Seasonal Spin

The start of a new school year brings fresh supplies and new outfits ... and their less-welcome cousin, homework. How will you handle daily homework sessions in your organized home?

To stave off homework battles, it pays to make a plan. Creating a homework routine undercuts foot-dragging, while setting up a homework station keeps distractions to a minimum. 

Ready to plan for homework? Try these tips to get it done swiftly, done right during the coming school year.

Each day in your household, the questions fly. What time is soccer practice? Do we need to buy milk? Is the family free to attend a barbecue this weekend?

Even in an age of smartphones, each household needs a one-stop location to find the answers: a family command center. 

Information central for busy families, a family command center cuts school-day stress by creating a single location to find calendars, information and messages needed by the family each day. 

Kindergarten teachers know a powerful organizing principle: reliable routines are the secret to a successful school day. 

Well-crafted classroom routines give pupils a sense of security--and ensure that the day moves smoothly through each planned activity.

Put that organizing secret to work in your organized home! 

Today in the Back-to-School Countdown, it's time to craft morning, after-school and evening routines for the school year.

It's the battle cry of millions of parents: "Clean your room!" Will it ring out in your house today?

Seasonal events like birthdays, the holidays or a new school year bring fresh motivation to the drive to get kids organized--and nowhere is the battleground more intense than in the children's bedrooms.  

How do you help your child organize and clean up life in the bedroom?

Try these eight easy organization strategies to calm clutter and bring order to kids' rooms.

Gearing up for a new school year? Don't get sticker shock when shopping for school clothes! 

The cost of clothing the children for a new school year can be staggering. Even clothing in good repair may no longer fit a growing youngster after the summer holiday. If you've got a budding fashionista on your hands, your child's list of must-have items can swell out of all reality.

How to send them back to school in style ... and on budget? Try these ten ideas for saving money on school clothes.

Back-to-school on the horizon? Here comes the paperwork! Today in the Organized Home Back-to-School Countdown, we're preparing for the paper flood ahead.

Each school day, children's backpacks grow paperwork like leaves on trees. Permission slips and lunch menus. Sports rosters and progress reports. 

Getting ready for back-to-school with the Organized Home Back-to-School Countdown?  It's time to hang on to your wallet!  

No doubt about it, outfitting the family for a new school year can be a pricey enterprise.  Shoes, clothes and school supplies are only the beginning of the financial outlay.  

The start of school brings a brisk new tempo to the household, sweeping away the sweet leisure of summer--and the first day of school can bring an unwelcome splash of busy reality.  

Will you be ready? Get organized now to sail into school with ease!  

Today in the Back-to-School Countdown, we focus on information, contacts and appointments.  It's time to gather paperwork, start a school-year contacts list, and schedule any needed appointments in good time for the first day of school.

Welcome to Day 1 of the Organized Home Back-to-School Countdown! 

In spite of long and lazy summer days, a new school year is on the horizon. To be ready for the first day of school, there are lists to make and appointments to keep, paperwork to be processed and shopping to be done.

Track them all with this printable back-to-school checklist. Free for the printing, it'll help you tick off back-to-school tasks and get organized for a new school year.

Whatever the format--home school, online or in-person--a new school year is on the horizon. Time to prepare for back to school, with the Organized Home Back-to-School Countdown.

Beginning Monday, August 2, we'll take two weeks to get organized, gear up and get ready to start a new school year from an organized home.

Following an ultimate back-to-school checklist, the Back-to-School Countdown includes weekday reminders, free printables and inspiring articles to help you prepare for the first day of school.