It is back to school time again. Wherever did the holidays go?! Have you started your preparation for the time back. No matter whether you are homeschooling or whether you send your children to a public school, these tips will help you with your back to school organization and hopefully, with less stress and more productivity!
My second daughter starts school this September. We are all very excited and already starting our preparation. I want to have a organized home so that for the rest of the school year I won’t have to go looking for where I have placed everything. These are the tips I am keeping in mind. I hope these will help you too.
- Shopping for the stationary and bags. In our part of the world, the deals and offers on school supplies are just about to start. I am gearing up with my kids to get shopping. This is the best time of the year to stock up on all your supplies because really, it doesn’t get cheaper than this. (Well… atleast around here it doesn’t!) Start by making a list of all the things your child/ children will need. If you have list from your school then, that’s what you will use. But in either case, make sure you double the list. My experience with my children has been to always get double what we need. It is really surprising where everything disappears. We already have too many crayons and colour pencils but Poster paints, pencils and erasers, folders, paper clips, glue, card, etc. finishes up so fast. I am buying everything in bulk this year! If you order online, this is a good time to keep on the look out for those deals too.
- Have a place for that stationary. Once you have all your stuff, you need space for it. Organize your stationary and have a go-to place for it. How many times have you had to go back and buy something because you couldn’t find it only to come back and discover that you already had a few of those tucked away safe? It happens every year with me so this year, I am making this my number one priority to have only one place where I will stock all my stationary. I have already allotted a place for where all our stationary is to be kept and the kids have been taught to respect that. I will now be creating space for all the stocks to go. It isn’t a smart idea to store those extras with the ones in use because my experience has shown me that kids so easily reach for a new pencil or glue when they don’t find one. Worst, is when they reach for a new one just for the novelty of it!
- Have a homework station too! One of the ways kids lose their stationary is by doing homework all over the house and taking their things everywhere. The best way to make sure your organization works is to have a homework station. Talk to your children about homework rules. Teach them where they are too study and work. Talk to them about what goes to the table and where all it goes afterwards. This is a very valuable life skill you will be teaching, actually. Children will learn to be organized and work systematically.
- Get those uniforms or school wear. Does your school have uniform? Kids in uniform or not, either way they need proper clothes for school. Back to School season means many shops will have deals on school uniforms too. (At least in our area, it does!) Over the years, I’ve found that it is smarter to buy uniforms all at once at this time because usually, they don’t have stock and sizes at other times. We usually buy 2 sets of week day and 2 sets of sports set. Children grow up so fast. Last year, I had to buy another set in the second term because my son outgrew his pants. We have a lanky boy…! 🙂
- Get those books covered and labelled. Our books arrive on the first day of school as our school provides them but back when I was in school, we had to get them at least a month or more earlier. We would use the holidays to cover and label them and that was one less stress. Now, we just try to reduce our first week of book covering stress by preparing in advance. We buy the cover and labels and make sure they are all set and ready. When I was in school, we would often take up the book covering job from others to earn a little extra pocket money. If you have teens or know any teens, put them on the idea!
- Make a menu plan for breakfast and school lunch. I swear by menu plans as I have seen how easy life becomes when you have one. Menu plans should never been made under stress so for this reason, I am preparing them now. We also like to try out new recipes… I have more time now to test those recipes and add them to our kids favorite lunch ideas.
- Start preparing the kids for school time routine. Our school time routine starts at 5am and ends at 8pm for our oldest. Our 3 year old will be getting up at 6am when she starts school this September. Getting up early for school after two months of relaxation is very hard. Start preparing the kids now. You can start by getting them to bed half an hour early and waking them up half an hour earlier till you have the timings right. Always remember though that a primary school child needs 10 hours of sleep and a kindergartner needs almost 10-12 hours to be fresh through the day.
- Organize those papers. School means lots of papers and reminders. There is always paper coming in and going out. This can create lots of chaos. You can sort through the old papers and make place for new ones now. Have a filing system in place too. This is on my schedule for the next two weeks! I have to discard all those papers from the past session and make space and folders for the coming one.
- Have a snack station. Over the past year, I have organized my kitchen to include a snack station for our kids. It is at their level, in a place they can reach and contains healthy snacks. The benefit of this is that I know what we have at hand to put in the lunch box as extras or to feed the little ones when they come demanding. The other thing I like about this is that, I know when something is finished. We are using up everything that we have too rather than it being hidden away and expiring. If you don’t have a snack station in your home you should try it. It is genius!
- Emergency kit: Do you keep an emergency kit at home? When do you refresh it? This is the time to do it. Throw out the expiries and refill what you need. Apart from a First Aid Kit, we also have kits for our son’s Bronchitis and nebulization. If your child has special needs, make sure to check those medications too. If you have medical equipment at home, inspect those too. It is always a smart idea to be well prepared for emergencies.
These are our top ten tips for a stress free Back to School organization. I hope these can make us better prepared and more productive through the year. What is on your list? Tell me in the comments or join me over on my Facebook page. I would love to hear from you!
Top 10 Back to school Lists
Every month, I join my friends to create a resource of the best Top Ten Lists to help you find everything about the current topic. This month we have all these back to schools lists listed below. Check them out!
Top 10 School Bus Crafts from Craftulate
Top 10 Readiness Activities for Your Kindergartener Our Good Life
Top 10 1st Day of School Keepsakes from Artsy Momma
Top 10 After School Snacks from Nemcsok Farms
Top 10 DIY School Supplies Projects from Crafty Kids at Home
Top 10 Homeschool Room Essentials from School Time Snippets
Top 10 Back to School Ideas to Calm an Anxious Child from Lemon Lime Adventures
Top 10 Back to School Sensory Play Ideas from Project Sensory
Top 10 Nature Study Supplies from Rhythms of Play
Top 10 Powerful Affirmations to Make Confident School Kids from Witty Hoots
Top 10 Back to School Math Activities for Kids – Little Bins for Little Hands
Top 10 Back to School Apple Crafts and Activities from Play & Learn Everyday
Top 10 Learning Supplies for Preschool from Mom Inspired Life
Top 10 Back to School Science Activities at Preschool Powol Packets
Top 10 Back To School Printables from The Pleasantest Thing
Top 10 Tips for a Stress Free Back To School Organization from Words n Needles
Top 10 Homeschool PE Items from Something 2 Offer
5 Recipes From Saudi Arabia : Saudi Menu for Eid