In the last post, I discussed the importance of cleaning out kid's storage spaces in order to help them get organized. In this post, I will share the topic of Establishing a Simple Binder System.
1. Get rid of looseleaf paper and only use spiral notebooks. Tweens just can't handle all the possibilities--ripping them out, having them fall out of the binder, taking notes out and finding them months later at the bottom of the backpack, etc. No. Do not set them up for this. And get a spiral binder. NOT the kind where papers can be ripped out. That leads back to the possibilities I mentioned previously. Spiral binders go on sale for less than 50 cents right before school starts. Do your kids and yourself a favor by starting right with spiral binders for each class.
2. A 3 ring binder. A big one, so it can hold all the notebooks.
3. Tabs. Label each tab with the name of the classes, in the order that your kid will have them. If your school is on the commonly found block day schedule, perhaps label the binder with "A" day colors and "B" day colors. Some families prefer to give kids 2 binders, one for "A" day and one for "B", and I say that is a BIG no no. Kids frequently bring the "A" binder to school on a "B" day and then they can't get work done. Or, if they have free time, there is no way they can do work from "A" day on "B" day. One binder with clearly labeled tabs.
4. Clean out the binder bi-weekly with kids.
5. An agenda, preferably kept in binder. If no agenda, a way to right down weekly assignments.
If you start your child our right with an organized system, and do frequent cleanouts of binder, backpack, locker and room, your kid will learn to be organized and will have a much better experience in middle school. Think back to your middle school days--you would have appreciated any step up you could have had, am I right? Do your kid a favor--get them organized.
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