Being organized takes stress off the school calendar

Ft. Worth Star Telegram - Posted Thursday, Aug. 12, 2010

By Laura Samuel Meyn

Special to the Star-Telegram

It's 7:15 a.m. and you have 20 minutes to get out the door.

You'll need to pack healthful yet appealing lunches in reusable containers that you hope you'll see again; get clothing onto little people who have, inexplicably, pulled out last year's high-waters rather than the nice new pants you just purchased; help each kid find two shoes from the same pair -- a pair that still fits, that is; and get backpacks ready to go, complete with all the day's supplies.

Whew! It's enough to max out almost anyone's organizational abilities.

We talked to the self-described "Queen of Declutter" Faith P. Tennyson (www.thequeenofdeclutter.com), a Grapevine-based member of the National Association of Professional Organizers (www.napo.net), to get her organizational tips. Tennyson works with clients to move out the things they don't use -- and to reorganize the things they want to keep.

The rewards of an orderly home are pretty convincing: less anxiety, less stress and more time to do what you want to do. Her message for preparing for back-to-school extends far beyond a streamlined closet and a hook for each backpack.

"Household order is positively associated with early reading abilities in kindergarteners and first-graders," she says. "As a parent, you want to set them up for success."

Parents will appreciate that Tennyson's best advice is to teach children how to help stay organized, ultimately taking some of the heat off the grown-ups.

"Organization is a family event," she says, adding that providing incentives for kids to get involved (whether it's an allowance or an outing of their choice for continued compliance) can help make organization one of their life skills. "Organization is an everyday type of thing," she says. "It requires discipline on the part of parents: Kids learn by looking at what parents do."

With Tennyson's help, along with some tips from local parents, we tackled some of the most common stumbling blocks for achieving back-to-school serenity, and found organizational solutions.

Label, label, label.

Ever had the frustrating experience of opening a backpack only to find another kid's hat and gloves inside? In fact, Tennyson says that labeling -- clothing, shoes, school supplies, you name it -- is the No. 1 request that she has from teachers.

"Don't just use initials: Write out the child's first name and last initial," she says.

While Sharpies can do the trick, local mom Jennifer Andrews Cox appreciates the style and function of Mabel's Labels (866-306-2235 or www.mabel.ca).

"I have never had one peel off anything yet, including baseball bats, and lunch containers that I have washed dozens of times," she says. The company's Ultimate Back-to-School Combo ($44) comes with more than 100 labels, including dishwasher-safe labels for food and beverage containers, washer-and-dryer-safe labels for clothing, plus labels for shoes and school supplies. (Keep in mind that if strangers can see your child's name, they can use your child's name. So for outerwear such as backpacks, using a monogram -- or labeling the back of the backpack, rather than its front -- can be a safer option.)

Color-code.

Especially if you have more than one child, assigning a color to each family member can help get items into the correct hands. Buy their backpacks, lunch bags and other accessories in the assigned color. You can even use a marker in each family member's color to write his or her events on your master calendar (for more on the calendar, see below).

"Dad's blue, Jack's purple, Sarah's orange, Mom's green," says Tennyson. "Have them pick their favorite color: The more they participate, the more likely kids will help and stick with it."

For color-coded backpacks and lunch bags, we like Lands' End (lunch bags from $9.50 and backpacks from $29.50; 800-963-4816 or www.landsend.com) for the many color choices, the durability of its products, and the easy in-town return service at Sears.

Keep a family calendar.

With a full household, keeping a family calendar is an imperative step in keeping it all together. In fact, Tennyson says that calendaring and scheduling is what parents need the most help with.

To encourage each family member to participate (and eventually take responsibility for checking it themselves), Tennyson recommends hanging a large wall calendar where everyone can see it, and getting into the habit of looking at it each evening to plan the next day.

"Kids like knowing what they need to do every morning," she says. "They learn you're serious, and then they get on board."

Tennyson favors large-format organizational calendars such as the Geometric Groove Pocket Wall Calendar by Orange Circle Studio ($15.99; www.orangecirclestudio.com); it runs for 17 months beginning in August 2010, and includes flags and other accessories; the company also makes a similar Bold Blossoms Do It All Calendar, available at Borders; and a Family Life Calendar that adds a separate tear-off weekly pad, available locally at Barnes & Noble.

Make their closets work.

Your child can't be faulted for putting on the wrong clothes if that's what's in the closet.

"Take it visually out of their repertoire," says Tennyson, suggesting that anything from the wrong season or in the wrong size gets packed into a plastic see-through storage container to avoid confusion -- just be sure to make a note on your calendar to remind yourself of when it's time to reassess.

For younger kids, Tennyson likes the days-of-the-week closet organizers from companies like KangaRoom ($30; www.kangaroomstorage.com), which allow parents to set out an entire week's work of clothes at once. She also suggests hanging jewelry organizers on the back of the closet door for kids to organize small items, such as jewelry and barrettes.

As for hanging clothes, rod dividers (much like the round plastic ones that department stores use to separate sizes) can be useful for separating school clothes from dress clothes from play clothes; blank closet rod dividers that can be written on are available locally at the Container Store (99 cents; 888-266-8246 or www.containerstore.com).

"My son's closet is divided like this: nonschool shirts, nonschool pants, school shirts, school pants and dress clothes," says mother Sharon Williams. Another idea from Williams: Hang up only school clothes and dress clothes, and put play clothes in a dresser.

Designate a catch-all area.

Whether you have an actual mudroom or just fill in with some strategically placed hooks, baskets and wall pockets, it's important to have a place to catch the shoes, backpacks, coats, lunch bags and keys that are constantly coming in and out of your home -- all those things that, when misplaced, can waste precious time.

"Find the naturally occurring patterns in your house and organize from there," says Tennyson, adding that when you organize items based on where you would think to look for them -- or where others would think to toss them -- you're already halfway there.

To create a mudroom area, Tennyson likes the Elfa system from the Container Store (prices vary depending on configuration; 888-266-8246 or www.containerstore.com). To start, make sure there's a place for each backpack, lunch bag and coat, plus a place for shoes; add as needed for sports equipment and other items.

Get a handle on the paper.

The influx of artwork and other paper can be an organizational challenge, especially when some kids seem to want to save everything. Tennyson says that thinking about cleaning out your house down the road helps curb sentimentality.

"It's got to be pretty darn special," she says, suggesting that for artwork, you designate a hanging space (such as magnetic strips from the Container Store, from $4.99), and have children choose their favorite pieces, changing them out for new ones periodically. "When you get the kids involved, you're teaching them it's OK to not hold onto everything," she says.

As for saving special art and other work, you can provide each child with a three-ring binder with sheet protectors, or a clear storage box for oversize work. "For my son, we dedicated a wall in the playroom; that's where his artwork goes," she says. "I don't file it -- I recycle it or send it to Grandma and Grandpa as a card."

Be a pro at lunch preparation.

Kelly Soter-Gunn has made it a habit to look at school lunch menus online, which she finds helpful for planning ahead (and marking the calendar) as to whether a homemade lunch or school lunch is a better choice on that day.

"Even if they buy the nutritious school lunch or even if you pack nutritious stuff, they will eat the part that they want," she says. "But through mylunchmoney.com, you can restrict a prepaid account so that the child cannot buy a la carte ice cream and other snacks."

Sharon Williams balances her son's lunch between a healthful homemade sandwich and the packaged snacks that he wants.

"If I purchase a large quantity of a snack, I will divide it into lunch-size portions ahead," Williams says. "Anything prepackaged by the store or me saves time and my son can easily help pack his lunch: When he helps, he is more likely to eat it."

Faith P. Tennyson The Queen of Declutter Cell: (817) 999-0481 thequeenofdeclutter@yahoo.com