Works for Me Wednesday : Back to School Edition

School starts back for us next week. And with that, means the start of homework. I try to keep the kids confined to doing their homework at the kitchen table. That way, I can do several things:

• Make sure they are actually doing it!
• Be available to help when they need it.
• Keep supplies in one general area.
• Keep the mess to a minimum.

To help with that, we fill a rolling plastic cart with school supplies. The drawers are labeled, so everyone knows where things belong. It is also a good bet that if it isn't in the cart, we don't have any at home.

The cart rolls to the table during homework and projects, then back out of the way when we are done.

Another thing we have a lot of during the school year is papers that need my attention, then need to be returned.

One way we have found with dealing with this is using left over plastic page dividers with pockets. I attach one for each kiddlet to the fridge with a magnet. They know if it's something that I need to see right away, they need to put it for me in there. When I have finished signing or filling out the form, I put it back in the appropriate folder. They are then each responsible for picking it up and returning it to their backpacks to take back to school.







And finally, there are a lot of papers that I need to keep over the course of the school year such as class directories, course schedules, maps, etc. These I keep in one master file in the file cabinet. Each child has a separate file within that folder.





For more back to school tips, see We are THAT Family.