back-to-school

Do It Now! Tips To Get Ready For Back-To-School

By Cynthia Ewer
Editor, OrganizedHome.com
Author, Houseworks: Cut the Clutter, Speed Your Cleaning and Calm the Chaos

Move over, summer--a new school year is coming!

With the start of school, families face new organization challenges.

School bells ring--and so do early-morning alarm clocks. Shorter autumn days bring a hectic round of sports, activities and events, and calendars fill with cryptic notes.

Can the holidays be far behind?

Get organized now for the best school year ever!

Use these ideas to prepare your home and family for the busy days ahead:



Save Money On School Supplies: Back to School Shopping Tips

By Cynthia Ewer
Editor, OrganizedHome.com
Author, Houseworks: Cut the Clutter, Speed Your Cleaning and Calm the Chaos

save money on school suppliesAh, summer! Baseball and sunshine, lemonade stands ... and back to school?

Yep. Summer or not, it's time to think about ways to save money shopping for back-to-school clothing and school supplies.

Hang onto your wallets! With the rise of "back to school" as a two-month marketing exercise for retailers, coupled with cash-strapped school districts which have pushed more of the supply burden onto students' families, it can be a tough job to get the kids outfitted without breaking the bank.

Try these school shopping tips to save money, time and your sanity when shopping for back to school:

Get in the know before you go.

Before checking so much as a single back-to-school sales flyer, you need to know two things: what you need, and what you already have on hand.



Back To School: Printable Guide from MarthaStewart.com

Posted August 5, 2008 by Cynthia Ewer

Gearing up for back to school? Grab a free Back to School Guide from MarthaStewart.com!

This colorful multi-page article offers tips and ideas for school-day fun, including free printables to organize school lunches, decorate notebooks and spiff up lunch sacks.

Offered in .PDF format, you'll need the free Adobe Reader to view and print.

Ready? Get organized for back to school:


Free Printable Back To School Guide



School Success: Free Printable Planner Pages for Back-to-School

Posted July 7, 2008 by Cynthia Ewer

Ready for an organized school year? Beef up your household notebook with these free printable back-to-school templates from Microsoft.com.

Parents will enjoy templates for academic calendars, whle teachers and homeschool families will appreciate gradebook forms, flash cards, supply lists and permission slips.

Since these templates are shared in various Microsoft formats, check version information before downloading:

Printable Back To School Planner Pages



Printable Back-to-School Cookbook

Posted September 16, 2007 by Cynthia Ewer

Let's hear it for AllRecipes.com! To celebrate their 10th anniversary on the Web--and to smooth the transition to a new school year--they're sharing a free printable Back to School cookbook.

With recipes for kid-pleasing breakfasts, lunches, snacks and dinners, the cookbook includes lunch box tips and ideas for freezer cooking.

Just for fun, the cookbook includes puzzles and brain-teasers for kids. The free download is shared in .pdf format, so you'll need a copy of Adobe Reader to view and print.

Get ready for a new school year!

Printable Back-To-School Cookbook



Time Management For Kids

Posted September 14, 2007 by Cynthia Ewer

For kids, school success can hinge on good organization and time management skills. Learning to manage time, use schedules and a planner are skills needed by every student.

Give your back-to-school students a refresher course in time management, with this just-for-kids Web site from PBSKids.org.

Find time management tips, lessons in planner basics, and free printable daily schedule, weekly planner and calendar pages here:

Time Management: You Versus The Clock