A monthly online magazine chock-full of insightful articles for busy mothers.

by Marilyn Bohn

Do you remember that commercial Staples had on a few years ago that was aired in July? It was the one where the music was the Christmas song “It’s The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year”. Every time it came on I just cracked up laughing. Along with the music a father was zipping around the store loading his cart with school supplies with the happiest smile on his face. The children were standing there watching with sad expressions.

I had five daughters; four of them were under four so I always had a busy, busy summer. It was a lot of work planning and implementing worthwhile activities, trying to keep them sharp for school and having a balance with play activities and just play. I admire mothers who can home school their children. But frankly I am just not the mother that can have my kids around me all the time. I was happy when school started again in the fall.

So whether you send your kids off to public or private school or you home school or are on year around school this is a good time of year to get the little and big ones ready for the school year.

Before you head out to the stores and grab up the great buys they are offering this time of year take stock of what you have at home. Check to see how many pens, pencils, lined paper, notebook paper, note pads, erasers, and other supplies you have. If you haven’t designated a place in your home for paper/office supplies, do so now. This will save you a lot of time and money. Label the shelves, use containers to separate items. Containers can be check book boxes, plastic baby food containers, plastic Crisco containers—you do not need to rush out and buy containers, first look around your home to see what you have that you can use. Store the extras behind the items that will be used currently.

This is the ideal time to also set up a homework area. According to the magazine Psychology Today in the September 2007 issue,”Creating a functional, organized and comfortable area for your child to do their homework can increase their productivity and give them confidence to do well in school”. Notice it doesn’t say you have to have a desk and all that goes with it; it needs to be an organized, functional and comfortable area. If that area isn’t a desk have supplies they need for home work assignments convenient for them to access.

Create a filing system where they can put their art work or home work they want to keep ‘forever’. Right now is the time to set ground rules on how many pieces of paper they will be allowed to save. Three pieces of paper a week will add up to 864 pieces pre-school through sixth grade.

Set up a designated place to manage everyday paperwork. Make this accessible for them and for you. Have baskets or sorting bins (metal kind that sit on a desk or the kind that hang on the wall) labeled with each child’s name on them and one for the parents. When they come home from school teach them the expectation is they will unload their backpack by putting their papers in their designated spot. If there is something that has to be signed by you and returned to school this goes in your slot. But don’t just rely on them putting it in the right place, check their slots also.

You could separate your slot into more specific slots such as To Do, To Pay (picture day forms, field trip fees etc) and To File.

Okay, now you can dash to the store for all of those great buys. Go alone if you can, you will probably buy less and it won’t be a hassle without little voices saying, “Buy this, buy this, can I have this?” When you get the specific list of what your child needs then they can go with you to buy those specific items.

I hope this school year will be the best ever for you and your child/children.

Marilyn is a creative organizer who helps women, seniors and their families create space and end clutter in their homes and offices by setting up custom made systems.

Marilyn invites you to visit her website http://www.marilynbohn.com where you can find solutions to your organizing needs. She offers free tips in her blogs, articles and videos for your home and office organizing solutions.

Marilyn is a creative organizer who helps women, seniors & their families to create space and end clutter in homes and offices by setting up custom made systems.
Visit her website http://www.marilynbohn.com for free organizing tips.

Article Source: http://www.wahm-articles.com

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by Barbara Hemphill

As a mother of five grown children (and soon to be grandmother!), I can attest to the fact that organizing skills are a major factor in the success of our children in school and the quality of our life at home. The ease with which we manage every area of our lives – from getting ready to go to school in the morning to going to bed at night – can be significantly improved if we approach the tasks to be done in an organized manner. Unfortunately, we were not all born with an innate organizing ability, and more unfortunately, there are few opportunities to learn the skill. But it’s never too late – or too early – to begin learning!

Begin by having each child in your family choose “their color,” and use it consistently. It will save lots of squabbles over whose notebook or umbrella is whose.

Attach a pen with the ink color of each child nearby the family calendar (which should have lots of writing space!) We had four children playing soccer at the same time, but “soccer” written in red ink told me it was Jenny who needed a ride. Encourage your children to be responsible for their own schedules and commitments. Start by teaching your child to use an alarm clock and expecting them to use it.

Does your child have trouble deciding what to wear in the morning? Part of the problem may be too many choices. Eliminate anything from the closet that doesn’t currently fit, is not in season or in style. Then, spend some time with your child planning wardrobe combinations and list them on a sign on the closet door for a quick morning reminder. Last minute hassles over lost shoes? Identify a specific place for shoes – preferably near the front door! Children learn by example – how are you doing in that department?

If your children pack their own lunches for school, work out a system that suits each child. My daughter preferred to pack hers the night before, but my son – never more than ten minutes before the bus arrived! To eliminate Johnny taking Mary’s lunch, use different colored containers or labels for each child. Create a standard shopping list of lunchbox items each child likes and make sure to keep those items on hand. Put a list on the refrigerator with any special items that are available (e.g., leftover steak from dinner last night). By the way, if Sara forgets her lunch and you drop what you’re doing to deliver it, you’re giving a message that she doesn’t have to remember. No child ever suffered seriously from missing lunch for one day! Send positive messages that encourage them to remember by including a love note in a lunch box with messages – “Good luck on your math test!”

One of the ongoing hassles of school days – regardless of the children’s age – are those papers that need signing by Mom or Dad (and frequently require checks!). Identify a specific place for only those items. A clearly labeled magnetic pocket on the refrigerator door is a great option. Keep some “Sign Here” Post-it® Flags nearby to help spark your memory or encourage your children to flag the documents to show you where to sign.

Completing homework is every parent’s primary concern. The first challenge is helping them to get their assignments home. Help them find an assignment book that is easy to use. Each evening go over assignments with your child to see that homework is complete! Creating a productive study environment is crucial, keeping in mind that everyone does not need the same environment to be successful. Some children work best alone in a quiet room, while others do better sitting at the kitchen table while Mom or Dad fixes dinner. Since computers have become a major factor in homework, develop family policies manage every area of our lives – from getting ready to go to school in the morning to going to bed at night – can be significantly improved if we approach the tasks to be done in an organized manner. Unfortunately, we were not all born with an innate organizing ability, and more unfortunately, there are few opportunities to learn the skill. But it’s never too late – or too early – to begin learning!

Begin by having each child in your family choose “their color,” and use it consistently. It will save lots of squabbles over whose notebook or umbrella is whose.

Attach a pen with the ink color of each child nearby the family calendar (which should have lots of writing space!) We had four children playing soccer at the same time, but “soccer” written in red ink told me it was Jenny who needed a ride. Encourage your children to be responsible for their own schedules and commitments. Start by teaching your child to use an alarm clock and expecting them to use it.
Does your child have trouble deciding what to wear in the morning? Part of the problem may be too many choices. Eliminate anything from the closet that doesn’t currently fit, is not in season or in style. Then, spend some time with your child planning wardrobe combinations and list them on a sign on the closet door for a quick morning reminder. Last minute hassles over lost shoes? Identify a specific place for shoes – preferably near the front door! Children learn by example – how are you doing in that department?

If your children pack their own lunches for school, work out a system that suits each child. My daughter preferred to pack hers the night before, but my son – never more than ten minutes before the bus arrived! To eliminate Johnny taking Mary’s lunch, use different colored containers or labels for each child. Create a standard shopping list of lunchbox items each child likes and make sure to keep those items on hand. Put a list on the refrigerator with any special items that are available (e.g., leftover steak from dinner last night). By the way, if Sara forgets her lunch and you drop what you’re doing to deliver it, you’re giving a message that she doesn’t have to remember. No child ever suffered seriously from missing lunch for one day! Send positive messages that encourage them to remember by including a love note in a lunch box with messages – “Good luck on your math test!”

One of the ongoing hassles of school days – regardless of the children’s age – are those papers that need signing by Mom or Dad (and frequently require checks!). Identify a specific place for only those items. A clearly labeled magnetic pocket on the refrigerator door is a great option. Keep some “Sign Here” Post-it® Flags nearby to help spark your memory or encourage your children to flag the documents to show you where to sign.

Completing homework is every parent’s primary concern. The first challenge is helping them to get their assignments home. Help them find an assignment book that is easy to use. Each evening go over assignments with your child to see that homework is complete! Creating a productive study environment is crucial, keeping in mind that everyone does not need the same environment to be successful. Some children work best alone in a quiet room, while others do better sitting at the kitchen table while Mom or Dad fixes dinner. Since computers have become a major factor in homework, develop family policies about who can use the computer when. Keep supplies and resources on hand to eliminate unnecessary last minute shopping trips.

Of course you couldn’t expect me to write an article on “back to school” without mentioning a filing system. Since research shows that the average person spends over one month each year looking for lost information, it’s never to early to start teaching kids how to file! (Bonus: If you use Taming the Paper Tiger software, you can “hire” your child to help you with your filing!)

Finally, notes of all varieties can be a wonderful way to communicate to your children – with one caveat. Years ago, I overheard my son say to my daughter one morning, “I wonder what I have to do today, there’s one of those yellow things on the mirror.” I suddenly realized that it was important to give positive messages as well as parental reminders. Waking up to, “You did a great job cleaning up the kitchen last night,” is a great start to good day at school!

Barbara Hemphill, President of Hemphill & Associates, Raleigh, N.C., is a professional speaker, consultant and author of Kiplinger’s “Taming the Paper Tiger.” Copyright© 2000-2001, Barbara Hemphill. All rights reserved. For information about Barbara’s keynote presentations, please contact the Frog Pond Group at 800-704-FROG (3764) or email susie@frogpondgroup.com; http://www.frogpondgroup.com.

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