Elementary school can be stressful for your little student. But it doesn't have to be. To help you organize your elementary school student, I put together tips and had my fellow Professional Organizers community share their content as well. I hope it helps your child feel less stress on their first days of school.
Here are ways to organize an elementary school student for success:
Set up a student study area for your student. It could be the dining room table or a table in their living room. Wherever it is, make sure to have all the school supplies they may need nearby and organized. Here is a school supplies caddy DIY project I created for my kids and have used it for years.
Have a place in your student's backpack for papers to come back and forth from school. Sometimes the kindergarten and first-grade teachers will provide this. If your teacher doesn't provide it, make sure your student knows where to put the papers for homework and communication for school.
Have a system in place to help you manage the incoming school papers. This could be a filing cabinet or just a portable accordion folder. Click on the image below to see my paper filing system.
Create a weekly paper sorter in your command station. This would be a place for weekly paperwork that needs to be taken to school or placed in a backpack. I created a few of these current weekly organizers. You can check them out to see if they work for you. Click on the image below. They are DIY projects that can be made quite easily.
Here are even more great tips from other Professional Organizers to help you get your elementary kids organized.
"This is probably not your typical tip - but I feel that it being an organized parent is one of the best lessons that we can teach our children. Elementary are students are totally impressionable and will follow our lead in the areas of time/schedule management. Some of the things that we put into place when she went off to Kindergarten were - Consistency in storing: backpacks, shoes, jackets and lunch boxes every day. Creating routines will save everyone time, frustration and stress. And, it helps create organizational habits at a young age." ~Linda Clevenger from SCRUM Training Academy
"Have a homework caddy and school supplies at the ready wherever your child does homework. Mine worked at the kitchen table so I had a three drawer Sterilite organizer in my pantry for paper, scissors, pencils, pens, colored pencils, crayons, index cards etc. It saves time and stress not having to search for what they need to do their homework and projects. I'd also say it's so handy to have a place in the refrigerator and in the pantry for kid snacks and lunch items. This way they can help prepare their own lunches. Teaching independence is so important." ~ Daria Harvey from Your Organized Life
"Always keep graded school work until the end of each grading period. If there is a question about a grade, you have something to carry into the conference. At the end of each grading period, cull most of the work keeping only the best." ~ Jonda Beattie from Time Space Organization
"Create a landing pad near your main entry/exit door for backpacks, shoes, lunchboxes, and other activity related items. This way everyone will know where things are and they won’t be searching around the house looking for lost or misplaced items. Near your landing pad, have a master checklist for the kids to check before leaving each day. The list can include things like: Do you have your homework, signed papers, lunchbox, lunch money, after school activity/necessities, keys, gym clothes, band instruments?" ~ Liana George from By George - Organizing Solutions
"When you save those precious school moments, don’t forget to date them with the month and year!" ~ Stacey Anderson from Getting Organized Magazine
"Simplify your lives by being intentional about how many activities each person participates in." ~ Hilda M. Rodgers from From Overwhelmed To Organized
"Now is the time for the big purge, not only are we going back to school, but we are heading into a different season soon. See exactly what you have to make space for the holes in their wardrobes. Do they have enough socks, underwear, will the shoes they have to see them through the first months of school? Don’t buy new just because they are going back to school, make a list and shop from that." ~ Jill Robson from Life Sorted
GREAT APPS AND WEBSITES FOR ELEMENTARY SCHOOL STUDENTS AND THEIR PARENTS:
Here are two Apps to help you organize your students' memories:
Cool Product - Artkive App post by Stacey Agin Murray - A really neat app to help you manage all your elementary school students artwork. See how Stacey used it.
Review of Keepy App To Organize Kids Momentos by Sabrina Quairoli - This app gives you different opportunities to keep your kids stuff. See how I used it.
I hope this helps you and your children stay organized this school year. Do you have any tips you want to share? Please leave a comment below. I would love to hear from you.
Labeling made fun! This website, Mabel's Labels, customizes labels to help them look cute, are affordable, and help your kids enjoy labeling their own stuff. (affiliate)
