One of the reasons I've been so absent from blogland is that I was determined to be organized and ready when school started. I made my goal and things are looking good for the year.
One of my biggest helpers for this school year is the Desk Apprentice. I used one of these last year, but found that I really needed one for each kid, so I bought another one. They are kind of pricey, but a Staples opened near us this summer and had some fantastic sales, so I got a good deal on it. If you watch the Staples web-site, you can occasionally find it on sale. That's how I got my first one.
I'll take you through how we're using them.
The outside pockets are holding books and workbooks (including self-made notebooks like I made last year).
The corner pencil holders contain pencils, scissors, rulers, and colored pencils. I still have empty ones and I'm sure I'll find a use for them.
The center section holds over-sized books and binders. One of the things I'm most excited about, though, is the hanging files. I have 12 weeks worth. Each week contains papers and items that didn't fit in other places - memory work pages, timeline figures, miscellaneous notebooking items, and maps. As other things come up, they'll be placed in there as well.
The whole system is very flexible. And, since we work at the kitchen table, it makes clean-up at dinner time very easy. I love having everything contained and organized.
I'm considering getting one for myself, but I'm going to have to wait awhile for it. That money tree we planted in the backyard hasn't bloomed yet. I hope that man at the nursery wasn't lying to me...
We have started school here. I'll be posting later this week about how that's going.
