School starts every fall. Begin the school year off on the right foot by helping your grade school aged child organize their backpack.
An organized child backpack will alleviate a lot of stress on your little time and yourself throughout the school year. This bag is something that your child will carry every day back and forth to school so it is important that it is in order. Add backpack organization to your regular house cleaning checklist so you won’t forget.
Buy a Quality Child Backpack
Organization of the child backpack begins before you even have one. Preschool and grade school children may have a hard time using a large bulky backpack. There are some with wheels but before you buy one, make sure to check out the school’s rules.
Make sure the child backpack you choose is sturdy. It should have strong zippers to make it easier for your kiddo to open and close it. Multiple compartments and pockets can be helpful if your child is old enough to understand and remember where things are.
Your child can help pick out a backpack, but make sure you do the quality check. Even if it isn’t the one they wanted, they can decorate it so they feels more ownership of the bag.
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Organize the Backpack
Help your child sort all of the supplies they will need into different categories. Put all the pens and pencils together. Notebooks can go with folders and textbooks. Assign a category to each compartment or zipper pocket and put the supplies where they need to go.
You can draw a map or label each compartment to make it easier on your child. This will help them remember where to put things at the end of the school day or after homework. You can keep a copy of the map in the front pocket as a reminder.
A clear luggage tag can be used to create a checklist of items your child needs to remember to bring home each day. It could include things like homework, lunch sack, notes from teacher, gym clothes etc. Attach the luggage tag to the top of the child backpack so it is always in clear view.
A folder should be provided to your child to put all papers given by the teacher. This folder needs to come home every day and thus it should be written on the checklist. Make sure to check the folder every day and take out anything that doesn’t need to return to school the next day.
Periodic Cleaning
Set aside some time each week or at least biweekly to clean your child backpack. Empty out the child backpack as part of your regular house cleaning routine. Sort the contents into piles and throw everything away that is no longer needed. Shake the child backpack over a trashcan or outside to get any loose crumbs or paper out.
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You can machine wash some backpacks. Others you wipe down with a wet cloth. Check the tags and perform the cleaning right along with the rest of your house cleaning tasks.
Although I’m not a father, I am an uncle. There have been many occasion where I would help my nieces and nephews get ready for school in the morning. I think cleaning/organizing a child’s backpack should be part of any weekly house cleaning routine. You’d be surprised how much junk can accumulate.
Junk it is! You’re right Andrew, most kids tend to accumulate a bunch of stuff in their backpacks; that’s why the subject came up when discussing blog post ideas for Maids by Trade.
My kids are now out of school but we did this very thing every Sunday evening. We would completely empty the backpack, discard all the trash that accumulated, clean the backpack then replace all the essentials in an orderly manner. I think this actually helped teach organization to our children.
Wonderful example Craig!
Not only leading by example, but to teach them to be prepared a day in advance. Unlike many people, preparing, cleaning and organizing helps us be more efficient and productive.
Yes, preparing our work/school materials is a great idea.