5 Back To School Hacks That Will Save Your Sanity #BackToSchool

Back to school is such a fun and exciting time of year.  The kids are nervous and excited to see all of their friends and moms and dads everywhere are looking forward to a little quiet time in the morning after the kids leave for school.  My kids are looking forward to wearing all of their new clothes to school.  Although they wear uniforms, they still look forward to the new-ness of it all.  As you may have noticed over the years, though, back to school excitement quickly turns into frustration as homework assignments start coming due and the mad morning rush of eating breakfast and still getting out the door on time becomes real.  I have a few hacks that you can do TODAY that will make your school year go so much smoother!

1. Signed papers bin ~ It is so important to get these papers back to their teachers in time.  Many teachers even give bonus points or extra recess for having signed papers back on time.  So, before the first full week of school, get this bin set up in an area where it cannot be missed.  Remind your kiddos each day to put their papers in the bin and you can return them to the same bin once they are signed.  As your little ones get older, stop reminding them.  Once the routine is in place, it becomes their responsibility to place their papers in the bin on time.
2. Library book box ~  Oh, the dreaded library late fees!  We have found a great way to help our kiddos from losing their library books.  We have a bin, right beside the signed papers bin, that is specifically for library books.  We keep school library books as well as public library books in this bin.  This way, we always know where they are and don’t lose them!
3. Create a homework station ~ There was, at least, one day each week when my kiddos are fighting over one sharpened pencil.  That was, until I set up a homework station.  Our homework station has pens, pencils, erasers, pencil sharpeners, scissors, glue sticks, a stapler, a calculator, sticky notes, colored pencils and sharpies,  These are all the supplies that often come up missing throughout the year.  Each Sunday afternoon, it is the kids’ responsibility to make sure the supplies is in the bin where it belongs.  Not only does this cut down on the fighting, but it also teaches them to be responsible for their own supplies.
4. Create a hair styling kit ~  Oh my goodness!  I have two kiddos in middle school and one starting college this month.  As you can imagine, hair is a huge deal around our house.  This is another point of conflict in the mornings before school.  To help further cut down on bickering, I put together a hair-styling kit with all of their hair styling essentials in it.  Again, it is their responsibility to make sure all of their supplies is in the kit each Sunday afternoon.
5. After school snack bin ~ If your kids are like mine, they are starving after school and dinner may not *quite* be ready.  We keep the “hangry’s” away with an after school snack bin.  These snacks are only for after school.  I fill it with fresh fruit, fruit cups, pretzels, yogurt, crackers, etc.  The kids know that this bin is only for the time between school and dinner.  This keeps them from grabbing less healthy snacks or fixing a huge meal they will keep them from eating supper.

If you do these few things to get prepared for school at the beginning of the year, you will find that your school year runs much smoother.  As your kids get older, you can give them more of the responsibility of keeping these areas stocked and ready for their school day.