Organization - Sandpiper Creatives

Balancing School, Business, and Housework

This question gets asked a lot… How do you juggle homeschooling, housework, and a job? Well, the answer is different for everyone, but the struggle of finding a balance between educating my children, managing our house, and running a business from home is real and it’s continuous, because it requires self-discipline, adjustment, and consistency. Often, it’s sheer will-power that wins the day against an exhausting and never-ending to-do list or outside factors that just can’t be helped. Let me be clear – Every day is not glamorous, and I don’t have it all figured out, but I have learned a few things over the years that I am happy to share. I have found that when I’m on top of my game, my home becomes a haven, my head is cleared, and our days make sense, so it’s worth the effort.

by Kimberly Farmer

Creating a Multi-Subject Reference Binder (Video)

A Living, Lasting Resource

Before you throw out used curriculum and throw out, organize, or box up your student’s work, ask yourself if this material is worth reviewing down the road and needs to be referenced again. If so, this may be just what you and your family need!

Sandpiper Creatives - Daily Progress Charts

by Kimberly Farmer

School Day Progress Tracking

During our homeschooling journey from kindergarten through now middle school, my kids have always thrived on two elements of scheduling:

1) The Day’s Expectations: My kids like knowing at the beginning of the day what is going to happen or what is expected of them. Seeing the plan helps them realize that their school work will eventually end.

2) Completed Work Recognized: My kids are more motivated during the school day when they can see their progress and feel that they have accomplished something.

The way I accomplish this has changed over the years, but some form of it is always a success. Let me show you what I did for the younger grades and then what I’m doing for the older elementary and middle school years, and then adapt these ideas to work for your family! Take advantage of the free printable chart (no card information needed)!

by Kimberly Farmer

Beautiful AND Functional Artwork

Until we moved to our current house, our classroom was located in a separate room of the house where we could decorate and learn and make messes during our school time, and then when school was over, we simply shut the door and lived peacefully (okay, happily) in the rest of the house. When company came, they never had to see our classroom unless I wanted them to see it. It was the ideal setup for me. When we moved, however, the houses we considered did not have an extra “hidden” space where we could spend our school time. Quite the opposite, actually. If you visit our house, our classroom will be the first room you’ll see, and you will definitely see it, because it is located at the front door and is completely open to the rest of the house.

by Kimberly Farmer

Instructional Days Tracker

Most states require homeschool students to study for a certain number of instructional days. For 30 of the states, that number of days is 180, but the number of days for the rest of the states varies between a little under 170 to 181 days, and in a few states, the regulation doesn’t apply at all. Respecting this law is important, because breaking it can mean penalties, fines, or sentences.

Fortunately, tracking our number of school days is much easier than actually getting through them, right? While I do use a planner/calendar to keep track of our daily and monthly responsibilities, I prefer to keep our number of instructional days on a separate paper that I can easily slip into my “Master Binder” at the end of the year. My “Master Binder,” as I refer to it, is where I keep important and legal documentation related to our home school.

by Kimberly Farmer

Personalizing Notebooks or Books

Raise your hand if you remember Trapper-Keepers, lots of spiral notebooks, and cardboard pencil boxes from your school days. Anything I could do to personalize these school materials and put my own stamp on them, I did. In first grade, I went so far as to ask my mom to cover my pencil box in pretty wrapping paper so it would look different from everyone else’s on the planet. I guess that need to turn the boring, mass-produced product into my own creative masterpiece still lingers, because here I am as an adult teaching my own kids, and I’m still doing the same thing! I love it when we turn the boring cover of their binder or notebook into something they want to see every day.

by Kimberly Farmer

Reading Legacy Journal

When our oldest was getting ready to start kindergarten, my mom made a wonderful suggestion! She recommended getting journals for our kids that they could keep into adulthood, and these journals would be for recording the books they read. So I selected classic journals for them, and we have been keeping them ever since.

by Kimberly Farmer

Labeling Possessions

Sometimes I just really need a way to mark bags for each child, but I don’t want to write on the item with a permanent marker. Problem solved… I came across a package of three of these key/luggage tags at the key kiosk for less than $2 (if I remember correctly), and they are wonderful for attaching to zippers on bags, backpacks, lunchboxes, etc. With different colors, it’s easier to tell which whose is whose at a glance. Almost a decade later, we are still using them! You can find a pack of 40 in 9 assorted colors for about $6 on Amazon.

by Kimberly Farmer

Attractive Artwork Storage Box

How do you store your child’s artwork? Well, my brother, bless his heart, keeps all of Ava and Landon’s mail and artwork that they give him in a very special place…. on top of his microwave. 🙂 A pretty little stack of papers have been there since Ava was itty-bitty. It’s so sweet that he keeps his niece and nephew’s pictures and that he keeps them out where they can be enjoyed, but I thought that perhaps he would like a slightly more organized and attractive, yet still accessible, way to keep their artwork. So, I found this black Document Storage Box, and I just couldn’t pass it up. It’s the perfect size, and we chose to personalize it and give it to him as a gift.

by Kimberly Farmer

Fun-to-Use Clothes Pins

Here’s a fun way to spend some time on a weekend. Throw your kids some clothes pins, magazines or scrapbook paper, paint & brush, scissors, and glue, and task them with making attractive clothes pins. You’ll be using them for years to come, and you’ll smile each time you use one.