Back to school season can mean something different in each house, from the little ones going to the school in pristine clothes and returning soaked in paint, to teenagers who barely put a foot on the house between outings with friends and hours in the library. However, every back to school season has something in common: It’s the return to the routine after a holiday of months, and like all changes, it brings a bit of chaos.
In this post we are going to give you some tips to help you not only keep your house clean and tidy, but also make it a suitable study and learning space for your children.
Improve your storage places
Create a workspace
Organize bathroom and kitchen
Make sure you have good light
Keep your plans up to date
Improve your storage places
To avoid clutter and untidiness at home, it’s best to create storage spaces specially designed for children, so that they know where to find what they need, and where to leave what they aren’t using. Additionally, an orderly environment helps concentration, as there are fewer objects that can distract them.
With open shelves, baskets and boxes you can create an orderly environment in a very simple way. Even toddlers can learn where to leave things with some patience, and you will also be reinforcing behaviours that are already taught in preschool.
Create a school workspace
Once the children are old enough to do homework, it is very important that they have a place specially designated for it.
Many times, this place is the bedroom. If so, use it to instill in your children the need to keep their work area tidy, and make them fully responsible for the organization of their room.
If your children prefer to do their homework in the kitchen or living room instead, it’s important that you give them a space for it. For example, a folding table and some drawers can help create a work environment that is only used when needed, saving space and helping to keep it tidy.
Finally, we recommend that no matter the place where your students prefer to work, keep it well stocked with stationery; sheets, pens, pencils, scissors, rulers, glue and tape will be essential.
Organize bathroom and kitchen
When it comes to returning to the routine, having a well-organized bathroom and kitchen is essential, and also quite difficult. Taking care of the storage spaces in these rooms helps, of course, but maintaining a routine when using them is also important.
In the kitchen, we recommend that you plan lunch and dinner in advance. If you can prepare several meals on the weekend, and put them in containers, you will save time and complications at mealtime. It is also a good idea to have snacks ready in a designated drawer, so that children can simply take food before going to school.
As for the bathroom, it’s a good idea to create a routine and streamline the bathroom usage, so that everyone is coordinated and nobody is late because another person has spent too much time in the bathroom.
Make sure you have good light
All experts agree: Having good light is very important for homework and studies to go well. With the days getting shorter and shorter since school starts, many times we don’t realize that we are working almost in the dark.
You can put a portable light, or install it on the table itself. Choose a task light, that is, a direct light with high intensity, since it is the one that helps concentration the most. LED bulbs are also a good choice, since do not generate heat and spend much less energy than other types.
And if you want to join the smart home trend, you can put photosensitive lamps that turn on automatically to make sure the light is always optimal.
Keep your plans up to date
Especially if you have several children, keeping up with all their extracurricular activities, excursions and plans can be crazy. Arm yourself with calendars and agendas to make sure you don’t miss anything, and make sure your children get accustomed to using both.
Sometimes, the oldest methods are the ones that work best: If you put a weekly calendar for everyone to write down their plans, everyone can help keep the day to day organized. You can also use it to distribute household chores, so everyone participates in the house upkeep.
Lastly, remember to leave your children some time for themselves: Activities beyond school and homework are important, but having a rest time is also important. School can be very stressful for children and teenagers; help them reduce that stress by making sure they have time to breathe.
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