Tips to Help Managing Papers!

Tips to Help Managing Papers!

The summer is over and the school days have arrived! Now that you are back into that familiar routine of getting the kids up, dressed, fed and off to the school bus, is there an area that needs tweaking? Perhaps all that paper that comes home in the backpack each day? Yes, we all know how much paper comes home – tons! You can keep it all organized very easily by sticking to a few rules throughout the school year.

Permission slips – when permission slips need to be signed, sign them immediately and place back into the backpack for the next school day. If you leave it out on the counter, it will get lost and you are left with an unhappy child not going to the zoo.

School tests – they come home with lots of tests that they received a 100% – hooray! Do you really need to keep all of them? Store the tests that your child studied very hard for and toss the rest. If the test you are keeping is not dated, add the date to the back so you remember the year.

Progress reports – file reports in a large binder with tabs that represent the year. The bigger the binder, the more it can hold. If you have more than one child, have a separate binder for each child and label the binder with their name.

Related: Progress Report- Reality Check {Tip 29 of 31}

Artwork – I know it is fantastic when your child makes a blue circle on a huge piece of paper. But do you really need to save it?  I have a large plastic storage bin labeled “School Artwork”. I only keep the really awesome projects she brings home. Trust me, you will never miss that blue circle and neither will they! During the holidays (Halloween, Christmas, Easter), I always hang up the artwork my daughter brings home. After the holiday, I decide then if it goes into the artwork bin or into the recycling bin.

Calendars/Newsletters – I hang up the school calendar on my refrigerator and record all important events on my own personal calendar. I put the latest newsletter on my nightstand and read it before bed. I always read the newsletter so I can keep up-to-date with school events, fundraisers and outings.

Although some of my clients have very extensive filing systems for their paperwork; most agree that the more folders and files, the more overwhelmed they are with “where should this go”? A simple system will work just fine in keeping track of the paperwork – just remember to stay on top of the paper each day or at the very least one day a week. Best wishes for a great school year!

Susan Parziale is a certified Professional Organizer. She is also a mother to 8 year old daughter with Autism. Visit www.susanparziale.com

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This post originally appeared on our September/October 2012 Magazine