Paper Tasks: End of School

School will be out in our area in under two weeks. I noticed my brain started to think about all the stuff they will be bringing home and dumping in our front entry way, which is where they like to keep their backpacks and instruments. I definitely do not want it sitting there all summer!

Before that final school day, I have some school papers of my own that need to be dealt with. I have a file for each of my daughter's important school papers. I will pull them out of the file cabinet and take a look at the papers inside. I'm pretty sure there are numerous grade reports. I will keep the very last one with all grades for the year. I think there are a few award certificates earned, that will be kept. I also think there may be information passed out at the beginning of the year that will no longer be needed. I think I can complete that simple task within 20 minutes or less. I do need to remember to look on the refrigerator and counter tops in the kitchen for any stray papers that might need to be filed as well.

Once each file is cleaned up, I will put the folder into my long term filing cabinet. If you have seen pictures of my basement storage area, that is my black file cabinet. I will also start a new file for each of my daughters for the following year. I like to label the file with their name and grade, for easy reference later. I think I can complete that task within the same time mentioned above.

It is so easy to want to put this off until fall when school starts again, but that is when the paper comes in like crazy. I find if I take a little time to declutter the current year files and prepare new ones, it makes the new paper work even less stressful.

If you have young children that still bring home worksheets and art, I would encourage you to keep some of those precious drawings. We kept ours in a medium sized bin. If it gets to full, it is a good idea to go through it and determine if some can be let go. I highly suggest scanning, too, if you are really interesting in keeping nearly all the drawings. From experience, I have treasured the original writings and drawings of my children far more than any basic worksheet. Those worksheets can just be recycled. :)

Do you keep a file for your student's important papers? Do you make an effort to get them in order at some point during the year? Do you prefer the beginning, the end or both? Do you have a system for keeping art work?