Sharpen your pencils and pack your bag – school is back in session! What does that look like in your home? If it’s anything like our families, the first few weeks of the summer to school transition is anything but calm. Here at West Creek Self Storage, we’d like to take some of the chaos out of your lives by providing you with some simple organizational solutions for returning to a school schedule.
1. Prepare the night before: Mornings can be unpredictable: alarms can be snoozed, dogs can take extra-long to walk, and children can have mini-breakdowns. To plan for the worst, get things together the night before.
2. Set up a drop-off station: It’s amazing how a few hooks can instantly decrease the amount of clutter that accumulates on the floor and on top of furniture! Install some easy to reach hooks for your budding scholars to hang their backpacks, sports equipment and jackets. You can even go a step further and put some inside of a kitchen cabinet or pantry door, so that they’ll have a place to hang their lunchboxes when they get home each afternoon.
3. Set up a morning routine: Maybe this means setting time parameters on bathroom/shower use (especially if you’ve got teenagers in the house) or designating one person to make the coffee and set out the cereal bowls. Remember, the end goal is for everyone to be out of the house with teeth brushed, hair combed and bellies full, wearing clean clothes and carrying what they need for the day.
4. Have a go-to place for papers: Back to school means endless forms to fill out and return, as well as calendars and contact information to keep. Having an inbox and outbox will work wonders on decreasing the paper pileup on your kitchen counters and dining room table. Walk your kids through how it works, and make sure to check it daily. Then bid farewell to awkward phone calls to school, requesting another permission slip or medical form!
What makes your household work like a well-oiled machine when school starts? Please share your tips with us in our comments section below. Your West Creek, NJ community members will thank you!