Back to school Home Design?

I love fall. Living at beach for many years in New York, it meant DFD's were going home. That's 'down for the day(summer)' for all you landlubbers.

Then, I had kids. Now, it's not the happy Staples parent skipping behind the cart time of year. It's the, 'Holy shit! it's still dark out at 6 am and we are late!'

First day is always crapshoot.
Excitement, anxiety. You name it.

Get your locker, desk, table. Meet teachers, Walk the school to learn where everything is. Go to staples buy, buy, buy! Even though I have a gravesite of lunch bags that are no good???

With all that, comes changes to the house. They've been in flip flops, leaving the house with a phone and a smile all summer long.

But,

The diesel engines of buses across America roar to a start! 

• back packs appear that will surely create a booming chiropractic industry. We tried the "rolling backpack" one year. Didn’t make October.
• school papers that need to be signed
• homework books and papers and pencils and rulers
• afterschool sports equipment and uniforms
• laptops, tablets and I pads, oh my!

With my baby, 2" taller, starting high school, I knew I had to make a plan. I need to set up the house so that we can get out the door in the morning, do her homework after practice and put her stuff away so that I don't get mental in between.

We are living through a renovation, which makes setting up systems and places for everything for the new school year especially stressful. 

I love organization. 

Space planning is my jam.  Kitchen design, done. Custom closets or drawing up a house in no time. I love a good bullet journal, a calendar, bins, hooks and color charts!  Love, love, love.  

But, I struggle desperately with sticking to it if there aren't clear and defined spaces and places for everything.

So, let's not struggle. Let's plan.

Save your sanity!  You can design spaces in your house to make back to school the joyous and quiet time it can and should be!

Whether a renovation, new home or you’re working with what you’ve got, these 3 spaces help plan for the chaos, create routines and space to get it done.

3 Spaces for Success!

1. storage

2. studying

3. scheduling

Simple, right?

Storage

While you're busy dreaming of that custom walk in, save a bit of room for the kids.  If you can find space for a mudroom or pantry, hooray!

A hall closet or a back hallway with sturdy hooks does the trick as well. Think of their stuff, specific to them, how to keep it organized and where it will be best located.

Pantries are my favorite space for all things school.  It's centrally located to where homework may get done, where I'm cooking to help with homework and making lunches for tomorrow.  I had a dedicated spot for the backpacks, calendar and magnetic board for paperwork in my pantry. Heaven!

When they arrive home from school, they have stuff.

-sneakers/gym uniforms, school uniforms
-sports equipment, books
-they’ve got folders
-papers, pencils, coloring markers

Every day more stuff....

They need a place to store their stuff so that

• they can get at it to do homework, get papers they need and empty the dreaded lunchbox
• they can find it in the morning and
• it’s out of the way so no one trips on it in the middle of the night

But in the way enough that it cannot be forgotten.

Children, and those of us that have "object permanence" issues, need to see our stuff. If we don't see IT or a visual cue that reminds us of IT,

we won't remember it. 

Make it visible!

In a spot on the way out and on the way back in is usually best.  I have noticed a drop off in a child's strength the second they pass through the door. Suddenly, everything falls to the floor.  So make that storage close to the entry point!

Which door will you use for the kids, side door?  No sense having the shoe closet in the front hall, is there? 

Think about the traffic routine for morning and home again in the afternoon.  Where do you want the stuff to get dropped?

Wherever this stuff must live, make it easy. Include electrical, storage and versatility in the design to change as they grow.

Clear bins, wide shelves and hooks they can reach work great. A simple butcher block countertop on cute file cabinets and you have a home office. 

Other storage concerns include:

• charging station/area
• shoes and sneakers
• gym clothes, things that smell (baskets with tops, please) Hockey moms, you have my heart.

Studying

A desk, quiet spot in the kitchen or a place where they can work undisturbed, duh. Consider sound and privacy to work uninterrupted. A space that’s gonna make them comfortable and productive, so views of the park might not be a great idea!

They need

• proper lighting
• supplies nearby  We don't want to interrupt the flow of work looking for the perfect shade of blue crayon.
• power for laptop?
• counter space
  We’ve all been to Parent Teacher night. Those desks are not big enough to express yourself fully! Some room to spread out fosters creativity.
• A place for special projects. That means 'making a mess' to all you rookies, with art supplies. Have a space they can express themselves freely and without worry! Fingerpaint in the yard with the hose nearby. They’ll survive. We come from apes.
• A Chair - Swivel? Good for the wood floors, no! Good for fidgeters, no! Fun, yes!

Scheduling

A command center is a must for anyone trying to wrestle more than your own schedule.  It starts with a calendar and paper storage.  Whether it's in the kitchen, pantry or on the wall in the office.  Bigger is better! Color coding, separate bins and reachable places for landing paper and finding it again to return to school in the morning.

Having baskets, bulletin boards or bins for papers and all the fabulous artwork they send home EVERY SINGLE DAY will help keep your family organized.

It’s the digital age, blah, blah. 

IF YOU BUILD IT, PAPERS WILL COME. 

Be prepared with a place for everything. You will always have papers to sign, medical forms to submit, fundraisers to contribute, so give yourself a place.  

Great ideas don’t work without the cooperation and teamwork.  Set up routines that work for everyone with their input and adjust as needed.  We never grow out of a great staging area for blast off and landings!

It reduces stress, knowing where and what to expect...

• when it’s homework time
• when we arrive home
• when we’re leaving in the morning

 They can worry about who to sit with at lunch or whether they got the cool backpack. 

Best,

Liz