The Paper Chase

Your get-real guide to staying organized this school year

By Christina Katz

The first day of school is promising. Your children are coiffed and coutured in their cleanest and newest. They are nervous, excited, maybe a little anxious, while you probably feel elated by the possibility of a little time for yourself.

Surely there are a few tears to wipe away, maybe a couple of family members to call or e-mail with the reports of "how big" and "so brave." Emotions and expectations are running high, and then, guess what comes home along with the report on how the first day was?

A deluge of paper, that's what. And this is only the beginning. Piles form, coming via backpacks or extended in the clutches of paint-and-glitter-covered hands. Stacks quickly start to teeter with appeals for donations, requests for volunteer time, yearbook payments and extra-curricular enrichment, and calls to rally school spirit.

If you have multiple kids, you'd better act fast before a torrent of paper takes over an entire room in your home. It's only a matter of time before papers come reminding you of their predecessors, which you forgot to sign and return. Or maybe you just lost track of them in the flood.

Maybe someday technology will relieve us of all of this paper madness. (That’s the rumor, isn’t it?) In the meantime, a steady stream of paperwork is heading your way, and you need to learn how to manage it. After five years of dividing and conquering a volley of school communications, I've got my paper-flow systems down pat. Allow me to share what I've learned.

Recycle most of it
Initially, you will look at what your kids hand you and think, "Oh my gosh, my baby made this." But, trust me, the thrill quickly chills. Ask yourself instead, "Will I die, will my child suffer, or will we experience serious social disgrace or bumble critical parent-teacher communication if I throw this away?" 

If the answer is, "No," toss it—quickly. You won't miss it. I promise. When you are unsure, invest in some inexpensive cloth wall pockets to temporarily store the papers you can't bear to part with yet, like school directories or instructions for future events you plan to participate in.

Pick and choose
Your first year through the "paper mill," you'll need to learn what to participate in and what to pass over. So think of year one as your paper prioritizing initiation. PTA? Yes. Fun Run? Okay. Basketball fundraiser? Maybe not this year. Scholastic book purchases every month? It's up to you. Select what you can manage, and don't worry about doing more. Whatever you can handle, let it be enough.

Respond immediately
By the third round of requests for payments for the annual yearbook, you won't even hesitate to toss that sucker in the trash. Why? Because you always respond immediately to anything you want to participate in and you chuck the rest. Don't confuse matters by waiting until later.

If "immediately" doesn't work for you, take care of multiple-step responses on Fridays or Mondays or whatever day works best. Then, the next time the teacher is hollering through her paper megaphone that this is the tenth reminder to send in field trip money, you will smile smugly and recycle it. Because you always take care of those requests the first time around.

Tricks of the Paper Trade
Our staffers share mom-to-mom tips for taming clutter
“I bought a canvas shoe organizer. I hang it in my coat closet and use it for stuff I don't want to throw out yet but don't want to deal with right away—you know, all the crap that clutters my kitchen counters otherwise.”
– Meleya, advertising executive

“Shutterfly lets you create custom photo books—calendars, too—from kids’ artwork, for less than $12 each. You just take pictures of each child’s artwork, upload the photos to Shutterfly.com, and it will automatically lay it all out in a book for you. (That’s the quick way. You can also choose the custom option.) I have a friend who’s made books for each of her kids’ school years, and (needless to say) the books fit much better on a shelf than all that construction paper.”
– Leisa, art director

“I always kept a great, big envelope addressed to Grandma. When my kids brought home artwork or a great test, or brilliant short stories, some would go on the fridge, and some would go to Grandma. When the envelope was stuffed, we’d mail it off and start a new one.”
– Shelly, editor-in-chief

"But it's art!
"

You can keep it. But have some display cycles that you put your kids' artwork through for maximum enjoyment before the works go to the big craft heaven in the sky (or the big plastic tub in the basement, or the attic, or under the bed). In the meantime, hang up a clothesline in the kitchen, put up kids’ artwork frames around the house, and hang magnetized or cork strips in their rooms for the parade of self-expression to come.

Preserve the standouts
Your child does not want to remember that she was the last one in class to memorize her addition and subtraction tables, so throw the evidence away. But she may wish to remember the awesome story she wrote when she could barely spell about how she and her best friend stared down a millipede on the playground during recess. Set aside one large plastic tub for each child's artwork and ephemera. The best time for shaking down the clutter that is bound to accumulate in tubs is each summer, when you've regained some detachment.

My, that's…bulky
More power to teachers who can make lessons three-dimensional wonders of elbow noodles, glue and glitter. Have your child pose with the masterpiece. Get several shots. Make sure you get a good one. Then "store" the masterpiece in the basement or garage on a special shelf or rack set aside for amazing artwork. Then discretely dispose of the whole lot at the beginning of each new school year.

Share the wealth
At some point, you will have your paper trail tamed, but there is virtually nothing you can (or should) do to hamper your child's insatiable desire to create. Encourage your little Picasso instead. Keep manila envelopes addressed and ready-to-mail to relatives in one of your cloth wall pockets, so you can easily capture and share some of the seasonal artwork overflow. You've got a lot of paper joy floating around your home – you may as well share the wealth.

Freelance journalist and author Christina Katz likes school, back-to-school shopping, and even some of the parents who insist on double parking at child pick-up time. But the paper clutter doesn't stand a chance.