Does buying back to school supplies leave a dent in your wallet? Do the endless list of school supplies you and your children need leave you feeling broke? Are you overwhelmed by the prices of back to school supplies? It doesn't have to. Here are simple ways to save money on school supplies that will leave you feeling elated rather than broke:

Tip one: Shop at Home First

This is the biggest tip because the fact is most people have plenty of the supplies they need for school laying around their house. So, before you head to the store and spend more money than you have to, take the time to walk around your house and see if you have any of the things you need to fulfill the school supply list your child brought home. While your child might enjoy getting all new school supplies, the fact is that things like rulers, pencil holders, backpacks, etc. can be reused and do not have to be replaced every year. Unless your child's calculator broke, don't buy a new one. Instead, take a few minutes to clean the existing supplies you have, and make them look like new, instead of buying new ones. There is no reason to replace perfectly good supplies. One of the reason people often re-buy items they already have is that they do not know where stuff is. So, make a place to keep all of the school and office supplies, and then at the beginning of each school year, raid it to fill as much of the supply list as you can.

Tip two: Don't buy pens or pencils.

A pack of pens can cost you ten dollars or more. Save money on pens and pencils by not giving in to vanity. Your child might want to really cool colored pens, but teachers prefer the black and blue ink pens anyway, so don't spend money on fancy, and if you can help it, don't spend money at all. Instead of buying pencils and pens, send your child back to school with the free ones that businesses hand out. There is a good chance you have a nice size collection of just such pens and pencils in your junk drawer. If you do not have any, then visit your bank, get your oil changed, etc. and collect pens as you go. Your child is going to lose the expensive ones anyway, so would you rather they lose the pens you spend $1.50 a piece on, or the one you got free at Jiffy Lube? Save money by getting past the vanity factor and using what you have available to you for free.

Tip three: Watch the ads.

If you can shop around you will find incredible deals like 10-cent crayons, 5-cent folders, 50-cent binders. Many stores will advertise an item for incredibly cheap in order to get you in, and then overcharge you for the other school supplies you need. So, if you want to save money on school supplies, then do not give in to the temptation to just one stop shop and get all of your school supplies at the same place. Instead, watch the weekly sales circulars closely and pick the best buys at each store. Get in, get the deal, and get out. Of course, if you have to go to too many places you will be saving on school supplies, but over-spending on gas. An even better idea is to shop at a store that offers price matching, and just take in all of the ads, with the best deals highlighted so that you can one stop shop, and save not only on supplies, but also on gas. Stores like Wal-mart will price match, but you have to ask. So, swallow your pride, and be sure to ask the store to meet their competitor's prices.

Tip four: Don't buy extras.

One of the reasons school supplies get so expensive is that you go to the store with the plan of buying a box of pencils, a box of crayons, scissors, and glue, and leave with colored folders, stickers, book covers, highlighters, gel pens, and tons of other extras. While the extras are tempting they really are just fluff, and they certainly are not necessary for your child to get through school. So, save some money by not indulging the vanity and need for extras. Although the fancy colored pens, trendy locker accessories, convenient self-stick notes, and sparkly book covers are a lot of fun and can add some flare to your child's school year, they do not add flare to your budget, so shop without your kids so you have less temptation to get the Hannah Montana folders that cost $2 each instead of the plain ones that are $0.25.

Tip five: Don't take your children with you, or learn to say no.

One of the biggest reasons parents overspend on back to school supplies is that they take their kids with them. If the school supply list says pens, they are not going to want the $1 bic pen pack, they will want the $2.50 a piece pens with the cool animals or sparkles, or whatever on top. Instead of the basic ten cent glue stick, they will want the neon colored glue that costs ten times that. To avoid overspending, determine how you'll handle your child's requests for non-essentials before you head out to shop, or leave your kids at home so that you do not have to deal with those requests at all.

If you do take your kids with you, the following are some useful tips for handling their requests:

Allow one extra purchase- but limit it to just one so that you keep your costs low, and save more.

Have your child foot the bill for anything that's not on the list- if the fancy notebook is coming out of their pocket, instead of yours, they might realize that the plain front notebook is just fine.

Have your child pay the difference between what you're willing to buy, and what they want to buy- again, if the item is going to come out of their pocket, they might not "need" it as bad.

Refuse to give in to the request. It may not make you popular, but it is a chance to teach smart money management- besides, your kids are going to get over it, but your budget might not.

Tip six: Don't buy trendy items.

It is important to remember as you shop that trends change, and often quickly. Your kindergartener might be in love with Cars right now, but half way through the school year they might have moved on a different Disney film. If you bought them a Cars backpack, you will either have to put up with their whining, or get them a new backpack part way through the year. The same holds true for all grades. Whatever Disney star is popular now might not be in six months. Just keep this in mind as you are tempted to buy the newest, trendy, items with your kids.

Step seven: Buy plain, then personalize at home.

One of the greatest ways to save and still have fun is to buy plain and then let your kids personalize their things at home. Plain school supplies always cost less than their fancier counterparts, often by a significant percentage. However, kids' often won't be too happy about it, plain is just not that much fun. So, instead of making your kid go to school with plain notebooks and folders, or instead of spending far more than you have to, buy the budget-friendly basics and then pull out those scrapbook supplies you have in the closet, or ask friends for some, and let your kids make them their own.

Tip eight: Start early.

Supply lists can be obtained at the end of the previous school year. So, before your kids get out of the summer, get their supply list. That way you have time to spread the supplies out over your budget. You will also be able to shop the sales. If they don't offer the list at the end of the school year, ask your child's teacher or principal for a copy. Having it early makes saving money a lot easier.

Tip nine: Salvage from the previous year.

You know that each year you have school supplies to get, so at the end of the year, think ahead, and before your child dumps the contents of his or her desk and backpack into the trash, intervene and salvage unused portions of notebooks, pens that still have ink, pencils that are still useable, etc.

Tip ten: Shop the sales.

The fact is that all summer long there are going to be sales on various school supplies, so if you can be smart and watch the ads, or at least walk the isle when you are already in the store looking for good prices you can save. Also if you shop before everyone else does you do not have to fight crowds or long lines, which saves you time as well as money.