How to Make Back to School Organization Easy with Two Stations

This is the time of the year when our students head back to school. Some are already back and some are going back in just a few short days or weeks. However, if one is not prepared going back to school can seem more like a tornado went through your house. As kids are rushing out of the house in the morning and they are not quite sure where everything is and you aren’t sure either. However, this can go smoother with a little bit of back to school organization and preparation. In this blog, I am going to focus on back to school organization to make it easier to get homework done and backpacks organized for school in the morning.

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Homework Organization

Most of the students that I tutor have some struggle with organization. They may not be able to find their homework, forget when homework is due, or turn in crumpled up papers because their homework gets crumpled at the bottom of their backpack. However, organization can be learned and parents can help facilitate that.

Homework Station

One of the easiest ways to stay organized when it comes to homework is to have a homework station. Rather this is a desk in a student’s room or an area by the kitchen table. This should be a place where your children do their homework every day. If you pick a place outside of their rooms this is also a chance for you to look over their homework, see what they have, and possibly help where needed.

You may also be able to do this after dinner when everyone is home from school and work. Picking a time of day for homework is also important. If your kids are involved in after-school activities and you work later at night, then after dinner may be the perfect time for this. If they do homework in an after school program this is the time for you to check it and ask them about it also.

Overall, having a place and a time that homework is done every day is helpful for everyone because it creates a routine that ultimately will set your children up to succeed.

Folders, Folders, Everywhere

So the easiest way to keep things organized by subject or class is by using folders. I normally suggest a different folder for every subject. Students should keep one side of the folder for papers that are graded and can come home. The other side needs to be for homework. When students are done with their homework it should go back into the homework side to go back to school the next day.

Also, it’s important to teach kids to make sure the papers are put in the folder completely because I have seen students have folders, but they don’t put their papers in completely. Then the papers get just as messed up as if they were not in a folder.

Likewise, an expanding accordion folder for each kid would be good for you to have to keep the papers that they bring home from school. This way their graded papers do not end up all over your table, all over their room, or in the trash when they need it to study for a test. 

A Cart for School Supplies 

Having a cart for different school supplies is also important to have rather it be in each child’s homework center or in a set place in the house. If your child has a project and they have no clue where the construction paper, glue, or even a marker is they are going to struggle to try to put together that project.

This is where a cart becomes so useful you can use it to store paper or supplies. I would even suggest little containers for all the supplies. My favorites are the Sterilite latch top containers pictured above.

For a cart, I would either suggest a rolling rainbow drawer cart or a 3 tier metal utility rolling cart (both pictured above). These will be perfect to hold everything that needs to be held. Or get them both! Use the rainbow drawers just to store different colors of paper. Each drawer will be a certain color and they are perfect for paper storage. Then the 3 tier metal utility rolling cart can hold all your boxes of school supplies. This way your students will always have what they need to get their homework done.

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Want to Read More about Organization?

5 Steps to an Organized Life Using a Planner

How to Get Organized with a Washi Tape Calendar

How to Pack The Best Teacher’s Bag

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Backpack Organization for a Smooth Morning

The biggest way to keep your morning running smoothly when everyone is trying to run out the door is to plan the night before. Everyone should have a hook where they keep their backpack and a place to have their shoes. This way you and your kids are not running around in the morning wondering where things are.

Backpack Station: Hall Trees 

The easiest way to do this is to invest in a Hall Tree. Some of them are very expensive, but they are the simplest way to make sure that backpacks and shoes are prepared and ready to go in the morning.

I am particularly fond of this hall tree from Amazon. It has seven hooks, which would be enough to hold backpacks and coats for the family. It also has ample space for shoe storage underneath. If you want to put decorative boxes to hide people’s shoes they will fit right in. It also is on the lower price end at around $85 dollars. Plus it is gorgeous and will fit in with almost any decor.

Plan the Night Before for a Less Hectic Morning

The hall tree is great, but if you don’t use it then it will not be very useful. You and your kids need to make sure that everything is in place on the hall tree at night before you go to bed. Make it a part of your nightly routine. After, students are done with homework they should hang their backpacks on the hall tree.

To make finding their shoes less hectic their shoes should also be on the hall tree. If they just take them off and place them there when they get home this will make things easier in the long run. However, if they did not do this you need to make sure that they put them there before they go to bed, so there is less of a hassle in the morning.

School Lunches

If you pack your kids lunch it will make your life a little easier if you do it the night before. You can pack their lunch bags and set them on a shelf in the fridge. Your kids then will be responsible to grab them. They may need a few reminders. If you pack lunches the night before that is one less thing you have to do in the morning. Which you will be happy about if things do not go according to plan in the morning.

This means you are going to want to have lunch bags for your kids. A good one that comes in many different colors is pictured above.

If you have older children, middle school or high school, have them pack their own lunches. You can monitor to make sure it is not all junk food, but they should be responsible enough at that point to be able to do that. They still should do that the night before not the morning of.

If you don’t pack lunches, but give lunch money make sure the money is in backpacks before you head to bed. This will just make you less prone to forget in the chaos of the morning.

Any Other Tips?

These are my tips, but I would love to hear from you guys also. What are your best organizational tips for back to school? Comment below to share with the rest of us.

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