Deal of the week: Buy two Five Star Mead 4-pocket portfolios for 50 cents each at Target and get them FREE with the $1/2 coupon from the 8/5 Red Plum insert.

Even if you don't have kids, now is the time to buy pens, pencils, computer paper and other items considered school supplies.

Think about stocking up your home office or buy the ultra cheap deals and donate them to a nearby school or charity.

But do your homework! That includes reading the fine print. Some deals, especially some of those enticing free and penny deals, require a minimum purchase or involve a rebate.

Take a look at the very best of this week's deals:

The calendar may still say early July, but the retailers are getting a jump on back-to-school sales on school supplies.

That's perfect timing for Triangle parents who send their kids to year-round schools, most of which begin a new school year on Monday.

For the rest of us, it's a chance to score yard-sale priced school and office supplies while still shopping in the air-conditioned comfort of major retail stores.

As always, however, do your homework before opening your wallet on back-to-school deals. Many sales have fine print attached to them.

Some of the sales - especially some of the 1-cent deals - require a minimum purchase of $5. That's not hard to rack up if you're doing all your school supply shopping in one store. But if you're store hopping for the lowest prices, you might be better off skipping the penny sales with strings attached.

Here's a cheat sheet of the very best deals this week. I'm not including those that require a minimum purchase. And remember, if you have the luxury of a later start date for school, be patient and collect the free and under 50-cent deals each week.

The sales on school supplies are winding down but there are still a few worth mentioning this week, particularly the penny deals. Better to buy extra now  than get stuck paying full price in January or February. That would never do!

Here are the top deals for the week:

All three office-supply stores are offering penny deals this week in an effort to get you in their doors to spend what's left of your back-to-school budgets. Here's a store-by-store breakdown of the very best deals on supplies typically on students' lists.

The back-to-school sales remain in full swing this week with tons of deals on school supplies, including some penny deals. Read on for a store-by-store breakdown of the very best deals.

These are the best school supplies deals for the entire week. But if you want to get them tax-free, you need to hit the stores today for the last day of the tax holiday.

Before you head out the door, don't forget to clip the coupons for school supplies in today's Sunday inserts. (These are pretty rare coupons that typically are released just once a year. My favorites are the coupons on Avery binders and Five Star products.) While you're doing your pre-shopping prep work, print those Post-it Note coupons I mentioned in the Friday's freebies post. Keep reading to see how you can score another freebie with those coupons at Target this week.

Here's a store-by-store breakdown:

There are some really great deals this week at the drugstores and Kroger. Some of the freebies I spotted:

• FREE deodorant at Rite Aid.
• FREE lotion, mouthwash, toothbrushes and crayons at Walgreens.
• Free toothpaste at Kroger.

There's also a hot deal on diapers at CVS where Pampers are just $3.99 after rewards and coupons. And, of course, there are tons of school supplies deals.

Read on for all the deals that jumped out at me. Please leave me your comments on the bargains you discover on your shopping rounds.

Here's your final reminder: You have until noon Tuesday to enter to win a $10 gift card to Target.

I'm giving it away here on Centsible Saver. All you have to do is leave me a comment sharing your best shopping tips and strategies for the upcoming tax-free weekend.

It's a fantastic week for deals at the drugstores with plenty of freebies and bargain-priced items. There's free chocolate, a free razor and 49-cent specialty toothpaste at CVS. At Rite Aid, there's bargain-priced Pampers, free toothbrushes and cheap Dawn dish liquid. Walgreens has got seven freebies, including free Crayola Washable Markers and Goody hair clips. I'd go early because they will sell out.

At Kroger, rotisserie chickens are just $3.99 each, a fantasic deal. And that doesn't even count the money you'll save by keeping your oven turned off in this heat.

Kroger also has the best price I could find on milk: $1.66 for a half-gallon or $3.32 a gallon.

Read on for all the deals and give me a shout if you found a good deal I missed.