Back to Organized for Back to School

It’s back-to-school time, which means getting re-adjusted to everyone’s busy schedules at once. When school’s back in session, it completely changes the daily schedule for the whole family, and requires a significant amount of perseverance and mental strength to get used to it again. Here are some suggestions for getting your household organized for back-to-school so the school year can run smoothly for everyone.

 

Organize the Kitchen

Getting your kitchen organized for the daily school routine can relieve a lot of unnecessary stress and save a ton of time. Organize your pantry and fridge so all the essentials for breakfast, lunch, and afternoon snack-making are at your fingertips. Consider re-situating the rest of your kitchen for smoother traffic and optimal safety. Make some small, affordable upgrades like installing soft-close drawer slides or replacing your older appliances.

 

Rearrange the Furniture

Take some time to experiment with your furniture set-up before school starts. Try a few different arrangements in your main living areas and see what contributes to a helpful flow of foot traffic. Use your furniture to create areas in the house more conducive to school and work lifestyle. If you have an open concept floor plan, use your furniture to separate work and play areas so your family is more efficient and focused when they need to be.

 

Organize a Designated Homework Area

As you re-organize your home for back-to-school, be sure to organize a designated homework area for the kids. While setting a family schedule with time set aside for homework and other school activities is always a good idea, creating a physical space specifically set apart for homework will facilitate an environment well suited to the needs of your family’s academic ambitions.

 

Get Your Closets Ready

As summer comes to an end, your closets are about to go from a dormant or cluttered storage space to a heavily used daily resource. Organize your closets in such a way that they contribute to the flow of your busy schedule rather than distract from it. Instead of reserving one of your main floor closets for fall items, try arranging every kids’ closet so each kid can have easy access to their own school materials and fall clothes. If your younger children are being stubborn about switching from summer to fall wardrobes, organize their closets so their back-to-school clothes are plainly in sight while their favorite summer wear is tucked sneakily away.

 

Clean Out and Organize the Garage

As you may find that your garage has become a bit of a mess as summer activities have progressed. Back-to-school time is the perfect occasion to re-organize your garage and get it functioning properly for the rest of the year. Clean out the summer items you may not be using once school starts. Only keep the essential items in the garage like car maintenance items, your tool kit, snow and ice removal items, and gardening supplies—and have them easily accessible.  

 

Organize the Family Medicine Cabinet

The medicine cabinet is one place in the home where organization makes a crucial difference. Most American homes have a medicine cabinet with a wide variety of over and under-the-counter medicines. Organize your medicine cabinet so everyone in the family knows exactly where and what their respective medications and vitamins are, without the added risk of taking wrong medications by mistake. This may also be a great opportunity to educate your children on the effects and dangers of using prescription and over-the-counter drugs wisely. Organizing your medicine cabinet will also  Click here for more info on prescription drug abuse and how to keep your family safe.

 

Invite Everyone to Follow Suit

Organizing your house for back-to-school season (and successfully keeping it organized) isn’t something you can do on your own. It takes the whole family working together. Keep your family involved in the process. Show your kids why you’ve organized things the way you have and they’re much more likely to follow suit. Invite them to take their little corners of the house and get them ready for the hustle and bustle of the school year. When your house’s organization becomes a family matter, the chances of it lasting are far greater. Creating the desired environment for your home should always be a team effort.