Now that we are a couple weeks into the new school I’m finally feeling organized. I don’t know about you but I never start out totally ready and organized for the school year. We’re still too busy enjoying the last drops of summer, lol. But here we, September is coming to a close already, wow.

I have gotten some major organization in place over these first few weeks, though. With 4 kids in 6th grade and under, organization is key. Everything must have a place. It’s inevitable that something will be overlooked at some point. So my goal is to always have a system in place. My brain is all over the place, at all times. Call it Mom brain, whatever, I have 10,000 thoughts in my head at all times. So if I have organization and a place for everything then that covers my ass and my over-stimulated brain.

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In this post you’ll find my favorites for staying organized for the school year.

Create a space for a family Calendar

#1 for getting organized for the school year, have a big calendar for all to see. I love our white board calendar that I have stuck to our fridge, link from Amazon below. It has the whole month, a weekly planner and daily to do. It’s hard juggling a family schedule! Having everyone’s schedule in one place will take so much of the stress out of juggling it all. I write everything on there so everyone can check it and I also transfer everything to my google calendar too. If your kids are old enough using some form of digital calendar may be easier.

Another reason I really like our calendar on fridge is I can also stick important papers up there with magnets if I need too.

Create a functional entry way or drop zone

This is first and foremost. You must have a designated area for the backpacks, lunchboxes, shoes and coats. All this stuff will take over your house if you don’t. This could just be hooks on the wall or bench with storage by the door. Do what works for your family and space. Check below for some inspiration.

Contain for ALL the paperwork to stay organized for the school year

A bin, a folder, something to wrangle all the paperwork. If you have a designated spot where everything goes that limits your chances of missing or losing something. Once you designate a spot then you can just go through it each night or whenever needed. I use the slots on this table, pictured below, for each kid (they used to hold wine/liquor bottles…my how times have changed). For some more inspiration check below

Waterproof labels

A new fancy favorite this year. These are write-on, self-adhesive, no iron plus washer and dryer safe 😲 Perfect for the hundreds of things you’ll have to label for school. Check them out from Amazon below

Homework Supplies

Nobody loves doing homework, not the kids, not the parents. But we’re going to have to do it so let’s at least be prepared. Have a spot with everything your children might need to get that homework done. I’ve been using these little caddies from Dollar Tree for the last 3 years, they’ve really held up lol.

Organized for the School Year, homework supplies

• pencils
• pencil sharpener
• crayons
• scissors
• markers
• glue stick
• highlighter
• erasers

Create a lunch/snack prep station

Packing lunches and snacks can become a tedious task. To make it easier, maybe even easy enough for the kids to pack their own stuff, create a prep station. It could be a cupboard, a drawer, a shelf, whatever you have space for.

In your spot have all the necessities. Lunch boxes, water bottles, baggies, paper bags, containers, napkins, utensils, cutting board and kid-friendly knives. If you have the space you can even have some easy to grab snacks there too.

I like to have a desginated area in the fridge too for snack and lunches. A divider works great for this. Check out this one below from Amazon.

Keep hair stuff handy for the mornings

Keep a brush, hair spray, water spray bottle and any other styling products you like in a convenient spot. I have this bin with everything we need for a last minute bed head fix.

hair

The key to a good morning starts the night before

As a Mom of 4 kids in 6th, 4th and 2nd grade my biggest hack is prepare the night before. It’s pretty simple but speaking from experience it’s the best way to set you and your family up for success. Keep it simple…prep snacks and lunches, make sure water bottles are clean, make sure everyone’s shoes are by the door and of course, check the calendar before bed.

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If you can conquer these few things you’ll be organized for the school year and it’ll be easy to stay organized. If you want to lessen the stress that comes with a new school year, here is my advice on that.

Set up a homework routine

If you can be consistent about when and where homework gets done, the easier it’ll be to get that homework done. Kids always do best when they know what is expected of them and when.

Consistent Bed time and routine

I know it’s not always easy with extracurricular activities and family obligations. But you can safe yourself from those bedtime battles with being consistent about bedtime. Extra bonus, the better rested they are the less cranky they are in the morning. And in turn, you will be less cranky 😃

Pick out clothes the night before

I’ll be completely honest, I don’t always get to this. But when I do, the morning does go a little smoother.

Wake up before the kids

This is always my goal, some mornings I epicly fail but then I just try again the next morning. I know how hard it can be to drag yourself out of bed early, trust me I know. Especially after being woken up 100 times by the kids or the dog throwing up or your spouse getting home late, I’ve been through it! But it is so worth it. I promise your morning and whole day will go amazingly better when you give yourself some time in the morning.

And remember, the funny thing about kids is they are the reason we lose it but they are also the reason we hold it together.