Get Your trainee Organized For Back to School

Do you have a child at home who goes to school? If you do, then we all know September can be a very stressful month. Not only are children trying to get into their new schedules but so too are the parents. Change doesn't come easy to many but if you help them construct "the diminutive things" such as a duffle bag for a new sport or the top of their bedroom desk, it can carry it's weight in gold as their academic and personal lives continue to grow in complexity.

Before fourth grade teachers and parents tend to construct children in class and at home. By the time they departmentalize in middle school they are carrying the weight of the world on their backs inside a movable office if you will call it that and they will have to determine how to organize:

Food Recipe

Space - Backpacks, lockers and desk Paper - Binders, notebooks and folders Time - Planner or at least a calendar
"Once the technical aspects of a student's academic life are taking care of, the child can then merge on doing their work instead of locating it!" The Organized learner by Donna Goldberg

These are the same areas (space, paper and time) adults construct so we need to help our children with the basic skills they need to structure their organizing systems. Remember Posse's recipe for organizational success; Sspoe (Sort, Select, Purge, Organize, Equalize) each time you help your child construct anything.

Example: Backpack

Prior to any organizing attempt with your child make sure you have his permission to help and consist of his participation. You will see and hear solutions that you may never have idea of and most likely he will keep up the organizing because he was part of the process! Hint: If your child is unwilling to work with you, forcing him/her is going to get you both nowhere so ask again in a month or two. Discuss goals for the space. You might say, "May I help you construct your backpack and locker? This will give us an opportunity to make sure things don't get lost or too hard to find. In turn, this will help you find your papers, books, homework assignments and such as you trip back and forth to classes and our house. You'll be able to get to class on time, turn in your assignments on time and find what need for homework each night without worrying." Sort - Take everything out of the pack and together sort everything into logical categories: books, loose papers, pens, pencils, folders, electronics, money, extracurricular items, food, bus pass, cell phone holder, keys, garbage etc. Select - determine what is foremost and belongs in the backpack. What should and shouldn't have come home from school such as distinct books for homework assignments. Purge - Any thing that is obviously garbage such as food wrappers, doodling papers etc. Discuss what should not go back into the backpack such as any kind of toy. Organize / Containerize / Labelize a. construct - Put the items back into the backpack the way your child "thinks" about them. Should his books / folders / binder be in the order of his classes from morning until afternoon, should they go in order of his favorite subjects to least favorite, does he want he books together from shortest to largest or does he want to put things back agreeing to color? It doesn't matter how he does it as long as it makes sense to him and he consistently uses the same "system" daily to keep order. This way when he gets to his locker he can mimic the same set-up. If his locker and backpack are organized the same way it will save him time and mental when looking his subjects. b. Containerize - Try your best to buy a good ability backpack with several compartments so you can set-up "homes" for distinct categories of items. Make sure your child's drink area is on the surface of the pack or in a leak proof area of the pack. c. Labelize - Use a labeling engine and label the areas in the backpack such as: Books, Folders, Homework, Money, Pencil Case etc. This will be a visual reminder of where things go and kids tend to obey the signs they create. You may also want to generate a "map" of the pack or take a picture of the newly created order so they can continually refer back to it until memorization is solidified. Equalize / Enlist / Enjoy - Nobody is perfectly organized especially children. There will be backsliding of course. You'll have to reminder them daily at first and then weekly to ensure they are retention up with their maintenance. You may want to have them clean out their packs every Friday or Sunday night until it becomes routine. Clarify how foremost it is for them is achieve this ritual regularly as it will keep them organized.

Get Your trainee Organized For Back to School