Back to school is an exciting time for many people, whether they are mom's loading up on crayons and safety scissors. Older students in search or notebooks, folders, and a graphing calculator, or non-students taking advantage of the sales on "school" supply sales to stock up for their home offices. Only a handful of merchants actually ask you to prove you're an actual student.

Back-to-school sales start creeping up in July in some areas, and the deals get better as it gets closer to September. This makes this a great time to take advantage of National Dollar Day, which in 2021 falls on August 9. The occasion officially commemorates the onset of the dollar bill being included in the United States currency. The original dollar bill model, from 1862 was actually the Secretary of Treasury at the time, Salmon P. Chase, but eventually George Washington would take over that honor, and despite various changes to other money, the Washington Dollar would stay largely consistent.

Fun With Dollars

These days, a dollar doesn't seem like a lot of money. You may be able to get a notebook or two on sale, a small pack of pens or pencils, or maybe a can of soup or a box of macaroni and cheese. In many cases, your dollar will need to be paired with another dollar, or several bills in order to get anything substantial.

Seeing how far you can make a dollar go can remind you of how much each dollar in our budgets can have a real impact. If you keep track of the serial number on a dollar bill, you can look up the website Wheresgeorge.com, and track where your dollar has been, or start the process for a dollar you're about to spend. There is often a lot to learn when you consider how far others make their dollars go.

Commit to Savings

With so many great deals for back-to-school popping up in August, many think that new stuff is the only way to go for back-to-school shopping, but this is also a great time to think outside of the box. Head to rummage sales in other neighborhoods. Go to thrift shops. Look at what you have leftover from last year, and make sure the old supplies are accessible, even if you still decide to buy new. Let kids express their personality by shopping at consignment shops. You may be able to get higher quality clothes in many cases that have only light wear. Shopping only big-box sales can lead to your kids matching their peers a little more closely than they like. When shopping online, look for promo codes, and when in the store clip coupons. Pennies saved today may be the dollars you need tomorrow.