Teach Kids How To Store Their Papers
EPISODE 21
by Dianne Jimenez
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Teach Kids How To Store Their Papers
Welcome, welcome, welcome! Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy this episode: Teach Kids How to Store Their Papers and get some great tips and inspiration from it. Now if you’re a regular listener – welcome back friend it’s SO nice to have you here again.
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Where this episode came from
Recently a mom friend sent me a message out of the blue asking me about a very popular issue most parents with pre-school and school-aged children struggle with, myself included – until I had a strategy and action plan.
What I liked about how she framed it is that it wasn’t your TYPICAL Google search question. This went deeper in thought even though the results were the same: containing the clutter and giving the items a home.
I absolutely LOVED this question because it was about nipping the issue at the bud and addressing the behavior as opposed to finding organizing solutions using physical things like better furniture or using separators like bins or file folders. These are all great solutions to contain the clutter and chaos but it DOESN’T solve the ultimate problem: how we go about dealing with our things.
I get it, we’re all looking for quick fixes and solutions to deal with the chaos and disorganization in our home. With free shipping and next-day delivery, it’s so easy now to get our hands on things that will help solve our situation.
But, is it REALLY solving the underlying issue?
If we don’t have strategies and plans set beforehand when new items come into our home or when we see a sale or deep discounted items, we’re SOOO tempted to take advantage of these hot deals that we buy more than we really need, or have space for. Our home, feels cramped and our minds become cluttered too: having to deal with organizing and managing the excess.
Want to go from 'drowning' to peace of mind?
Well, in this case, it’s not about deals or sales but it is about items that keep coming in from the creative minds of our little ones…(and they produce some REALLY beautiful, heartwarming, almost magical things, don’t they? So much so, we want to keep them all. And why not? They came from the most wonderful beings in the world – our children!
And if the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, well you better believe your kids will also want to keep every masterpiece that they’ve created.
So, how do we nip things at the bud, or address the root cause? Well, the title of this episode gives it all away: Teach Kids How To Store Their Papers
Just ask Google!
Now if you Google search “storing kids’ artwork” you’ll get millions of strategies, tips and tricks to organize them . But what do you do about TEACHING them about HOW TO store their work… ?
I call this a perfect teaching moment! So thank you friend for asking this question because you truly are NOT alone here.
So the very first thing that I always do, when it comes to introducing a new system, or teach kids a new method or or even just starting a conversation about ANY topic, what II do and strongly encourage my clients, friends and anyone really who wants to get their family to implement or learn something is to
1.Get on the same page with their partner.
So whether that’s your wife, your husband, grand-parents… whoever is highly involved with helping you raise the kids – have a conversation with them. Why?
Here are the 2 main reasons:
- Because the whole implementation process, managing the day to day, and maintaining the organizing system will be A WHOLE LOT EASIER when the parents and guardians are all on board.
- Which results in a ripple effect: the kids see this united front and know there’s no messing around or coming up with their own rules because the message is the same regardless of which parent is talking. And the ripple effects of this? When they become adults and have families? Ahhh – stronger relationships.
So basically, start the conversation:
- What is it that you want to do?
- How do you think it should be implemented and then discuss it with your partner or spouse
Finally, set an action plan that you BOTH agree on and move on from there.
find out how families with 3+ kids tackle the beast: laundry!
When we renovated our home a few years ago, we didn’t re-hang the pictures and artwork back up on the walls, just because… life was happening and I think we just never really found THAT PIECE that we both loved, to hang up on the dining room wall.
So, right now, in this short phase of the kids’ lives where they’re constantly producing artwork from school, we hang it up on the wall…. Until it falls off on its own. And then what?
Which brings me to number 2 of Teach Kids How To Store Their Papers
2. Teach kids to be aware of their surroundings
So like I told my mom friend, and having done this with my own kids: Get real with them and literally show them the space that you have. Where the papers are right now. Whether it’s all in a box, shoved in their drawers or all over the table….
It’s important to just do a visual scan of the space around them. Don’t forget to point at things to show them what you see: “See these papers and how they’re sticking out or almost ripped?” Or, “see the piles of papers here and there….? And look inside here, there’s more over here…”!
Then get them to also say what they see. Next, I add this:
- I know you took a lot of time to create this or you love to draw, write, paint, etc. and we love that you do all of this. But it’s important to also take care of your things that you put so much time and effort into doing, right?
In essence, going through the observation process with them; And getting their opinion about the space their papers are taking up; versus the space they actually have for it, allows for them to grasp the big picture. Thus bringing them back to the ‘here and now’. Remember, you’re supporting their creativity while also offering structure.
Now that you’ve had the awareness conversation about the home you ALL share, it’s time to get down to the nitty gritty. Which brings me to number 3 of Teach Kids How To Store Their Papers
My Secret Sauce for setting the kids up for success (2 part series)
3. Teach kids about boundaries
So we got them to really step back and see how much space their things are taking in the room and in the house…because let’s face it, oftentimes it DOES take over several rooms in the house, it’s high time we teach kids about boundaries.
And there are 2 points to respect when it comes to this: Home & Maintenance
Whether the home for their papers is a binder, file folders inside a bin with a lid, a scrapbook or a combo of all of these, establishing a proper home is step 1.
Step 2 is about what to do with the excess papers or when the maximum capacity inside the chosen home has been reached.
These 2 steps are crucial in order for them to grasp this whole concept about boundaries.
Now, the easy part is finding the home because it involves the physical ‘THING’ that will hold all of their creations. Like I mentioned before, searching it up on Google will result in millions of ideas, tips and tricks on how to store kids’ artwork and papers.
The 2nd part though, Maintenance? It’s not so fun and sexy. In fact, it requires some rule setting, following through with said rule…forever and… well checking in from time to time to see if your rules are still applicable and if the system is still working.
The ‘sexy’ part or organizing
This part of the process is the tough and challenging part because it requires a little bit of effort AND consistency. That alone takes a lot of discipline. Anyone who’s trying to live better and healthier lifestyles knows what this is like. It’s a lot of mental work.
See? Not sexy. But maintaining that home neat and organized is crucial for success. And success?… Yeah, that’s pretty sexy! (laughs)
Ok. The rules you set don’t have to be so heavy or complicated as I made it sound. We are here to TEACH KIDS about how to store their papers after all, right? So let’s keep it simple shall we?
There are only so many pages in a scrapbook, inches the rings of a binder will allow or number of files you can fit in a banker box. When that home is starting to look chaotic again, it’s time for the 2nd point of teaching boundaries, that’s crucial for success :
- Establishing the rule, or rules, that once the limit is reached, it’s time to toss or recycle!
3 things to establish now before losing your s#!t later on (during the school year)
In other words, whenever something new is created and inserted into the home you or they chose, there has to be something else that needs to go out. So applying the 1 in 1 out rule is key here.
If the kids have multiple pages they want to keep, then the same amount of pages (or more) has to go out. And going out doesn’t mean going into another binder or bin – it has to no longer be IN your actual house. So recycle or toss it!
Think of it this way…
Imagine that binder or scrapbook being a container, on their shelf or desk. And the shelf is a container itself. Then their room is a bigger one and the different rooms in the house are other containers too. And finally, your house, itself, is the biggest container.
What happens when the smallest container fills up? The contents spill over into the next bigger container, right? Then when that fills up it affects the next and the next, and so on. By the end, the biggest container, your house? It’s just filled with ALL the things that the ‘1 in 1 out rule’ could’ve nipped at the bud inside the smallest container way back when. Now, this spilling over goes unnoticed for years and years. And can take even longer to realize and finally do something about it…not to mention the costs and mental load associated with keeping everything.
So I encourage you, as you teach the kids, to really take the time to go over the rules with them. Heck, do it as a family and instill it with one area, like the topic we’re discussing today: the kids’ papers.
Now, in the case with our kids, the home for their artwork is inside specific files with their names on it, which are inside a closed bin. But before it ends up there, the artwork is FIRST, displayed on our dining room wall. Then the rule we apply here is: if the artwork falls because the sticky tack dried up, it’s time to toss or file in their folder. And for drawings done on scrap paper, they get recycled if they’re lying around.
Free training: "How to find time in a busy schedule"
So far, the cheap dollar store sticky tack has been holding their things up since the beginning of the school year! Therefore, you can imagine that our art wall is pretty full. In case you want to check it out, you can see it on a couple of my videos on YouTube. As well, you can follow me on Instagram to catch a glimpse. For a quick referral, I’ll link these 2 on this episode’s show notes.
But here’s where we draw the line on the sand and teach kids about respecting the limits and boundaries:
- When there’s no more room, or it’s getting to look a little too cluttered for our liking, then it’s time to decide which one will be taken down.
Piece of advice….
Now, I have to sidenote something here and add that touching base with your partner or spouse to ensure you’re both still on the same page, is highly encouraged! As you know, it’s totally normal for people to change their mind or come up with other solutions or perspectives over time. Sharing these ideas and thoughts with them, or them with you, just keeps you both in check and strengthens the relationship; Which is a great model for the kids and their future relationships!
In essence, getting the older kids involved or making the decision for your younger ones by asking:
What are we getting rid of so that this new piece stays?
Is about respect. Respecting the surroundings, the people who live in your house and the decisions that were set by you or if older, they’re respecting themselves too. Having them involved ensures that they will follow-through with their agreement and stick with it long-term. Oh, the ripple effects of these positive habits and discipline being instilled! Friend, you’re on the winning path with this whole parenthood thing!
And like I mentioned about checking in from time to time with your partner about the decisions you’ve made, the same rings true with your kids. Are they following through and able to maintain the organizing system and structure that was established?
If not, time to have the conversation with everyone about where the kids are getting stuck. Maybe the rules need to be clearer or simplified even more or maybe the home needs to be reworked. Whatever the issue, touching base and re-evaluating your organizing system is not uncommon, as life keeps going, your lifestyle also adjusts and changes the way we move and do things around the house. So it’s only natural for your organizing system to also move with you. Organizing is dynamic.
Stay on track with laundry & tips to getting the kids involved
So there you have it, my mini training entitled Teach Kids How To Store Their Papers.
Let’s do a quick recap:
- Have a conversation with your partner: By being on the same page and showing a united front, we teach kids that there’s no messing around or second-guessing about the way things run in the house.
- Teach kids to be aware of their surroundings: giving them this perspective about how their things are distributed around the house, its effect on the home you ALL share as well as looking at how they care for their things are crucial for their development and respect. Which brings me to,
- Teach kids about boundaries: Establishing proper homes for their papers and the rules to apply for maintaining this home is the final step on how to teach kids about storing their papers. This step is long-term. Whether the home for the papers needs to be tweaked or the rules made simple and clear, it’s all part of this process for this new habit.
Ok, so you’ve heard me say this before, organizing is dynamic. There is no one and done thing about it, especially since LIFE has us moving, changing and evolving. So touching base with your partner and the kids from time to time about these rules and structures you all established, will not only make your family bonds more connected but help the kids to become awesome, capable adults. And they have you as role models!
Your action item for today:
Now step back and see where you’re at when it comes to your kids’ papers.
- If it’s implementing a rule, are you and your partner on board to show up as a united front?
- Or is the rule clear and simple for your kids to follow through?
If you’re nowhere near implementing, you are more than ready to start that conversation with your partner! Let me know through DM on instagram or Facebook and tell me which step you’re at so that I can cheer you on.
Alright my friend, thank you so much for listening to this episode today as you go about your day. Your time is precious and I’m so thankful and grateful to you for spending some of it with me.. I hope you found today’s podcast episode helpful and insightful. Remember to send the link to another parent, or group of parents, in your circle. Or share it on social media. You never know who needs some guidance, direction and clarity with their organizing, and parenting, journey.
I’ll see you next week ok? Same time, same place! Bye bye!
Referenced in this episode
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