We love thrift stores!

I shop at my favorite stores quite often. Thrift stores are a great, frugal way to add items to your homeschool. I have found tons of great books, games, and even curriculum. Yesterday we were on a mission to find new board games and the thrift stores did not disappoint. This is our haul of 6 games we found for only $20 total. Looking on Amazon, if I would have bought them all new, they would have totaled over $100.

Thrift Store Games

Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader? was brand new and still sealed in plastic.  We played it this afternoon and my 5th grader loves it.

We also found two Apples to Apples games. My boys learned to play these games this winter during our meet-ups with our homeschool group. They really enjoy playing these as well.

The Apples to Apples Party Box had several decks of cards that hadn’t even been open yet.

Deer in Headlights is a card/dice game. We have not played it yet, but I did look at reviews on Amazon and it looks to be a fun game.

Mission Command Sea Game was complete with the exception of the instructions. A PDF of the instructions were easily found online by a performing a quick Google search.

Othello is another game that the boys have learned to play during our homeschool meet-ups.

How I Shop for Used Games

When I find a game at the thrift store, I open the box to make sure the game is complete. Some thrift stores tape all the sides shut in order to keep the pieces from getting lost. I simply peel the tape away and check the contents of the box. If instructions are missing, those can usually be found online. If I’m not familiar with the game, I will also check online reviews before buying. Extra game pieces can also be found on sites such as eBay if any are missing.

The next time you pass a thrift store, stop in and check out the game section. Depending upon your local store, it may be hit or miss in finding good, complete games. You may just hit the jackpot like I did this weekend and find some great deals that will save you a lot of money.