Back To School Organization Ideas

We are halfway through our first week of school and so far everyone is adjusting well.  We really had such a great summer!  I feel like each year with my kids it gets better and better.  But getting back to our routine is good too and all the fun Fall and holiday time is exciting to look forward to as well.  My friends Christy and Amy at 11 Magnolia Lane have put together their annual back to school operation organization series this week and I'm excited to participate.  Today I'm teaming up with a group of friends to share how we keep ourselves organized for the school year.  This wall basket system is still going strong in our home for 3 years now.  It is one of my most favorite organization systems for back to school.  It helps keep the counters clutter free and our kitchen and office looking tidy!

So here's how it works for us.  You can see all three baskets that I use in the picture above.  There are two wall baskets labeled with each of my kids' names and then a larger basket on the counter that is part of this system as well.  The wall baskets are from World Market and they are a nice size (these are the medium size) and I love that they are wide enough to hold a binder.  Most wall organization systems I looked at, fit papers and notebooks, but not a binder.  The counter top basket is from Target.

During the school year when the kids come home with their 20 daily pages each, I quickly sort through them and toss what I don't need and then place whatever I need to keep in the larger counter top basket.  If I have time, I sort through and file the important papers to keep in the binders that are inside each child's basket.  But if we are running out the door for something or if I just don't feel like sorting papers immediately, they stay in the basket on the counter and things still look neat until I can get to them. 

In each binder, I have clear protector sheets to keep permanent papers intact such as the school year calendar, class schedule, etc.  I also have dividers to file papers for their extracurricular activities, religion classes, and other miscellaneous items.

And here's a close up look at the tabs for my daughter's binder.  I have them labeled right now with:  School, Sports/Cheer, Piano, Religion, Miscellaneous.

This basket system has worked so well for us!  It's really simple, but so necessary and such a big help keeping up with all the kids' important papers.

And if you're looking for a way to organize your kids' art supplies, this organized kids' arts and craft closet has been a really popular post for my readers in the past around this time of the year.  It has made the kids' school projects during the year so much easier with everything in order. 

Also sharing their back to school organization ideas are:

Monday 8/22

Amy & Christy from 11 Magnolia Lane * Amanda from Dixie Delights * Laura from Duke Manor Farm * Becky fromOrganizing Made Fun * Abby from Just a Girl and her Blog

Wednesday 8/24

Sara from Sincerely Sara D * Julie from Less than Perfect Life of Bliss * Becky from This is Happiness * Sam from Simply Organized * Lauren from Bless’er House * Erin from Sunny Side Up

We can also keep in touch here: