FYI: Teacher appreciation at Office Max Sunday, August 9. Teachers save 15%!

Yesterday I got to join in on a live broadcast with Peter Walsh- you know, that organizing guy from TLC.  It was sponsored by Office Max and featured 3 specific areas of back to school organization:

• Organizing your home
• Organizing your kids
• Transitioning to school

It was full of information and was very helpful- even with young kids.  Here’s what I learned:

At home:

• If the home is organized it causes less stress for everyone- kids included!
• Clutter makes it difficult to concentrate.  To organize a flat surface (ie: desk) take everything off it, get your vision of what you want and keep it simple.
• Use the right tools

TIPS FOR HOME

1) Find the Vision you have for a Space

2) Make Organization a Family Value

3) Use the Right Tools for Great Organization

The kids:

• Utilize labels or color coding!
• Purge the folders or binders weekly.
• Teach your child how to use and utilize all the sections & pockets in their binders and backpacks.

TIPS FOR ORGANIZING YOUR CHILD

1) Show that you Value Organization

2) Establish Clear Limits and Routines

3) Always ‘Finish the Cycle’ (Complete a Task)

At school:

• Go to “Back 2 School Night”; meet the teacher, learn expectations.
• Be a “helicopter” parent- hover over your kids, be involved.
• Donate school supplies instead of generic “teacher gifts”.
• Signs of stress in your kids: lack of participation, build up of clutter, sleeping more than normal.
• Before you shop check your list against what you already have at home to save money.

TIPS FOR THE CLASSROOM

1) Establish Clear Routines

2) Involve Kids with Classroom Organization

3) Use Words, Pictures and Color to help Organize

To see the webcast for yourself just click here.  It was really quite good and inspired to me do a bit of organizing here at home.

About a week before the blogcast Office Max sent me a box full of back-to-school items from their Schoolio-Von-Hoolio line. Pencil box, pencils, clipboard, file folder, folders, notebooks, bag…  All of it fun, all of it useful.

So, using these supplies as well as supplies we had on hand I set out to make some changes.  It was said during the blogcast that if you had the space giving each child a separate desk was a good idea.  Well, my girls already had separate desks.

No organization what-so-ever. So I wiped my slates clean, so to speak, and went to work.

The girls have tons of art projects that come home from school.  The very best are put into large 12×12 scrapbooking tub.  Some that the girls love are scanned or photographed and put into an album for the girls to keep.  And others are hung above the desks.

My girls love paper.  They have lots…  Some was put into the recycling bin while most was put into the expanding files where it can be easily accessed and refiled.  Pencils and markers were put in the pencil box or in a drawer organizer.  Coloring books, workbooks and other actiivity books were placed neatly on the bottom shelf of one desk.

And voila:

I’m embarrassed to say that my desk wasn’t any better…

Really, is it any wonder I can’t concentrate on my work?  I made a few changes with my filing system- went vertical instead of horizontal and…  Ta-Da!

I feel so much better!

Even after everything we did and used I have some of the great goodies left to give away!  From the Hoolio-Von-Schoolio Cupcake collection:

Includes: drawstring bag, notebook, 2 pocket folder, composition book and binder.  These are super cute back to school items.  I would totally keep them but I have no good use for them.  Besides, I just purged.  Who wants?

Leave a comment for me.  Why not tell me if you liked going back to school?  (I did.  New paper, pens, books…)

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The fine print: Make sure I can easily find an email to contact you; I will not search for one. Contest ends August 16, 2009 at 11:59pm. I will draw the winner August 17.. The winner will be contacted via email and will have 3 days to respond. If I do not hear back from the winner within that time another winner will be drawn.