SHELLEY HEAPHY
I’ve seen a very funny comment all over social media this past week – March break is over! It has me laughing because although many of our kids have been home since March 13, with school just around the corner it doesn’t feel much different that a regular summer. I can’t quite believe we are . . .
packing up backpacks and getting ready to meet the bus once again. I’ve put together some organization tips that I’m desperately going to try and incorporate in our lives this year, hoping that maybe some may also help you at the beginning of this new school year!
1- Buy extra school supplies for the year. Keep these on a shelf or in a drawer so that when they run out you have some on hand, chances are you won’t find them at a good price later on in the year. Label everything you send to school to make it easier for your child to retrieve lost items.
2- Organize a small pencil case with the essentials that will be kept at home for homework. Keep it wherever the kids will be doing their homework. If things are at hands reach there’ll be less wasted time at homework time. Essentials include: pencil, eraser, sharpener, ruler, scissors, glue and crayons. If older, include a calculator, dictionary and protractor set.
3- I’ve read about a great idea that sounds so practical – I just need to put it in place. Have a folder in the kitchen – label it school papers. When kids come in from school with school handouts they stick them in the folder and that way all papers are contained to one spot. We may not get a lot of paper home this year but keep this one in mind for next year. They could also get in to the habit of taking out their class agenda for you daily so that you can see if there are notes from the teacher.
4- Lunch boxes; yuck! I hate lunch boxes and making lunches. I have always had my kids empty their backpacks when they get home; this year with a five, seven and nine year old they are going to be in charge of emptying their lunch boxes, all containers going into the sink. Any little bit of help they can provide is a win as this is often a tiresome job for most parents. TIP – try and include cutlery for things like chopped up fruits this year to help keep their fingers out of their mouth, I’m going to try and remember to include cutlery every day as a habit!
5- This year is a little bit different with the threat of germs and COVID. Some families may choose to have a little bit of a different routine when they get home.
Families may choose to have kids come through the door, wash their hands (or showers) and change into clean clothes before they do anything else.
This will definitely contribute to more laundry but may help limit the threat I’ve just discovered washing a backpack in the washing machine – consider doing this regularly as well as the lunch box.
Washing down lunch boxes should happen nightly if possible.
6- Make lunch making easier – dedicate a cupboard or drawer to lunch snacks, easy to grab for lunches!
Organize your Tupperware containers so that they are matched and have lids already on them – to avoid the great tuppeware search. If you are sending things like muffins or cookies bake them ahead and freeze them, it’s so easy to pull one out and stick it in the lunch box – they defrost nicely by lunch time.
If you are sending a pre-packaged snack, cut it open so little ones don’t have difficulty opening it!
7- Create a central calendar. As papers or notes come in, add to the calendar. As activities and sports restart, add practices and games to the calendar. Keep everyone organized and up to date, visually!
8- Last but not least, reintroduce an early enough bedtime for your kids. It’s been so long since they’ve had to be up for school that it may take some getting used to it.
Gradually get bedtime to an appropriate time so that they can have a good nights rest before school days.
To all parents sending their kids back to school I wish you good luck.
This year may be a bit more stressful than usual, take a deep breath and pray
