I collect my homeschool room organizing tools from all over and from some of the same places you probably have in the area you live in. Look at my page The Dynamics of How to Homeschool Easily and Smarter for more tips.
Some I order on online because I want some specialty items.
What helps me to focus on a tool and to think outside the box is to have my *needs* not a *tool* in mind.
The tool serves the need.
Have you ever come home with a bunch of pretty organizing tools and not really have a place to put them?
Though pretty, they won’t be much use if you can’t put them to work.
Determining your use, determines the homeschool tool.
Homeschool Room Organizing + Organizing Tools
Thinking outside the box too doesn’t mean you have to steer away from traditional uses for a tool either
This idea of a dish drainer for books is one of them that, for me, well I have a hard time being inspired to look at every day.
The idea is novel but I would have to think of a way to hide the drainer, then I may be more inspired when I look at it every day.
Organizing Your Homeschool Room
Organizing does not have to be expensive. It is one of those hobbies useful life skills that can be inexpensive. I decide how much to pay or not pay for items.
And sometimes you just need to add a pop of color to your learning area. Our learning area was the formal dining room turned learning area.
So here are 13 things that make me sing when I did a spruce up from last year.
After, I explained them here, I have a list below.
1. The lamp was on clearance from my one of my stalking trips to Target.
The stencil was a wall stencil I got online too. It is a Moroccan look. I have been looking at it for a year now to determine if I want to do my pantry in this pattern.
Trying it out on the lampshade helps me to look at it for a while longer to see if I still am in love. I am still swooning over it.
The paint is acrylic paint I already had in the house; it’s cadmium orange color. Gorgeous.
2. The orange slices, lemon slices, coral and white mustache bookends are what I spent my money on this year.
You know I told you the longer you homeschool, the less you need curriculum wise. So you get to spend your homeschool budget on other yummy things.
So I purchased all of my cool bookends on ETSY.
They seem to have a variety to choose from each year.
I am still swooning over them and have restrained myself for the time being in not putting matching book covers over all of the books.
3. The magazine bins I got from different places.
It is easy to match your decor if you don’t want to take time redoing an older magazine holder. I keep all of mine though because I do redo them as I get time.
I find a lot of them on Amazon.
4. I knew when these binders came out at Target and I was there the first day they were putting them out, that if I waited to get them they would be gone.
I knew I loved everything about these designs. So I made sure to book mark this site Green Room.
5. Use expanding jackets to hold art work or other paper crafts while your children are doing.
I found these expanding jackets to store our art projects in.
Keep the kids organized by assigning each one a color.
Besides the fact they have GORGEOUS colors, they last a long time for the price. I use them year after year.
No sense in having the paper crafts strewn everywhere.
6. Next, use items made for bathroom storage as a pencil holder and scissors stand.
I got mine online from Amazon. Instead of looking at the more expensive storage section, I browse the bathroom section. That is an example of thinking outside the box.
Homeschool Organizing Tools
The scissors holder they sell as a toothbrush holder and the cup is for a bathroom drinking cup. Who says?
Can you picture that trash basket as a beautiful way to hold maps and other artwork that is folded but needs to stand up? And that is EXACTLY how I used the beautiful trash can. It holds folded up maps.
Instead of seeing a toothbrush holder, can you see a paint brush holder or mechanical pencil holder?
If you see a soap holder, can you see it as paper clip storage?
7. The pink storage bins, I think, I got from Hobby Lobby too.
I have had them for a while upstairs in my school library. But too, don’t forget to measure your area to see how big. Here are some others I’m loving.
8. Here again, I am visiting the bathroom section of Target to find small storage bins with color.
This canister is part of their Room Essentials collection. I heart this container because it has three sections that flip out for easy access of small parts we use on our lapbooks and paper clips.
9. Use a drawer of towers.
Drawers are well not just drawers when it comes to storing heavier books and items. Iris is the brand that is I heart and that is carried by the Container Store.
It is a little more pricey but too the drawer does not fall over at the first minute my kid pulls the drawer open. The drawers are encased inside the unit making it a lot stronger than inexpensive ones that I had bought at Walmart many years ago.
I take a longer time now to fuss over which drawers I buy. They have to not only be pretty but first they have to be sturdy. Here are some others I’m eyeing.
10. The clear hanging file holder I love.
You can get it from Amazon and I love having the bin to fit on a desktop, table or any surface. It’s easy to get in and out of each file.
Desk top or table top file holders are the perfect size for holding charts and other material that you need to pick up and take some other place.
We can pick up the chart bin which has our maps and geography printables I make and take it with us to the living room or just bring it to the table.
As your children get older, you move away from all those cutesy things hanging on the wall and look for creative ways to store items that any family member can pick up and take elsewhere.
Table top bins can even be a place to keep your organizational printables for your family at one spot, like a command center. It works good for small spaces or just to keep it all organized.
11. Extra storage for crafts and supplies.
.The pink set of drawers I bought from Bed, Bath and Beyond when they had their college dorm things out. But there are others I eyeball because I’m always looking to update my look.
I wanted something that was just for my storage of files and extra supplies like staple, tape, notepads. It had just the pop of color I wanted too
12. I couldn’t resist adding in my free 7 STEP DIY Homeschool Planner.
Where do you store yours?
Mine is on an easel. If I pay money to print the pink ink then why not flaunt it and use it as part of your school decor?
If you love it, show it. I am not sure if my orange and pink crush was my inspiration for our room and planner cover or the other way around. But I love them both.
13. Then, nothing beats a small storage cabinet.
You know I told you I wasn’t going to bother hubby this year on something different for the school room. He still needs much rest.
But I found this beautiful simple storage cabinet from Bed, Bath and Beyond and I could actually put it together.
I like the fact it is versatile and the books I had to go in it measured just the right height when I found it.
Learning spaces are important because I know you spend just as much time in your area as I do in mine.
Find inspiration from the things you love and don’t settle for something like a dish drainer unless you are really taken away with the idea no matter how novel.
In my workshop I share that organizing is about the heart, not about will. You have to want something different than you have now. Mountains are moved one stone at a time.
HOMESCHOOL ORGANIZING TOOLS
Thinking outside the box too doesn’t mean you have to steer away from traditional uses for a tool either.
This stencil has been available off and on .
They seem to have a variety to choose from each year.
Greenroom has proudly established an exclusive partnership with Target
since 2005, when we became their first fashion-forward line of
recycled paper products.
Durable one-piece plastic construction and reinforced gussets help prevent edges from tearing. Bungee cord closure keeps contents secure.
Easy to clean,perfect for kids and family use.
Instead of seeing a toothbrush holder, can you see a paint brush holder or mechanical pencil holder?
If you see a soap holder, can you see it as paper clip storage?
Foldable storage cubes with PU Leather handles are made of durable canvas and waterproof PE coating linner. A sturdy metal rod frame around the top to keep the basket shape.
3 drawers in one or more colors provide you with much more room for organizing papers, kitchen tools, toys and home office supplies. Compact size also makes it suitable for corners, which helps you save room space.
34 inches; Equiped with our utility cart has 3 tiers, 3 Cups, 4 Hooks, this utility cart will help you organize your daily things well and make your rooms look neat and elegant, allowing everything to have its own place.
Hanging File Organizer: This acrylic file folder organizer is designed for convenient storage of letter size / A4 files, folders, and papers, making it an ideal solution for both office and home organization. Please note that quick and easy assembly is required, and the package includes assembly tools.
Add simple sophistication and style to your desk or office with this unique file organizer in green
The under desk drawer cabinet with lock, equipped with two keys, can increase the security and privacy of your files.Two drawers can be locked or opened simultaneously. Fashionable exterior design can perfectly blend into your office or home .
Did you make a small organizational change that you heart this year?
I find this quote inspiring today because I think about the changes and sacrifices you make for homeschooling your family. Don’t think they go unnoticed. Especially if your kids are real young, it is hard to feel the homeschooling love.
Look at these other tips:
- Homeschool Organization – 12 Unconventional Ideas for Storage
- Homeschool Organization Where Do You Easily Begin?
- Homeschool Organization – Why You’re Still Drowning in Clutter
- Homeschool Organization Motivation – 11 Gadgets To Get You Going
- Homeschool Organization – Preschool/Kindergarten Free Morning Routine Flip Cards
I hope I can impart a positive attitude and can do spirit even if just a little bit for you each day.
“When you’re happy for yourself, it fills you. When you’re happy for someone else, it pours over.”
~ Sarah Addison Allen~
Hugs and you know I love ya,
I like the bookstands. I think they would work well with my home school Keepfiling binders. Where did you get them ??
Hi Kate,
I know it’s easy to overlook, but I have a link there below the product. You’ll love those bookends because they are so unusual.
Thank you for sharing!
You are so welcome Brenda!!