What are your best homeschool organization ideas?

[Mom to 3 Island Boys]

I mean ideas for physically organizing things ~ rather than how you organize your day or your schedule and such. Anything you have purchased that you find indispensible for homeschooling? I am always looking for new ways to organize and I thought this might be an interesting thread! Thanks!

[nukeswife]

I bought some cardboard magazine and book files from www.reallygoodstuff.com They have been great for helping me to organize all of our subjects together.

[Chris in VA]

I have a small "box of wooden drawers" from Ikea that I painted and keep on our table. It's six drawers hold stickers, colored pencils, markers, fasteners (several kinds of tape, glue sticks, etc.) and various other items. On the top of it, I put our eraser, a cup of dry erase markers, my ruler (dd's hangs on the wall on a hook) and the stapler.

[Michelle in MO]

lots of plastic square bins to put on some of the bookshelves in which to store stuff (scissors, tape, rulers, etc.).

[Hot Lava Mama]

by grade. I had some things that "spanned" several years, and could never find anything. Now I have bookshelves with entire shelves devoted to only one subject. I can't believe how much it has helped! I don't spend valuable school time (defined at baby is SLEEPING!!) looking for stuff!

 

Hot Lava Mama

[autumndivona]

I sort by grade and by subject. Worksheets and freebies printed online are in binders. Books and binders are on shelves. Other items (writing implements, glue sticks, scissors, stickers, stamps, stencils, etc.) are in baskets, actually organized by the use of the items within.

[Teachnmama]

I bought it from Ikea and it holds so much. You can stand 3 ring binders up in each cube, books, and all your supplies in storage bins. I use clear pencil boxes and stack my supplies in the boxes in the various cubes. They have a smaller one (4 cubes by 4 cubes) if this one is too big for your space.

 

http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/00071356

 

By the way I bought my storage boxes at Walmart rather than the ones shown.

 

HTH,

:lol:

[MandJsMama]

I just put put a clear vinyl hanging shoe rack and it holds and organizes lots of supplies - markers in one, crayons in another, scissors, rulers, glue, tape, post-its, index cards, etc. It saved us so much room and things are very easy to find and to clean up.

[NevadaRabbit]

I mean ideas for physically organizing things ~ rather than how you organize your day or your schedule and such. Anything you have purchased that you find indispensible for homeschooling? I am always looking for new ways to organize and I thought this might be an interesting thread! Thanks!

 

I found four-cube shelves at Walmart last year that have come in very handy for books and binders. Plastic bins hold our art/craft supplies. A banker's box holds paper supplies. And I just got a Desk Apprentice from Staples (http://www.staples.com/office/supplies/p4_Plastic-Desktop-Organizers_130525_Business_Supplies_0_10051_FEATURED:SC1:CG30:DP1203) to hold files, my planning notebook, current projects, pens, etc etc etc. Somebody here on the forum mentioned it and I just *had* to have one after I looked it up. :)

[Nestof3]

I have two deep, sturdy filing cabinets. I have folders for all sorts of topics -- history, science, language arts, math, bible, etc. Three drawers are designated for science, one for history, one for language arts, one for math, one for miscellaneous, and the other for household things (manuals, health insurance, etc).

 

I have, for example, all of my plants/flower/tree stuff in one folder. Solar system/space is in another folder. Middle ages is in a folder. This is where I store all of the freebies I have, magazine articles, etc.

 

It is so easy to pull out a folder when studying a topic. Having my household things organized also helps so much.

[Tree House Academy]

I bought a plastic 3 drawer set. On the top drawer is "Momma's Stuff" and I put all my teaching guides, etc in there. Middle is ds 5's drawer and all of his books, workbooks, etc. go there, and finally the bottom drawer belongs to ds9. This way, they know where to find their books and I know where to find my guides. It helps so much! I have a big basket of "supplies" on top of the chest of drawers too and the drawer cart rolls just incase it needs to be moved. This was, by far, my best (and so cheap) investment!

[curtisandsheri]

We use a scrapbooking storage 'tote' bag in the middle of the table for pens/pencils, glue, ruler, tape, etc. It's 12x7x8 with lots of pockets - perfect for the small kitchen table we use for school. We do school in the basement during fall and spring, but have to move upstairs for winter. It travels easily and everything is one place.

I also think you can never have too many magazine file boxes (IKEA) or bookshelves.

[Heather in Neverland]

I love the Desk Apprentice for organizing our daily-must-have-at-our-fingertips!

[MtnTeaching]

Somewhere early on, I read about using milk crates for the kids' school books. I went to a popular organization store and bought two sturdy milk crates in different colors. They came with these very sturdy wheels we can use on the bottom. I found a metal upright folder holder and it dropped in there perfectly. This holds the books up straight where the kids can just flip through them by subject to find what they need. Then they just roll the box back under the desk. We traveled for several months last year and just picked up the crates and put them in the back of the truck.

 

I keep all of my teacher's manuals on the shelf above me in magazine file boxes, as others have mentioned. Bookends were a pain and the floppy guides would fall over before I got the magazine boxes.

 

Another great organizer we love, I went to the local big hardware supply and bought one of those organizers with the little plastic drawers they use for nails, screws, etc. It fits against the wall on our desk, only coming out about 6 inches and holds all of our little odds and ends ...paper clips, binder clips, extra staples, post-it notes, glue sticks, erasers, push pins, etc. I labeled all of the drawers... Martha Stewart would be proud of me...now if only I could find a pair of reading glasses when I need them.

[Peela]

I have a beautiful wooden coffee table with 4 large drawers that sits in front of the sofas in the schoolroom- I keep all our current read alouds,"together" curriculum, maps and day to day art supplies in there for easy access.

 

Buying a 2 drawer filing cabinet has been my best investment for a long time. I don't use it so much for homeschooling, but it allows me to keep all my other paperwork in order next to my desk, and that then helps me keep my homeschooling paperwork in order on my desk, because they don't all get mixed up.

[Janice in NJ]

I used to keep my books and manuals separate from the children's. But then life gets complicated when you are teaching three at once. :001_smile:

 

Now a LOT of subjects are put into those cardboard magazine file boxes before they are slid into the bookshelf. When the child is assigned to work on a specific subject, MOST of what they need is in that bin. AND EVERYTHING that I need is in there too. Hsing three at a time requires me to do a lot of floating. When I float to the child, they have already fetched everything that they need and everything that *I* need in order to interact around this subject.

 

It took me a while, but I eventually was forced to move from a place of keeping my "teacher" materials separate from the child's books. Now I tend to think in terms of "Sixth grade grammar" - everything in ONE place. The child fetches it and the child puts it away - all of it. :001_smile:

 

Peace,

Janice

 

Enjoy your little people

Enjoy your journey

[keptwoman]

I used to keep my books and manuals separate from the children's. But then life gets complicated when you are teaching three at once. :001_smile:

 

Now a LOT of subjects are put into those cardboard magazine file boxes before they are slid into the bookshelf. When the child is assigned to work on a specific subject, MOST of what they need is in that bin. AND EVERYTHING that I need is in there too. Hsing three at a time requires me to do a lot of floating. When I float to the child, they have already fetched everything that they need and everything that *I* need in order to interact around this subject.

 

It took me a while, but I eventually was forced to move from a place of keeping my "teacher" materials separate from the child's books. Now I tend to think in terms of "Sixth grade grammar" - everything in ONE place. The child fetches it and the child puts it away - all of it. :001_smile:

 

Peace,

Janice

 

Enjoy your little people

Enjoy your journey

 

Janice I like that idea! Thanks :)

We are moving in 3 weeks and I have a whole new school room planned, but I'm starting to consider how I will arrange things and this is helpful.

 

In this house our supplies are spread between 3 rooms so it will be nice to have them all in one!

 

The best thing we have is that we each have a credenza from Ikea on castors, it has 3 small drawers, room for 3 magazine boxes and a bunch of file folders. We each keep our books etc in this and can take the credenzas to wherever we are working.

[LNC]

I love this lazy susan w/ supplies on our homeschool table. It has been so useful on an hourly basis!!

 

http://picasaweb.google.com/Jlhutch6/HomeschoolRoom/photo?authkey=zZo7a-BwKdE#5202435699720027058

[Country Mouse]

I have a clear plastic, over the door shoe rack that hangs on the inside of a large cabinet door. The pockets are filled with scissors, rulers, glue, 3x5 cards, pencils, markers (washable down low, sharpies up high :)). You can place small kids drinking cups in pockets for holding writing utensils and keeping things sorted.

For papers, I am a 3-ring binder fanatic.

[threetreasurs]

I think we may need to invest in the desk top apprentice this year. Is is available in store or only online?

[johnandtinagilbert]

Everyone (me too) has their own "cubby" which translates to bookshelves and/or actually cubby-sized bookshelves for their materials. My desk with a hutch has all my materials with a shelf for "History" which means all our books for the week (library, text, spine) and "science" (library, text, spine).

 

Next to the school table is a small bookshelf with paper, pencils, glue, etc. Everything is in pencil boxes with words and pictures on each box. The paper is in a 3-drawer set with labels on the outside. On the same bookshelf, the bottom shelf is full of their "for pleasure" library books.

 

In the "library" (which is a joke b/c it's a tiny room with wall to wall books on several bookshelves) I keep all the curriculum we're not using, but need to be saved for future use.

I have a living book case (ordered like the dewey decimal)

A history bookshelf with books separated by Year (we use Tapestry of Grace)

A science bookshelf with lab materials in small boxes labeled.

A shelf for art paper and encyclopedias, biographies

A book shelf with a math area, organized by grade, and on the same shelf, there is room for language art curriculum, also organized by grade

 

To keep things easily accessible and also be able to easily store, I put lesson plans in file folders and when I'm finished with them, I move them from my desk file cabinet directly into file folder boxes and put them on the book shelf.

 

Finally, b/c I also want to be able to sit in the library and enjoy the space for reading, I have curtains on all the book shelves so it's restful to look at and a rocking chair in the middle of the room so I can sit and we can have reading time in there...I'm really milkin' the whole library thing, I know, I just can't help it.....I love books and curriculum!

[FloridaLisa]

I use a file box from Walmart with hanging files. All of my Saxon answer keys, solutions manuals, Apologia answer keys, etc are in there. The top of the box holds red pens (or various colors) and sticky notes. I *love* being able to take my grading box with me -- whether it's to wait during a doctor's appt or into the family room to grade in the evening.

 

Can't take credit for it; someone here posted about their grading system something like this:

 

file box + answer keys in hanging folders = 1 happy mama. I agree!

 

Lisa

[Guest olsenphilly]

I just recently bought a few containers made by itso - sold at Target.

There are individual storage units that can be combined in different ways and also fit into cubes or shelving units that they make. It looked neat, and there is a website, - I do not know how to put links in, but I will try:

 

http://target.com/itso

 

:001_huh:

 

Rachel

[momto7]

A couple of years ago I purchased several plastic locker bins--the size that holds magazines. The children put in all of their workbooks, notebooks, a couple of pencils, and other small supplies like rulers, etc. That way, each day, they can grab their individual bins and go and I don't have to look all over for their books. At the end of the day, all the bins are lined up in a certain location. It has been a HUGE time/space saver! Now as the younger ones get ready for "school" they can't wait until they get their own bins. Sort of a right-of-passage around here.

[Rhonda in WA]

Buying a wall unit helped us out. It keeps books and supplies all in one place. But I think I will have to buy a desk organizer or that lazy susan thing looks good. I have pictures on my blog of our wall unit.

 

http://3girlsandoneboy.blogspot.com/2008/07/this-is-our-school-roomit-is-upstairs.html

[lovemywhirlygirls]

Rhonda,

 

Where'd you get that awesome table with the shelf and storage underneath? I love it!

[Rhonda in WA]

Rhonda,

 

Where'd you get that awesome table with the shelf and storage underneath? I love it!

 

Well we have a relative that works for Pottery Barn kids and we got it at her price. It was in the store and she bought it and we paid her. But it is the tall activity table at Pottery Barn kids.

[Eva]

I love all the ideas, I am taking notes!

 

I always arrange the children's books in a bookcase where each child has one shelf just big enough for their books and still narrow enough to hold the books up easily. I love narrow bookcases for this. No one wants their books and notebooks falling over all the time and who wants to look through other peoples things to find theirs. I don't anything getting mixed up. I want things quick and easy to find and return to their spot when finished.

 

I also organize papers for notebooking in the plastic three drawer units from WM. They are white, with clear drawers. The drawers are just big enough for standard paper and card stock and are about 3 inches deep each.

 

All their papers, sheet protectors, paper cutter, markers, pens, pencils, our prismacolors, etc. are all together on one table.

 

Eva

[Ferdie]

I use a file box from Walmart with hanging files. All of my Saxon answer keys, solutions manuals, Apologia answer keys, etc are in there. The top of the box holds red pens (or various colors) and sticky notes. I *love* being able to take my grading box with me -- whether it's to wait during a doctor's appt or into the family room to grade in the evening.

 

Can't take credit for it; someone here posted about their grading system something like this:

 

file box + answer keys in hanging folders = 1 happy mama. I agree!

 

Lisa

 

Thank you for the great idea. Brilliant!

[Eva]

I love this lazy susan w/ supplies on our homeschool table. It has been so useful on an hourly basis!!

 

http://picasaweb.google.com/Jlhutch6/HomeschoolRoom/photo?authkey=zZo7a-BwKdE#5202435699720027058

 

 

 

I love how you have integrated your school books and materials into your home so nicely. I love all the woodgrain and the plates on the wall. It all looks very pretty!

 

Eva

[Eva]

I think I am going to go get one of the Ikea Expedit Shelves! These are exactly what I have been looking for. We have tried some similar shelving from Target and the cubes are not tall enough for notebooks and tall books.

 

Could you possibly tell me the inside dimension of the cubes in the Expedit shelves? Ikea only gives the overall dimensions of the entire unit.

 

Thanks!

Eva

[Ferdie]

I think I am going to go get one of the Ikea Expedit Shelves! These are exactly what I have been looking for. We have tried some similar shelving from Target and the cubes are not tall enough for notebooks and tall books.

 

Could you possibly tell me the inside dimension of the cubes in the Expedit shelves? Ikea only gives the overall dimensions of the entire unit.

 

Thanks!

Eva

 

The inside dimension of each cube is 13" X 13".

[Eva]

The inside dimension of each cube is 13" X 13".

 

 

 

Wonderful! Thank you! I already figured out that I need at least 12" for notebooks and any of our taller books like Apologia Science.

 

Now, let me see if I can find an excuse to drive into town to Ikea! ha With the cost of gas, I need to hit up another stop along the way to make it worth the expense. :)

 

Thanks!

Eva

[8filltheheart]

We recently moved and our new house's layout doesn't really accommodate the all the bookshelves that we had in our old house. (Ok......we have been homeschooling for 15 yrs and have 7 kids and I love books......we own more than some small libraries!!)

 

Our new house has a huge walk in attic off the main hall upstairs. I made one end the "storage library." There are 4 bookshelves and huge cabinet in there with the "off-cycle" books.

 

Oh, I also organize all our bookshelves by subject......science on one shelf, different historical time periods/cultures have their own dedicated shelves, great lit shelved by reading/age level, etc.

 

I also recently purchased these clear plastic slotted thingies (how is that for accuracy!!) for holding construction paper. Works great and keeps it neat.

[Teachnmama]

Hi Eva - I had mentioned in my original post that I got my bins at walmart that fit in the individual cubes. They are tall closet storage boxed from HOMZ and they sell for aroudn $7.95 - the ones that they show you in the picture at Ikea are around $11.00 each so the Walmart bins are quite a savings.

 

Hope this helps!

 

I think I am going to go get one of the Ikea Expedit Shelves! These are exactly what I have been looking for. We have tried some similar shelving from Target and the cubes are not tall enough for notebooks and tall books.

 

Could you possibly tell me the inside dimension of the cubes in the Expedit shelves? Ikea only gives the overall dimensions of the entire unit.

 

Thanks!

Eva

[Eva]

Hi Eva - I had mentioned in my original post that I got my bins at walmart that fit in the individual cubes. They are tall closet storage boxed from HOMZ and they sell for aroudn $7.95 - the ones that they show you in the picture at Ikea are around $11.00 each so the Walmart bins are quite a savings.

 

Hope this helps!

 

 

Hey! I hadn't even thought of the bins yet and we are only going to use the top 3 rows for 3 children's books. I should get bins for the bottom row! That would be a great way to store some things down there and keep it looking nice and uncluttered.

 

Thanks so much for letting me know!

 

Eva

[Meljoy]

:lurk5:

[profmom]

Finally, b/c I also want to be able to sit in the library and enjoy the space for reading, I have curtains on all the book shelves so it's restful to look

 

Is there a way we could see a picture of the curtains on the bookshelves? :) Sounds like a good idea, but I'm wondering how you do it.

[Nestof3]

If Michaels still sells these, I am going to buy one with a coupon. I plan to keep it on my desk but move it to the center of the table when we school. Right now, I've been using a coffee mug and a little tupperware container. With two boys, I like to have 2 of each -- scissors, glue stick, Tombow adhesive, large eraser -- and also plenty of pencils, sharpener, etc.

 

http://www.makingmemories.com/Products/detail/Desktop-Carousel

[profmom]

Great thread! Here are some of mine:

 

 

Manuals:

 

~ I have my TMs on a tall narrow bookcase within arms-reach and facing my desk chair. (I'm set up in a corner.)

 

~ Last year, I labeled each shelf (on the surface of the shelf, not on the front). I feel a little silly for labeling, but it made a huge difference! I used to quickly put books in whatever place was open and then spent time looking for them later. So, now it is labeled, "Greek, Latin, Math, Grammar, Writing, TOG..." and I find everything quickly.

 

 

Bookshelves:

 

~ Dd has labeled some of our other bookcases too. We have dedicated shelves for library books, science, history (general), current TOG books, Bible/devotional, each child's school notebooks, etc. She has just labeled places for our reference books, and I'm hoping this will help us store them in the same place every time. :tongue_smilie:

 

 

Saving School Work:

 

~ This year I set up a larger binder for each child with tabs for each subject. I'm planning to put tests and work samples into the binder during the year so that maybe we'll finally create a book with samples of a year of school work at the end.

 

~ This year's motto: No loose papers!! We'll use spiral notebooks for everything that isn't a workbook and do our best to keep everything else in a binder at all times (TOG student pages, printed writing projects -- punch and file immediately, etc.) Dd will just use college-ruled, but ds still prefers a dashed mid-line. (See the drop down box for spirals with line sizes up to 4th grade.)

[kls126s]

If Michaels still sells these, I am going to buy one with a coupon. I plan to keep it on my desk but move it to the center of the table when we school. Right now, I've been using a coffee mug and a little tupperware container. With two boys, I like to have 2 of each -- scissors, glue stick, Tombow adhesive, large eraser -- and also plenty of pencils, sharpener, etc.

 

http://www.makingmemories.com/Products/detail/Desktop-Carousel

 

Oh, Dawn - those are sharp looking! If you have seen them there before, do you remember how much they were - before the coupon?

 

Also (off topic) - what is Tombow adhesive? Is this some brilliant find I'm not aware of? :bigear:

[Nestof3]

Oh, Dawn - those are sharp looking! If you have seen them there before, do you remember how much they were - before the coupon?

 

Also (off topic) - what is Tombow adhesive? Is this some brilliant find I'm not aware of?

 

I think the retail is $39.99. Target has one too, so I may compare.

 

Tombow adhesive is what I use for scrapbooking and cardmaking. I love this stuff. My youngest son makes cards too, and since using the Tombow, both of the boys prefer it to glue when doing school projects.

 

You buy a dispenser which comes with a refill. Then, you just keep buying refills. I buy my dispensers with coupons at AC Moore or M's, then I stock up on refills from :

 

http://www.discountofficeitems.com/tombow-mono-permanent-adhesive-refill-tom62202-office-products-13931.html

[kls126s]

I think the retail is $39.99. Target has one too, so I may compare.

 

With a coupon that's a pretty good deal. And I like that it's not plasticky looking...

 

Tombow adhesive is what I use for scrapbooking and cardmaking. I love this stuff. My youngest son makes cards too, and since using the Tombow, both of the boys prefer it to glue when doing school projects.

 

Ahh - I've used those before; just didn't know they were Tombow...

 

Thanks -

[VickyKinLA]

Wow! What a great question. I need help with this too. thanks everyone for the helpful ideas. The hardest thing for me about organizing is letting go of the books and curriculu I no longer need!

 

Good luck!

[Saille]

Do you have a store near you, or are you having it shipped? I like a lot of stuff from Ikea, but I wondered if the cost of shipping was prohibitive.

[ubermomto5]

A couple of years ago I purchased several plastic locker bins--the size that holds magazines. The children put in all of their workbooks, notebooks, a couple of pencils, and other small supplies like rulers, etc. That way, each day, they can grab their individual bins and go and I don't have to look all over for their books. At the end of the day, all the bins are lined up in a certain location. It has been a HUGE time/space saver! Now as the younger ones get ready for "school" they can't wait until they get their own bins. Sort of a right-of-passage around here.

i can't visualize what these would look like?

 

we have a closet in the hall that we turned into our 'homeschool closet'. my stuff is on the top 3 shelves. the kids each have a cereal box cut like a mag box for their workbooks, notebooks, paper, etc. they also every year get a pencil box - the kind that are like a cigar box - from michaels, plain white, and we decorate them with their name, stickers, coloring whatever. this holds their glue stick, crayons, pencils, etc. we line these up and it is clear which is their own. they can find what they need easily. the bottom part of the closet is for art supplies, paper, etc. all organized on the shelves. we do have a lot of etc. in our house!