I can remember when my kids were small and one of my favorite things was going back to school shopping. I loved it. The smell of new crayons, reams of paper, pencils, and notebooks. There was always excitement in the air. These days, back to school shopping is no different than it was then. Back to school is a time of excitement, but it’s also a time to recognize that there are ways to reduce the chaos that comes with starting a new school year. In this blog we will offer solutions to some of the biggest “pain points” of the school year including meal preparation, paperwork organization, setting up an in-box system, and structures to set kids and parents up for a successful year. We will also recommend some tips and tricks for making the school year run smoothly.

Tips for back to school organization:

Meal Preparation

“What’s for dinner?” is one of the most stress-inducing questions that parents face at dinner time. To address this question, here’s our first school organization tip: Make 10 – 15 freezer meals once or twice per month.

By doing this, you’ll keep your family well-fed with healthy, homemade meals. You’ll also alleviate the need to rush through that pre-dinner hour of doom when everyone needs help, the kids are hangry and you’re trying to figure out a frantic last-minute dinner plan.

Another way to avoid the “what’s for dinner?” question is to make a weekly meal plan. Find a spot (like the kitchen) to list your scheduled meals for the week. Hang a white board and use colored markers so that it’s easy to list options and erase them too. That way, the entire family can discuss it ahead of time and you’ll get positive feedback when meals are served.

School Lunch Organization

If you want to save time on school lunch preparation, here’s a good trick: make your own snack bags in advance. To do this, purchase snacks in bulk, grab Ziploc bags, and pre-portion the snacks to grab and go. This is a way to avoid the stress-induced, before-school rush in the morning. Now, you’ve eliminated stress both before school and at dinner time.

Here’s another trick. Many school lunch boxes need a cool pack to keep food cool. Stick an inexpensive container in the freezer and fill it with ice packs and let your kids participate. They can grab one to stick in their lunchbox before heading out the door. Be sure to replace them when your kids come home from school, otherwise, they won’t be available for their lunches the next day.

Artwork Organization

Rather than feeling the need to keep every item, photograph your kids’ artwork to document in a photo book you can design and print at the end of the school year. Or hang their artwork up around the house. Here is a great frame on Amazon. It is perfect for your child's cherished artwork. The frame opens like a book and has elastic straps on the interior to allow for artwork storage. It includes a white beveled mat and hanging hardware for hassle-free display in both horizontal and vertical formats to hang flat against the wall. Artkive is an option, as well.

Paperwork Organization

One good idea to keep paperwork organized is to hang a wall file organizer with a slot for each family member on the wall. Use a different color for each family member and a wall mounted file holder to make school organization easier for you and your kids. When your kids get home from school, go through each child’s take-home folder (or have them do it) and place papers in the right family member’s file. Permission slips and flyers go into a parent’s slot, while homework and projects go into your child’s. You can review your file after dinner is finished. Further, add a homework folder for loose papers to your child’s backpack.

This trick prevents crumpled permission slips and homework at the bottom of a backpack! Before the school year starts, stick a simple pocket folder in your child’s backpack. Label it “homework” and tell them to put any loose papers into it. Perhaps you can give your kids an incentive if they remember to add their homework to the folder. After all, this organization suggestion helps you both and sets your child up for success.

Create a mudroom drop-off point for backpacks, books, and schoolwork.

Set up a school organization solution that’s easy to maintain from the moment you walk through the door! Establish a space for your kids to put their backpacks, lunch boxes, and other school items. This way, there’s no searching for missing items. Plus, the germs will be contained to one area. You might want to keep a bottle of antibacterial spray handy to hose down their shoes, coats, and bags

Bathroom Organization

Rather than listen to your panicked kids screaming, “Where’s my (fill in the blank),” take back to school organization to the next level. Put personal hygiene items into school supply caddies that they can keep in their rooms and grab before heading into the bathroom. No fighting. No panicking. And everything in one place. It also lets you know if you’re out of something and need to restock.

Car Organization

Fill a car organizer with everything your child may need on a busy morning. Suggestions are an extra hairbrush, hair gel, baby wipes (for messy faces), hand sanitizer, water bottles, and grab and go breakfast options like protein-filled granola bars. Hang one in front of each child’s seat so they can finish getting ready for school or eating in the car before getting to the drop-off line. This is especially helpful if you have a long commute to school. Save some morning tasks specifically for the car. It can help reduce the amount of time needed in the morning to get ready before getting into the car.

Carry school supplies in your car for last-minute homework help.

Be prepared with a glue stick to re-adhere the photo falling off your child’s science project poster board. Or include an extra pen to avoid frantically searching for one when your child pulls out an unsigned field trip form right before dropping off. Other suggestions are pencils, a note pad, scissors, hand wipes, hand sanitizers, Kleenex, and non-perishable snacks.

Sports Equipment Organization

The family car is more like a fully equipped taxi. Declutter and save yourself from a week’s worth of hunting down sports equipment by packing a trunk organizer every weekend before the school week begins. A good tip is to designate a slot for yourself and fill it with an extra set of gym clothes to make workouts easier to fit into a busy day.

Time Savers and Additional Good Ideas

As a time-saver, planning outfits the night before is a great way to stay organized. Label each pocket of your closet organizer with the day of the week. Then place outfits inside. If the organizer you have has more than five pockets, store shoes for the week in the sixth. This trick allows your children to decide what they want to wear and helps avoid morning indecisiveness.

Use a large dry-erase wall calendar to keep track of family activities.

No matter the size of your family, a calendar is essential for school organization. Even non-school related activities like doctor’s appointments, playdates, and vacations can be placed on the calendar so everyone’s on the same page. Make your dry erase wall easier to read with color-coded activities for each family member. My friend always had one on her refrigerator when her kids were little. It kept everyone on track.

Put a “Don’t Forget” to-do list on your door so you don’t forget anything.

Put a “Don’t Forget” to-do list on your door so you don’t forget something before running out. No matter how thoroughly your wall calendar is filled out, you’ll likely forget something before leaving for the day. Grab a Post-It note and stick it on your garage door, front door, or on your purse or wallet. If the reminder is for one of the kids, put a sticky note on their backpack.

Get into the habit of stashing items in a container near your exit door. This works for car keys, an extra phone charger, or your kids’ sports equipment bag.

Setting up kids and parents for success!

Organization is a very important part of a successful school year. If you integrate some or all of these organization suggestions into your routine you will find that the school year runs a lot more smoothly.