Papers. Folders. Notebooks. Tests. Books. Study guides. Tablets. Craft supplies. How do you keep all the schoolwork and supplies from taking over your house during the school year? Here are three simple and inexpensive ways to organize school supplies and create order in your child’s study space.
Watch the video tutorial and find more project details below:
1. Arts and crafts supply station
Who knew the over-the-door shoe hanger could have so many purposes. In our coat closet, we use one to sort hats, mittens and sunglasses. In our tool closet, we have one that holds our most commonly used household supplies. And at the homework station, we have one to hold craft supplies used for school projects (yay dioramas!).
Materials:
- Over-the-door shoe organizer
- Adhesive hooks (if no door is available)
- Craft supplies
- Large binder clips (optional)
Directions:
Hang the shoe organizer over a door where it will be out of the way but accessible to children. You can also hang it lower on any wall by using temporary adhesive hooks. Fill the pockets with craft supplies. If you don’t use all the pockets, use the binder clips to fold up the bottom and get it out of the way.
Hint: You might want to strategically place the least used (feathers and pompoms) at the top and keep the most commonly used supplies (paper and markers) lower and easiest to reach.
2. Homework caddy
This caddy is perfect for storing the essentials on a desk and also using to grab and go when school projects change locations (say, from the living room to the dinner table).
Materials:
- Shower caddy with about four compartments
- School supplies kids use most:
- Pens
- Pencils
- Calculator
- Ruler
- Paper
- Extra erasers
- Pencil sharpener
- Paper
Directions:
Take the shower caddy and designate certain spaces for your most commonly used supplies. Pens, pencils, erasers and sharpener in one section. Ruler, calculator and scissors in another. Markers and highlighters in the third. Paper, folders and notebooks can go in the wider section.
3. Under-the-desk storage drawers
Kids don’t need filing cabinets — or do they? If your child’s desk or designated homework area doesn’t have drawers, here’s a simple solution.
Materials:
- Stackable plastic drawers
- Drawer organizers, sized to fit inside your drawers
Directions:
Stackable drawers allow you to customize this homework organization solution to fit your exact needs. We used three clear plastic stackable drawers with four square organizers in the top two drawers, used to separate supplies.
We put pencils, pens, erasers and the rest of our homework supplies in the top drawer. Paints, crayons and craft supplies went the middle drawer. Then, in the bottom drawer, we put lined paper and a composition notebook for easy access.
