is brilliant. They're structured, engaging and children genuinely enjoy them. We've worked through so many of these and they've made a real difference to our reading confidence.
Paints and Paintbrushes
Art is such an important part of home education and a good set of paints and brushes goes a long way. We use ours regularly for everything from nature studies to history projects.
We use Amazon or Baker Ross for our paints and brushes
Educational History Books
We love a good history book! There are so many brilliant ones out there covering everything from the Ancient Egyptians to World War Two. A great way to bring history to life alongside documentaries and trips out.
Charity shops and boot sales are where we found ours.
Blow Up Globe of the World
I found ours in Toy Barnhaus and it was such a brilliant find! It's great for geography, learning about countries, oceans and continents, and children love spinning it around and pointing to places. Brilliant value too.
HP Inkjet Printer
A printer is honestly one of the most essential bits of kit for home education. Mine is an HP Inkjet and it only cost around £36. I pay for a monthly HP subscription which means ink and paper are shipped to me automatically before I run out, so we never get caught short mid-lesson. Absolutely worth it.
Doodle Apps
We use four Doodle apps: Maths, Spelling, English and Multiplication. Individually they're £7.99 each per month, but I pay £16.99 for the bundle which covers all four and you can have up to four or five children on the same subscription at no extra cost. Brilliant value and the children genuinely enjoy using them.
Single child bundle is £12.99
Family Bundle is £16.99
A Microscope
This has been one of our most fun purchases! We've looked at everything under the microscope, dead insects, leaves, mouldy bread, food and it never gets old. Children are naturally curious and a microscope really feeds that curiosity in the most brilliant way.
Firbon Paper Cutter
I found this on Amazon and it's been a game changer. It's called the Firbon paper cutter and it's so much safer and more precise than scissors for cutting worksheets, cards and craft projects. Highly recommend!
Hoopla Magazine Subscription
Hoopla is a monthly educational magazine covering topics like the Ancient Greeks, space, nature and more. Each issue is packed with information and craft ideas. My children absolutely love getting these through the post, there's something really special about a magazine arriving just for them.
Whizz Pop Bang Magazine Subscription
Another monthly magazine subscription and another firm favourite! Whizz Pop Bang is all about science fun facts, experiments you can do at home, and competitions your child can enter. It's brilliant for sparking a love of science in a really accessible way.
Letterbox Lab Subscription Box
This is one of our absolute favourites. Letterbox Lab is a science subscription box that arrives with everything you need to complete the experiments at home, no hunting around for supplies! We have the Mega box which includes six to eight experiments per box. It's fantastic and I cannot recommend it enough.
I found this subscription on Whizz Pop Bang's website so I will attach both links for letterbox lab subscription.
Letterbox Lab Monthly Subscription pay for 1 / 3 / 6 / 12 box subscription
Letterbox Lab Whizz Pop Bang Monthly Option sign up only one monthly payment at a time
Mental Health Days
And last but absolutely not least and I'd argue the most important thing on this entire list mental health days. As a parent I know how overwhelming things can get, whether your child is in school or home educated. Sometimes it all gets a little too much and that is completely okay. We have regular relaxed mental health days in our house and they look different every time. Sometimes it's a movie day, sometimes it's a self care day (my daughter loves these!), a shopping trip with a little treat, gaming with friends, staying in pyjamas all day, relaxing in the garden, or just reading. Whatever your child needs. There is no guilt here. Rest is part of learning too.
I hope this list helps if you're just starting out or looking to add to your home ed resources! Have you tried any of these? Or do you have something you'd add to the list? Let me know in the comments below.
Sarah, Home Ed Mum Diary
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