How to Get Homeschool ID Cards
Do you have a homeschool ID card or badge? There are so many uses for a homeschool ID and several ways you can create or request one for free! After realizing the value of having a homeschool ID, I encourage all homeschoolers to get their hands on ID cards for each member of their family!
Did you know that many stores, museums, and activity centers offer homeschoolers a discount? I first heard of a homeschool discount at Barnes & Noble. They offer a teacher discount for regular-priced purchases and the clerk asked if I was a teacher (based on the type and amount of books I was buying!) I replied, “No, just a homeschool mom!” She then asked if I had the homeschool discount card. Mind blown…I hadn’t thought about asking stores and museums if they consider homeschoolers as “teachers”. The Barnes & Noble process was to simply show them my NOI for the year and I received the educator’s discount card. Now I carry a copy of my NOI in my purse along with a homeschool ID card. The badge simply works in place of the NOI in many places.
Having your homeschool ID card or proof of being a homeschooler is especially handy when shopping for school supplies, visiting places like the zoo or museums, and when you are participating in homeschool designated days in your community. Each year when I prep our homeschool portfolios, I create our ID badges for the year.
What to include on your ID
While you aren’t using the ID for any type of official education purposes, you’ll still want to ensure it has all important information. Homeschool badges should include the name of your school (if you have one), student or teacher name, and age or grade level. Since you’ll most likely use your badge for discounts and admissions, be sure it also has a school year listed.
We opted to create our IDs with photos of the girls, just so they were more likely to be accepted as identification.
Making or purchasing homeschool ID cards
You could create your own ID badges but here are a few websites that have templates or offer badges for purchase.
Homeschool Buyers Co-Op
Homeschool Buyers Co-Op is a membership site that offers homeschool families discounts on curriculum, supplies, memberships, and more. Membership is free and you can create and download a free homeschool ID badge from their site. They also offer a printing service for the badges for $7.95.
HSLDA
The HSLDA offers customized homeschool student and teacher badge options for its members. The badges are $9.99 and are printed on a credit card-type hard plastic material. These badges prove membership with HSLDA and provide their contact info on the back in case you are using the badge for verification purposes.
Big Huge Labs
Big Huge Labs is a photo editing and manipulating website. They have a free name badge template and editor that can be used to create and print your homeschool ID badges.
If you’re printing your own badge at home, you’ll want to ensure you use materials that will keep your badge intact for the entire school year. I suggest printing on heavy-weight paper or cardstock and then laminating your badge.
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