The minute children start school parents are bombarded with paperwork, art projects, and “MOM! Why did you throw this away? I was saving
it.” And if that heartfelt scream wasn’t enough to make a parent feel guilty, the child follows it up with loud, sobbing tears. But
what’s a parent to do?
After my first few bouts of guilt, I learned creative ways to deal with my children’s schoolwork and art projects. In fact, I haven’t
heard a major temper tantrum in nearly 12 years!
When children first learn to write, draw, or color, that sense of accomplishment means the world to them. Every piece of paper that
comes home deserves a place in your home, or so they think. But if we kept every single piece of paperwork that walked through our
doors, we’d have hundreds of boxes waiting to catch fire. So how does one combat this paper menace without hurting our children’s
feelings?
Clutter-free Schoolwork
Follow these simple tips and you’ll be on your way to peace and harmony:
- Display the artwork your child is most proud of with a magnetic strip on your refrigerator and replace it weekly with a new piece of
artwork.
- If your child’s artwork is really beautiful or inspiring, have your child sign his or her name in the lower right hand corner, date
it, and frame it. Take the artwork to your local frame store and have it measured. Then find a frame and mat that helps show off its
features while matching the décor of your home.
- Save your child’s artwork until you have enough to put together a handmade calendar for the upcoming year and distribute them to
family members as holiday gifts. With modern technology, you can scan the artwork and have a professional printer make a hanging wall
calendar. Or you can do the honors yourself by turning it into a fun family art project. All you need is a hole puncher, glue, yarn or
decorative ribbon, blank month-at-a-view calendars, and 12x12 construction paper. Glue one side of the construction paper with artwork
and the other side with a blank calendar. Take the hole puncher and punch a hole in the top of the paper and string the entire 12 months
together with the yarn or decorative ribbon.
- Turn your child’s artwork into Christmas ornaments. If your child did finger painting, for instance, you can simply trace a ball,
tree, or other figure that resembles Christmas onto that painting. Cut that object out, have your child sign and date the back, and
laminate it. Then punch a whole in the top of the ornament and string it with decorative ribbon.
- Make greeting cards. Every year millions of families spend thousands of dollars wishing others good cheer—why not save some of that
cash and make your child feel good at the same time?
- Art projects taking up too much space? Did your child make a cute gift basket, pencil holder, fake plant, or other object? Don’t
have any place to store them and don’t want to hurt your child’s feelings by throwing them out?
Recycle them! After they’ve adorned
your home for a few months, take a picture of that art project for your child’s scrapbook, then share the wealth. Mail or hand-deliver
that art project to someone in your life who could use a little cheering up.
- Save your child’s schoolwork in his or her very own file cabinet. Label each hanging folder by school year, and then place manila
folders inside labeled with report cards, artwork, schoolwork, and awards.
- Distribute your child’s schoolwork. Let your child see you put his or her schoolwork into a large manila folder, along with a nice
letter and mail it to a distant relative or close friend. In the past, we’ve mailed test papers, homework, and classroom work to
grandparents, old school friends that moved away, cousins, aunts, and even adult friends of the children…such as an old Sunday school
teacher or store owner we’ve met on vacation.
- Shred it. Sadly, there will be times you really cannot do anything with the schoolwork your child brings home. There is only so
much you can keep, turn into art projects, or mail out. Shred the left over papers and use them for packaging materials, to start a
fire in the fireplace, and to make paper-mache projects.
About The Author:
Alyice Edrich is a mixed media artist, freelance writer, and aspiring photographer. She enjoys creating things that bring joy
to others. Visit our her blog, Coming Home, to check out her latest art. Or
stop by her resume site, AlyiceEdrich.net to learn how you can hire her for your
next project.
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