Organize Your Kids' School Papers in 3 Simple Steps

We’re just a few weeks away from the last day of school and mixed in with all the excitement is a mountain of paper. Is your head hurting just at the thought? We’ve got you covered! Here are three easy and simple steps you can take to tackle the climb:

1. Create a single, temporary landing spot. Whether it be a bin, basket, or banker’s box, have one ready to go before the last day of school. When your kids come home on the last day, take a few minutes to grab all the papers out of their backpacks and place them in the bin.

2. Schedule a time to go through all the papers. Decide whether you prefer to tackle this project in one longer session or divide the task by kid. This is a crucial step. If you don’t schedule the time, the papers will sit there all summer. If your child is old enough, this is actually a fun task you can tackle together. It’s a nice way to reminisce about their school year and celebrate all they accomplished and learned. Bonus tip: Be ruthless when deciding what to keep. It’s only worth holding on to the best of the best. Remember that even if you only keep 10 papers from every school year, you’ll have to store 130-150 pieces of paper.

3. Have a final landing spot. Artwork has a tendency to be oversized so, we like to separate artwork from worksheets, stories, and other writings. The artwork you decide to keep can be stored in an under-the-bed bin. If you prefer, you can take pictures of the artwork and create a photo collage on Minted or a fun, little coffee table book with Chatbooks. There are also several fun, functional ways to store the other papers including this memory book, keepsake box, or file box.