Good Enough Mother Gets Organized for a New School Year
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Photo: Andreanna Moya Photography/Creative Commons
September is here and with it, two things I can count on; the kind of optimism that accompanies a brand new school year and my renewed quest to get organized. It's kind of a pathetic joke since I make the same promise, at the same time every year, conveniently forgetting that every school year ends in a conflagration of old paper bags and permission slips. But hope springs eternal and though it doesn't come natural to me (neither does cleaning or Algebra) I still believe I can achieve that which has eluded me since, well, forever.
But this year is different; this year I have a plan and that's half the battle. I have come up with four simple tips I think are going to make a huge difference as we get underway this year. Take a read and if you have some to add, let us know in the comments (no, really, I'm begging you, please do: I need them more than you know).
1. The Big Bulletin Board: The BBB is going to be my secret weapon. It hangs in a conspicuous place in the kitchen, just near the door and it will be command central this year. With two kids going to two different schools, if I'm not careful, it will be death by a thousand pieces of paper. So I took the BBB and divided it right down the center, one half belongs to the high school daughter, the other for the middle school son. Check.
2. Technology Is My Friend: Someone I used to work with showed me how to link the calendar on my Mac with his calendar. There's no reason that can't work for the four members of this family! So instead of one, hard copy calendar taking up critical space on the BBB, everyone has his or her own, right on the laptop. As they enter their schedules (did I mention I have two kids going to two different schools this year?) their calendars will synch with mine, ensuring everyone is where they are supposed to be at the appropriate time and appropriately attired. It's gonna be awesome. In theory.
3. I Have an Electronic Tether to the Teachers: Speaking of technology, I have already established the electronic leash to my kids' teachers. Just last week, I went in for the annual meet-and-greet where I gave them my business card, cell phone, email addresses, Skype and Twitter handles, stopping just shy of friending them all on Facebook. There will be no surprise or forgotten assignments this year. See, a big problem for us is getting accurate information from the school to home. While it will primarily be my kids' job to get that done, I live by the words of the late President Ronald Reagan, "Trust but verify."
4. The Funnel Approach: I'm taking this right out of the FedEx playbook. In the early days of its operation, everything went through the hub location in Memphis. Like a funnel, things from far and wide, were gathered there, processed and sent on to their destinations. For me that means everything, birthday or Bar Mitzvah invitations, notices about school events, letters about music lessons and anything else, must touch my hands before going on to it's final destination. All events will be entered into the master computer (mine) before being tacked on the appropriate side of the BBB.
So there you go, that's my plan. School starts just after Labor Day and if all goes according to the way I have it laid out here, we'll be fine. Too bad I hadn't implemented this before my son took and promptly lost, the school supply list. Help!
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