Garga Posted February 6, 2009 Share Posted February 6, 2009 My sons are 3 and 6. Preschool and 1st grade. My bookcases are already stuffed with binders of coloring pages, mapwork, completed math workbooks, etc. I would LOVE to get rid of this stuff. Will I regret it if I do? Will my kids later be upset that I got rid of all their work? Once they turn 8, I'll have to compile a portfolio with a sampling of what they learned (but only a small sampling) to comply with state requirements. Other than the small state-required portfolio in 2 years, what does the hive do with all the old schoolwork? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parrothead Posted February 6, 2009 Share Posted February 6, 2009 I save all dd's work in various size bankers boxes. The only reason I do this is because I never know where we will end up. I've read that some states require all work to be kept for the entire time the child is in homeschool. So just in case we move to one of those states I keep everything. But the boxes are are stacked in a storage area, not on the bookshelves. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joannqn Posted February 6, 2009 Share Posted February 6, 2009 Because we are enrolled in a virtual school that lets me choose our curriculum, I have to submit a monthly progress report stating what we've covered for the month in each subject I chose to cover for the year. I keep a copy of each month's report for my own records, their test results (all homeschoolers are required to test and keep their test results), and a few sample pages of their best work in each subject for the year. My daughter likes to write stories so I keep a copy of each story she writes. The rest I toss. ETA: I usually take photos of our field trips and major projects so I have those as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amie Posted February 6, 2009 Share Posted February 6, 2009 I was homeschooled from Kindergarten (and my siblings). My Mom was required to put together a portfolio at the end of each school year to show our work. She had a hard time parting with it all and saved all of them (!). She stored everything in large rubbermaid boxes in the garage. She gave all of mine to me after I moved out of the house. I went through it all and condensed it into some "scrapbooks" of sorts for my own sake. She has since done the same with some of my siblings as they are getting older and letting them help pick out things they would like to keep. I like that I have these samples now that I'm older, but there is NO WAY I could (or would want to) try to save everything. There is just way too much--especially from preschool and the early grades. I'd suggest keeping a few things, but don't feel guilty about getting rid of anything beyond what is required by law. You may even want to let the kids help you pick some things out as they get older. I do believe that it is much easier for them to pick out things after a decent amount of time has passed--a child ending 1st grade probably isn't going to feel ready to part with all of the "great" work he has just completed--give him some time (maybe even a couple of years) and he will probably part with things much more easily. I've done this quite a bit growing up--purging more and more of my childhood things as I've gotten older. Things become less important or sentimental as other more important things take their place. Anyway, being an adult now with my own kids it is fun to be able to pull out a drawing I made or a poem I wrote in elementary school. Sorry this is so long--I'm totally rambling! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ELaurie Posted February 6, 2009 Share Posted February 6, 2009 So far, I've kept samples of my dc's K work and most of their their work for 1st and 2nd grade. Ds 9 is in 3rd grade this year; as he gets older I will pare down what I have from his earlier grades. I only kept pre school level work if it had some sentimental value; selected art work and writing samples. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
riada Posted February 6, 2009 Share Posted February 6, 2009 I keep quizzes and tests along with some great samples of their works (our favorite pieces) and then toss the rest. I think the answer will vary depending on what your state requires. I like to have room for new stuff so we don't keep everything. Another thought is to take pictures of some things. A photo of great projects takes up less room than the projects themselves. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Evergreen State Sue Posted February 6, 2009 Share Posted February 6, 2009 I'm making a generalization here, but because you mentioned you have boys, I'm going to say they probably wouldn't care as much as sentimental girls. That's what I've found in my life here anyway. I say keep a sampling, make sure you indicate in some kind of record what you did each year, and toss the rest. I recently listened to a mom talk about homeschooling through high school. That is when it really becomes important to keep records so your transcript is complete. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KristenS Posted February 6, 2009 Share Posted February 6, 2009 I keep most papers during the year in a binder. In the preschool years, that gets pretty unwieldy fast! So at the end of the year I pare it down a bit. But I do still keep a binder, and any workbooks completed, just for my own records. Field trip flyers and things, too, in case I should ever need to 'prove' school days. As my oldest is getting older (first grade now), our notebook system isn't working as well, so not sure what I am going to do. Probably still keep samples in a binder, and completed workbooks. I keep each year or so in a banker's box (cardboard, cheap) along with papers we submitted. Hopefully this will be useful. Definitely going to weed it down once they graduate though! Keep the cutest bits for scrapbooks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest janainaz Posted February 6, 2009 Share Posted February 6, 2009 I save every piece of work that is done and it's always dated. I let the notebooks fill up and then rubber band stuff together, put a paper on the top and label what it is and put in a bankers box. I just want to cover my bases in case - whatever. It's just my proof that school is being done. I don't know how long I'll save stuff. As long as I have room, I'll keep it all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garga Posted February 7, 2009 Author Share Posted February 7, 2009 Ok--I think I'd better keep it all for awhile. Thanks everyone for the banker's box ideas. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tutor Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 I keep samples of work from throughout the year for each child in a 1" binder per grade. I take photos of items they want to keep but will not fit in the binder, like artwork and large maps. They like to look through the binders periodically. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aggie Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 I've kept some (a very little bit) of their work, but ALL of their art work. For some reason, the art is more precious to me, especially as they get older. :001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 Toss it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KristineinKS Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 Last year my daughter's 3rd grade (public school) teacher made a CD portfolio for each parent that included samples of their child's work during the year, as well as pictures (of art projects, field trips & other classroom activities) that she'd taken during the year. I thought that was a terrific idea - albeit VERY ambitious for a teacher - and will probably do the same thing myself, rather than trying to store a bunch of papers! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newlifemom Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 Wow. :001_huh: I kept dd's work through the 1st 4year period in 3" binders per subject. After 4th grade I went through ruthlessly and kept only a few pieces. I was going to do the same with my others. Is it really that important to keep it all. I really, really, really, really hate paper. I hate that I have to keep my books for the other kids. If money were not an object I would simply get rid of the ones I am done with and buy new when the next one came up. I know, I know I am extremely wasteful. I just hate junk/clutter/boxes of books/papers. So why did I marry a pack rat and begin hsing?:D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peela Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 I toss almost all of it- I just keep a few special things from each year. Those few things mean more to me than a houseful of clutter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nestof3 Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 I kept all of my eldest son's, and a couple of years prior to his graduation, I recycled most of it. He couldn't care less about seeing math worksheets he did when he was 9. I bawled going through much of it, and I set aside special writing assignments and art work. I have saved all of his IOWA tests, "permission" to homeschool letters, transcript, SAT scores, and CLEP scores. I also keep achievement certificates and such. He's now in college, but I want to hold onto these things. We take tons of pictures and video tapings, and I know these will mean far more. What he really likes looking at are pictures of his old Lego creations. Oh, and I scrapbook too. For the young ones, I keep all documentation as mentioned above, lapbooks, lots of art work, creative writing, etc. Most of this is stuff done outside of "school" time. I do keep all of their papers for the current school year in case of an audit or something, but I never had one single problem when homeschooling Aaron. They've all scored in the top 8 percent or higher, so I was never concerned about proving anything. My husband is also self-employed with an established business here, so I cannot imagine us moving. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anne Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 Toss it!! I kept one manilla envelope (8-1/2 x 11) per year per child. Each envelope contained a sampling of the child's work for the year and a list of what they did. That's it. When they hit high school, I used the next size bigger envelope. These envelopes occupy two, maybe three bankers boxes in a closet downstairs. Anne Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
orangearrow Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 I kept everything for dd#1 for several years. Then with dd#2 and ds coming along, started to panic about where to keep everything. I seriously thought about it and realized that the kids will probably not THANK me for handing them boxes and boxes of childhood papers when they're in their own home, so I decided to start reducing. I now keep their history and science binders for each year/subject. Everything else goes (math workbooks, phonics workbooks, any other worksheets, most copywork, etc). I do keep a few examples of handwriting/copywork through the year, and a few artwork pieces. Most art, though, I take a picture of, and have it printed at Walgreens. then I just stick it in a photo album or scrapbook of our year. simple. :) It was liberating and I'm much happier. The girls love looking over their history or science binders from time to time, so I'm glad we kept those. Everything else was just sucking up space. :) note: We aren't required to keep anything for the state. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
katilac Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 I'm making a generalization here, but because you mentioned you have boys, I'm going to say they probably wouldn't care as much as sentimental girls. That's what I've found in my life here anyway. That generalization doens't fly in my world - - my brother, the only boy out of four sibs, is the one who, I kid you not, still has the NFL football curtains first hung in his childhood bedroom in, oh, 1972? My dh is the one who has the wooden ducks he carved in junior high shop class hanging in his office, and the luv note from his first girlfriend :lol: The girls in my family just want more closet space! So, I'm going to have to say my experience is that this type of sentiment is personality, rather than gender, based. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barb_ Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 I toss it. In fact, papers rarely last longer than to the end of the day around here. Part of it has to do with having a large family. It just isn't feasible to save even a sampling of work each year. We'd be buried in no time. Part has to do with the number of times we've moved (7) since beginning our homeschooling journey. Part of it comes from my reaction to my photographs being ruined in a basement flood about 10 years ago, which pretty much cured me of sentimentality. And finally, I remember my mom trying to pack up my childhood home and move into a 2br condo while my dad was in the hospital having a quadruple bypass. She tossed scads of stuff she'd saved from when we were little and it just didn't seem so important anymore. Barb Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barb_ Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 That generalization doens't fly in my world - - my brother, the only boy out of four sibs, is the one who, I kid you not, still has the NFL football curtains first hung in his childhood bedroom in, oh, 1972? My dh is the one who has the wooden ducks he carved in junior high shop class hanging in his office, and the luv note from his first girlfriend :lol: The girls in my family just want more closet space! So, I'm going to have to say my experience is that this type of sentiment is personality, rather than gender, based. \ My brother would squash me for saying this, but at 38 years old, he still has his Sweeter-Bear sitting in the room where he and his wife sleep :lol: Barb Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tap Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 I don't save hardly anything. A few little things each year, for mementos, and that is it. Ds14 is in highschool, and I do plan to save his time log, just in case. It has the work we did at home logged in it, and the outside classes. It is a state requirement to maintain one during the year and it will be simple to store, just in case :001_smile: I am only keeping it because it is highschool, I wouldn't do it if it was anything less. I used to save more throughout the year, and then toss but now I don't even do that. I know what we used, if anyone wants to ask, I will show them a syllabus. If they have a question about if my child has completed a grade....then I guess they will have to assume they passed first grade if they are doing 4th grade work. If they want to test them...test them. I don't mind, the kids like tests, and it would be easier than keeping track of it all. We do state testing most years, so the do have a basic bench mark to look at. I don't know what having a spelling workbook that my dd completed in 2nd grade would tell anyone anyways. Again, if they want to know if dd can spell....test her. :tongue_smilie: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NancyNellen Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 toss :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gretchen in NJ Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 Every year in August, I pack all of the notebooks and finished workbooks for the year into a plastic bin. I also enclose a back-up copy from my computer of any notes or records that I may have made/kept. We store ours on shelves in the basement. Now, the only question is, "How long do I have to save these bins?":001_huh: We start out in September with new notebooks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moni Posted February 8, 2009 Share Posted February 8, 2009 Toss it. I toss it. As we go. :seeya: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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