8 Great Back-to-School Deals

Parents charged with back-to-school shopping can take advantage of early freebies and deals on school supplies from a number of retailers.

OfficeMax Free Backpacks

OfficeMax (Stock Quote: OMX) is giving 100% back in MaxPerks Rewards for the purchase of up to two backpacks in stores and online. Free enrollment in the MaxPerks Rewards program is required and the rewards can be redeemed in September.

Free Backpack from Staples

Office Max isn’t the only office supply store practically giving away backpacks. At Staples (Stock Quote: SPLS), you can get 100% of the cost of any backpack back in the form of a Staples gift card. No enrollment is required, but you’ll have to shop by July 31.

Free Pens at Target

They’re frequently lost, chewed on and run dry during the school year, so it may be a good idea to stock up on pens. Ten-packs of Bic Cristal Ballpoint Pens are on sale at select Target (Stock Quote: TGT) stores for 99 cents, and with a $1-off coupon from Target, they’re free.

Cheap School Supplies at Walgreens

School supplies run cheap at Walgreens (Stock Quote: WAG). With two-pocket folders for 9 cents and a 24-pack of pencils for 99 cents, you may be able to check off most of the items on your child’s school supply list for just a few dollars.

Famous Footwear Deal

Back-to-school shopping can also mean it’s kids’ shoe-shopping season, and FamousFootwear.com has a buy-one, get-one 50% off sale. On top of that, if you enter the code “SCHOOL1” when you check out, you can get 20% off the entire order, plus you get free shipping if you buy three pairs, according to survivingthestores.com.