By Lisa Crilley Mallis
What does your student's book bag look like? If they took everything out, would you find books, binders, and pencils? Or, would you find books, binders, pencils, loose papers, old permission slips, phys. ed. clothes, a bag of chips, a CD, an overdue library book, an unfinished art project, and a football? Often, students do their homework, but then can't find it in the deep abyss otherwise known as "the book bag." If the bag looks more like the second example than the first, your student probably is not turning in their homework consistently.
How can you help? First, it's important to get them on board. Help them make the connection between being unorganized in class and the state of their book bag. Secondly, I always advise parents to respect their child's privacy and boundaries. Separating the essentials from the extraneous should be up to your child. Respect these boundaries by allowing your child to lay the items out themselves.
After everything is out of the book bag, group like items together. Put the textbooks in a pile, loose papers in a pile, pencils, etc. Now that you have everything in piles, decide how to contain them. File the loose papers in the corresponding notebook or binder. Put pencils in a pencil case. Decide which items actually belong in the book bag and make a plan for how to deal with the other items (trash, lunch bag, gym locker, etc.).
Now that we have decided which items belong in the back pack - it's time to re-pack. It is usually easier to find items if the student re-packs by size. For example, the tallest items go in the back, the shortest items in the front. If the small English novel is stuck between the geometry and earth science books, chaos reigns.
Next, where are we going to put completed and unfinished assignments? Some students like to keep completed assignments still to be turned in on the left side of a folder, and unfinished work on the right side - and one folder per class. Some students follow the same process, but keep all assignments (complete and incomplete) for all classes in one folder. Other students put assignments that still need to be turned in a clear plastic envelope inside their 3-ring binder and assignments that need to be completed inside their assignment notebook. Whatever the process, labeling will make it easier. Label the folders "To Do" or "Turn In" or "DONE" or "Urgent"... Pick a system and try it out for a quarter.
The final step is to create a maintenance system. Set aside time on the weekend or during the week to empty out the back pack and repeat the steps listed above. I find that a consistent schedule of maintenance works best - every Wednesday or Sunday. Over a few weeks, this process will start to take less time. (Usually kids see the value in this when parents empty out their purses or briefcases also.)
Wow! Imagine how organized and productive your student will be with this new and improved back pack. A word of warning - don't be surprised if it reverts back to its original form in a few days. Backsliding is common with any new habit. Talk about what happened to allow the back pack to become filled with "stuff" again. Then, "problem-solve" ways to fix this. It may be as simple as building in additional maintenance times.
Lisa Crilley Mallis the owner of SystemSavvy Consulting and the creator of the College Success Initiative. She has assisted many students, solopreneurs, and busy moms, increase productivity and decrease clutter. If you have a high school or college student, visit http://www.systemsavvyconsulting.com/CSI.html for information on the College Success Initiative.
What does your student's book bag look like? If they took everything out, would you find books, binders, and pencils? Or, would you find books, binders, pencils, loose papers, old permission slips, phys. ed. clothes, a bag of chips, a CD, an overdue library book, an unfinished art project, and a football? Often, students do their homework, but then can't find it in the deep abyss otherwise known as "the book bag." If the bag looks more like the second example than the first, your student probably is not turning in their homework consistently.
How can you help? First, it's important to get them on board. Help them make the connection between being unorganized in class and the state of their book bag. Secondly, I always advise parents to respect their child's privacy and boundaries. Separating the essentials from the extraneous should be up to your child. Respect these boundaries by allowing your child to lay the items out themselves.
After everything is out of the book bag, group like items together. Put the textbooks in a pile, loose papers in a pile, pencils, etc. Now that you have everything in piles, decide how to contain them. File the loose papers in the corresponding notebook or binder. Put pencils in a pencil case. Decide which items actually belong in the book bag and make a plan for how to deal with the other items (trash, lunch bag, gym locker, etc.).
Now that we have decided which items belong in the back pack - it's time to re-pack. It is usually easier to find items if the student re-packs by size. For example, the tallest items go in the back, the shortest items in the front. If the small English novel is stuck between the geometry and earth science books, chaos reigns.
Next, where are we going to put completed and unfinished assignments? Some students like to keep completed assignments still to be turned in on the left side of a folder, and unfinished work on the right side - and one folder per class. Some students follow the same process, but keep all assignments (complete and incomplete) for all classes in one folder. Other students put assignments that still need to be turned in a clear plastic envelope inside their 3-ring binder and assignments that need to be completed inside their assignment notebook. Whatever the process, labeling will make it easier. Label the folders "To Do" or "Turn In" or "DONE" or "Urgent"... Pick a system and try it out for a quarter.
The final step is to create a maintenance system. Set aside time on the weekend or during the week to empty out the back pack and repeat the steps listed above. I find that a consistent schedule of maintenance works best - every Wednesday or Sunday. Over a few weeks, this process will start to take less time. (Usually kids see the value in this when parents empty out their purses or briefcases also.)
Wow! Imagine how organized and productive your student will be with this new and improved back pack. A word of warning - don't be surprised if it reverts back to its original form in a few days. Backsliding is common with any new habit. Talk about what happened to allow the back pack to become filled with "stuff" again. Then, "problem-solve" ways to fix this. It may be as simple as building in additional maintenance times.
Lisa Crilley Mallis the owner of SystemSavvy Consulting and the creator of the College Success Initiative. She has assisted many students, solopreneurs, and busy moms, increase productivity and decrease clutter. If you have a high school or college student, visit http://www.systemsavvyconsulting.com/CSI.html for information on the College Success Initiative.
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