In today’s post: Learn how to organize school papers with a simple school memory binder. Keep all of your child’s favorite artwork, homework, report cards, etc. in one tidy place!
Anyone else drowning in school papers? My kids bring home loads of drawings, writing samples, math tests, etc., every week, and they don’t want to throw away ANY OF IT. Not even one piece. It’s gotten so bad that I’ve tried to throw it away when they’re not looking, but then I forget to take out the trash and one of my children saw her beautiful artwork in the garbage and then there are tears and I felt like the worst mom ever… And just in case you think I am the worst mom ever for throwing away any of my kids’ precious artwork, take a minute to imagine what my house would look like if I kept every single piece of school paperwork that each of my FIVE children produced every year.
Obviously, I don’t need piles of school papers accumulating in every room in my home. Frankly, I don’t even want a whole box for each child, because no one is ever going to look through an entire box-worth of school papers. I promise. What I want is a nice tidy binder (or two) for each child that holds their very favorite work from each year of school. Something that’s organized and pared down enough to truly be a keepsake that will be fun to look through in years to come.
So that’s what I’ve made! Today I’m going to show you how to organize those piles of school papers into one tidy school memory binder.
How to organize school papers
Step 1: As school papers come home, save special drawings, writing assignments, reports cards, or anything else your child is attached to. Use a filing cabinet or a shelf in a closet to keep anything that feels special. Don’t worry too much about organizing things now, just collect anything your child isn’t willing to throw away.
Step 2: Create a school memory binder. Get a 2 or 3 inch three ring notebook for each child and place 25 page protectors inside it. Then download the free year in review divider pages for each grade by clicking here. The set includes preschool, kindergarten, and grades 1-12. Print it out at 100% on cardstock. Slide each divider page into a page protector. You can also download a cover page here.
Step 3: At the end of each school year, have your child fill out the year in review printable for the grade she has just finished. She can write her name, record the year, and fill out some information that will be fun to remember later: names of teachers and friends, favorite books, favorite field trips, and favorite activity from that year. Adhere a 5×7 photo to the divider page as well.
Then pull out all the papers you’ve saved from that year and ask your child to choose 10-15 that are her absolute favorites. The favorites go into the binder, and the rest can get recycled. It’s much easier to convince kids that it’s ok to throw away some of the paperwork when they see you are saving their favorites in a binder they can look at any time they want!
As the years go on, you’ll continue to add to the binder. If there are lots of special papers you’d like to keep, you may end up using two or three binders for each child. This is the easiest way I’ve found to organize school paperwork.
What if your child is already in fourth grade and you’re just starting this project now? Well, no problem! Pull out all the paperwork you’ve saved so far and start dividing things up into grades. Help your child pare down the papers to 10-15 from each grade, and have him fill out the year in review pages for each grade as well as he can remember. Get the binder current up to now, and then it will be ready to keep going in years to come.
Even if you don’t want to create a binder to organize school papers, it’s still fun to print out the year in review printables as a way to document the last day of school each year!
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You are awesome! Thanks for sharing this great idea, and for providing the awesome printables. Definitely will be doing this with my kids!
Such a good Idea Autumn!!!!!
Our oldest is in preK and I’ve been trying to decide what to do with everything that comes home from school. Thanks for the inspiration and printables!
Thank you for these. I’ve been using the Artkive app to take a picture of my kids with their artwork, keeping only the best ones, and throwing the other’s away. I also have 8-1/2 x 11 frames from Ikea (1.99 ea) in various colors to put some artwork in and hang on the wall. I don’t have as much hanging around.
That app sounds like a fantastic idea – thanks for the tip!
My son was just enrolled in Pre-K today to begin in August. I’m going to LOVE having these. I already document everything about his life. Both of my parents passed away before I finished my 20s, the only things we truly leave behind are memories in photo form. There isn’t a whole lot I possess and there are memories I won’t ever know about because I don’t have either of them to explain photos I’ve found of my brother and I. I want to make sure James always knows what went on in his past 🙂
Hi Sarah! I’m so sorry you lost both your parents early, but what a wonderful thing you are doing for your son as a result! My parents always tell me “if you didn’t write it down, it didn’t happen,” which turns out to be so true once the people holding the memories pass on. Thanks for commenting – I really appreciate it.
Do you happen to have ideas for cover pages? I got started on James’s tonight because we just had a parent/teacher conference with his daycare (no page for that but I’m using the pre-K one since he gets tested every few months on how he’s progressing with writing, math, and memory like pre-K so it works!).
I love this idea & final outcome. Thank you so much for sharing!
I have a 3 ring binder where I keep all the kids pictures and awards through the years – so I LOVE this cute page that can be a great cover page to start each year!!! THANKS – great work!
THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! This is exactly what I have been looking for! I plan to get organized this summer.
I absolutely love this idea and can’t wait to get started. Do you have a Pre Kinder one somewhere or would you suggest using the Pres school twice? She attended both and I have a binder from both I would LOVE to condense. Thanks again for the great idea and any suggestion.
Silly question but do you fill this out at the end of each school year or at the beginning? Thanks!
We filled them out at the end of the year, so they can record their favorite things from the year.
I just found your post on pinterest and I am printing them now 🙂 I had photographed all of the papers and made soft cover books from shutterfly and kept just the best but now i can put the best ones as well as the book and these pages all in a binder and that will be perfect! Thanks so much for this wonderful free printable!
Any chance to get some girlie colors? I have twins, so I like to do a version for each. Pinks and purples are her favorite colors.
Love this idea!! I am having trouble opening it…any ideas?
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Thank you so much for these! I appreciate it and look forward to using them.
I was happy for the updated 7th-12th grade, thank you Autumn!!!! I love it!
Hi – For some reason I can’t get the link to work for the Gr. 7-12. Can someone help?!
This is the BEST idea to organize ALL that schoolwork that comes home this time of year!!!
Thank you for sharing!
Did anyone ever find out why these links will not open? I want to use them for a project and get started on it now, but I cannot open the downloads.
Thanks so much for these! They are lovely! I love the colours.
I was just hoping to change the line from “favourite field trip” to “School”. How would I go about doing that?
First I have to say I love your printables for the school memory binder! Its exactly what I have been looking for! But I was wondering – Do you have a PreSchool page in the original version (older dates)? I would to add all of my children’s preschool years too – but my first born went to preschool in 2005. Thanks for your help!
Molly
Just curious…what fonts did you use to create these cover sheets! I just love them and would like to download or purchase them. Thank you!!
Autumn – as always, you always come through! I have looked, and looked, and looked for many different versions of these, but I just love your style! And thank you for extending them through to 2030 – that will cover DS who starts school in Fall of 2017. Thank you so much – you have no idea!
Link does not open
When I first downloaded these attachments to my computer, it completely shut down and is now completely inactive… I have to take it somewhere to get it fixed. I thought something was wrong with my computer, so I had my husband download them at his work and the same thing happened. Had to get IT to come get his computer bc it completly shut all functioning capabilities down (won’t even restart). I am writing this from my phone hopeful that no one else’s devices are ruined!
Hi, I love your school memory printables. They are my favorite of all I’ve seen! I know you have already extended the dates once but I have 2 little ones that haven’t started school yet. The dates (up to 2030) won’t quite make it. Are you considering doing another revision in the near future? Or is there a way I can alter it myself? Thank you so much for sharing your great ideas
Me too! Looking for dates beyond 2030, thanks for considering or sharing an editable file:)
I have had these pinned for so long and never realized the dates on them.. I just had a daughter, I was just curious if you ever thought of updating again lol
Hi I could not get the download to open up properly. Could you please email them to me?
Did you receive a response? I cannot get the PK-6 files to open, either.
I love these! Thanks so much! I also have a lot of toddler artwork to save. Do you have a printout with a toddler layout similar to these?
Thanks
Sarah
I absolutely love this idea!!!! How do I download the files? I clicked on, “click here download preschool through 6th grade” but it isn’t doing anything.
Hi! I love these printables and am using them for my oldest son’s memory book. My middle son is starting preschool this year and I would love to use these again! Will you be updating the file to include the year 2031? Let me know! Thanks so much!!!!
I’m also curious if you’re planning on doing another update. My kiddo just started preschool and will graduate in 2033.
I LOVE these- thank you so much! I’ve already done my oldest son’s and just need more years for my second kiddo.
Is there any way you’d be able/willing to update the years, going up to 2040 (how OLD does that make me feel?!)?? I have a little one on the way who will graduate in 2036.
Thanks so much!
Hi Molly! I am planning to update these pages within in the next month or two, so keep checking the blog. Thanks for commenting, and congrats on the little one on the way!!
I love this idea! I dated a guy briefly in high school and his mom had something similar to this displayed at his graduation party. I’ve wanted to do this for my future kids ever since! My oldest will start kindergarten next year. Thanks for the printables!
You can also take a digital snapshot of the child’s work or projects and create a school portfolio. There are ways to store and display for later the work. In class I often took photos of papers that parents had to sign and return to the office. Some times the papers got lost in the office and I would have proof that the paper work was turned in. At the end of the year I would delete everything and start again with a new class the following year.
This is great organization ideas! I really can’t wait to put your tips to the test!
These are all great tips! I can’t wait to try these out!
I love this idea. I’m in th UK; would it be possible to get the printable to have Year 1, year 2 etc instead of 1st grade, 2nd grade? Or do you know of someone who did?