What schoolwork do I keep?

[behome]

Hi,

I'm trying to purge all our past work before the school year begins and I'm wondering what stuff most of you keep. I have workbooks and subject homework neatly filed for each child but now I'm thinking maybe this is all a bit much to store. I obviously would keep projects and artwork, but what about grammar notebooks and writing assignments, or latin workbooks and spelling tests? Seems silly to keep it all, but yet hard to throw out everyone's hard work! I would love some perspective! Thanks

[alisha]

A lot depends on what your state requires. But since mine requires no portfolios.

I try to keep something from each of their written/workbook subjects from the beginning, middle and end of the year, as well as writing samples from the beginning, maybe the middle and end of the year. (some subjects we do orally, so there is no written work so I don't keep anything).

Also, keep any cute writing assignments -where they wrote something you smiled or laughed at, or maybe a particularly well done or large writing assignment.

For workbooks, I have taken them apart saving with the aforementioned rules-mostly for the younger years. But in the upper elementary, I keep the workbooks intact and in the garage, in case there's some reason I might want to go back and see if something was covered, or how it was covered (ex.-math), But as we get a few years away from that, I will probably just grab a few pages to keep and throw the rest.

I also keep the workbooks until my youngest is done with that grade. That way, if he is having problems with a current curriculum, I COULD (if I wanted) look back and see how this other curriculum did things, and maybe that would work better. Or, if it's the same curriculum, not so much.

 

[MerryAtHope]

My state had no portfolio requirements, so I only kept a sample (beginning, middle, end of year) from some subjects for a year. I recycled everything else, and recycled the samples after a year.

I had my kids go through their work and decide what to keep each year, and then after that, I looked to see if there were any cute little stories or art work that I wanted. 

It all adds up fast!

[Momto6inIN]

I don't have requirements from the state, so I only keep their written narrations (because their word choices sound so cute in hindsight) and any particularly cute artwork. The rest gets chucked in the recycle bin. Do you all remember that last day of public school when we got to dump all our old workbooks into the bin as fondly as I do??? 😁

[Farrar]

We're required to keep a portfolio for a year after the school year ends. But even with that... I'd pick a dozen or so things and then toss the rest.

I do keep a few things from each year, just as keepsakes. It's fun to look back on and it helps me and the kids know we've progressed. But you really don't have to keep a ton or anything at all. I especially wouldn't keep much in the way of spelling tests or math worksheets. Those things are process-based learning. Processes are messy and unfun to revisit. I only save some for the sake of the state requirements to show that we were doing those things. But a science fair project or a polished short story or a special piece of artwork... those are products. Those are the things I generally try to keep a few of. They are fun to revisit.

[Clemsondana]

At the end of the year, I shove everything into a file box.  I have 2, so I can hold 2 years worth of stuff (but one year would suffice - I just wound up with 2 boxes at some point).  Once both boxes are full, then the next year when I need to file I empty the box and pick a thin file folder worth of stuff to save - usually an example from each subjectt, although now that older is doing good writing assignments that are typed, I may save several reports.  I toss the rest into recycling.  Once a year has passed, I figure I've passed any 'prove that your kid did something' deadline - nobody is going to ask what we did 2 years ago when they can look at this year's work - and there is less emotional need to hang on to everything.  With little kid projects, it was hard to toss stuff, but with big kids, their stuff is less bulky.