This year is the first that E and Z are in separate classrooms, which means that my automatic backup system for homework, announcements, forms, and fliers is no more, which means I needed to get organized to keep up with two sets of paperwork for two kids.
At first, I thought of making some kind of pocket wallhanging, but decided that: a) that would be too much work, and b) we don't have enough wall space for something like that. So instead I bought an accordion file thingy with lots of pockets.
On the front, I stuck on a piece of blue paper listing all of the things they need to do for homework each evening (I thought i was very clever making it look like a chalkboard with fluorescent colored pencils, but, they informed me, they don't even use chalkboards in school anymore; they use whiteboards).
Inside I labeled each slot with the types of papers I expect to come home: schedule, math, spelling list, reading log, projects, forms. That way they can always find their spelling list or reading log when it's time to study or write down their minutes (I can't tell you how many times M failed to pass in his reading log because it was lost somewhere amid the clutter on our kitchen table).
Because it's all written there for them (and because they can now read––yea!), it gives them some autonomy. Ideally, I won't have to constantly remind them of every single thing on the list, but they will one day come home from daycare and just do it all (wishful thinking is good, right?). So far it has worked fairly well, at least we haven't been going through the drill of trying to find all of the lost papers all over the house. They are still waaaay too tired for the amount of homework they get (which is only one math paper––for Z only––plus studying for spelling and reading), but that's a topic for another post.
I love file folders. This looks like a great way to organize all those slips of paper from school. Mine end up stuck on the fridge, several layers thick. What grade are they in? Mine are in 2 and 3 and we only have reading each day, but that seems enough for them for now.
ReplyDeleteThat was our problem--we never knew if papers were on the fridge, on the bulletin board, under a pile of junk mail on the table, or in the recycle bin. Just reading would be enough, I think. I have two third-graders, one of them gets a math worksheet every day, and they both need to practice spelling and do reading. It doesn't sound like much, but with all the foot-dragging, whining, distractions, etc. it takes an hour. My seventh-grader has only one page of writing each night, which is proportionally much less than his brothers. But still enough, with all the other things he's got going on.
ReplyDeleteSuper cute! Tell them chalkboards are cool because they're retro. (Listen to me, speaking like I know what the grade school kids are into these days!)
ReplyDelete