Organize Your Children's School Work

Beginning in preschool and up into later years of school, children bring mounds school work home with them. To organize your children's schoolwork, use a bulletin board and an expanding file folder or filing cabinet to get it under control.

Kids are excited and proud to show off their school work. If you're like me, you want to save some of those important mementos - but not all of them. We've seen enough paper from a small forest in the last few years, but have learned to put some of it in the recycling bin or trash.

Get a bulletin board to hang in the dining room, kitchen, or somewhere the projects can be seen often. Some bulletin boards use magnets, pushpins, or both, and they come in a variety of sizes. When your child brings artwork or graded homework put it up on the bulletin board. Kids, parents and siblings love to talk about and admire it. * *When hanging the bulletin board be sure to assess how high according to your youngest child and maturity. Push pins and small magnets should be kept away from toddlers and babies especially.

Throughout the week, accumulate the work on the bulletin board. Overlap your children's work if you have more than one child, or use all the space on the board. If there's more to see, there's more to talk about.

At the end of the week (which means doing this on Friday or Saturday to keep up with the flow) sort through the paperwork. Save only the projects that show progressing creativity, writing skills, or a special milestone each week. Please recycle the paper if you can and throw the rest in the trash.

Put the saved work in an expanding file folder (or file in a filing cabinet) that is clearly labeled with the child's name and school year. At the end of the school year, look at the work with your child - it is neat for both of you to see and talk about! Store the file in a filing cabinet or rubber maid tub for longer storage, with the container clearly labeled.