Simplify~ Paper Piles Part 2

If you have a school aged child then you have paper to deal with.  How do we decide what to keep, and how do we store it?

School papers can take over our homes if allow them to. 

Deal with notes from the teacher, field trip permission forms and schedules immediately then throw them away, do not pile them.

I had a conversation last week with a group of home schooling moms about this very topic.  We discussed the different ways that each family dealt with the mounds of paper that come along with school.

Here are some of the ideas that were shared:

Keep one binder for each child with page protectors.  In this binder keep their completion certificates, awards, samples of their art and writing from each year.  This binder can also contain medical records.

One mom said she makes a couple of scrap book pages for her child with the best work from that year represented.  Each child has their own book and upon graduation there is a complete record of growth for that child beautifully displayed.

Sometimes you can get pizza boxes from your local pizzeria.  One box for each child, this allows for storage of bigger art project pages that may not fit into binders or scrap books.

Take a picture of your child with their creation, these pictures can be printed and then placed into the binder or scrap book.  Pictures of any field trips or vacations can also be included in your child's book.

Set a plastic bin aside for each child and keep the papers that are in the running for keeping in the bin.  At the end of the year go through the bin and decide what to put into your book, file etc....

So what if you simply do not have the time, energy, or creativity to make a book?  Keep one file for each child in the file cabinet to store their best work.  You could also keep one plastic bin for each child and just simply put what you want to keep into the bin.

What ever you do limit the amount of space in your home allowed for school work and then stick to it.

If you have methods of dealing with your child's school records and work  please share with us as we can all benefit from your experience.

Keep it simple.