Tackling The Mountain Of Paper Your Kids Bring Home

school year, we are inevitably confronted by something lurking from our past. PAPER!!! Yes, the never-ending paper! Truly, in a paperless world, the amount of paper a school-aged child accumulates over the years may actually outweigh said child!

Remember when the last school year ended, and your kids came home with 35 pounds of papers? Remember how you said, “I’ll get to it this summer.” Well, summer has come and gone, my friend. We are back in full school swing. And that paper is still there. Waiting. Waiting to be taken care of as more projects, essays, and worksheets pile up during the new school year.

e time has come for it to be addressed. But how? e molehill from the rst few weeks of this school year does indeed become a mountain. Where do you even begin to tackle a mountain of school paperwork that, at the very least, may require some tactical gear to manage? e solution? Start. Set a small goal as your rst step. Sort for ve minutes. Go through paper while watching your favorite show … just start. With that said, here are some ways for you to “just start” –

LKNEXPERT

Sasha Campbell is the founder and owner of Organized Sunshine, LLC, in Huntersville. To consult and connect with Sasha, you can call 704.661.8129 or reach her via email at sashacampbell44@ gmail.com. 1 PURGE. When your child brings home paperwork, go through it immediately!

2 PLACE. Once the paper has made it through the rst round of purging, have a designated basket, folder, or area where you can store your child’s precious drawings of the family or your struggling student’s rst A on an algebra test.

3 DECIDE. When the school year is over, sit down and go through the papers. It’s decision time. Do you really need 54 pages showing that your child understands their multiplication tables? A handful of papers showing the same type of work is more than enough.

4 FILE. ere are many options out there to store your kids’ schoolwork from ling cabinets that can double as a nightstand to plastic ling bins that are easily moved and stored. Label it in a way that works for you (name, age, year, grade, etc). e key is to label and organize those school memories now to allow you to access and reminisce later.

5 ENJOY. Once you put in the work on the front end, paper management during the schoolage years CAN be manageable. Having a system in place will make each step and decision easier. ese are treasured memories and deserve to be treated as such. w

LKNW RECOGNIZES A WOMAN DOING EXCEPTIONAL WORK IN THE LAKE NORMAN COMMUNITY, A LEADER WHO IS PAVING THE WAY TO CHANGING OUR ATTITUDES AND INSPIRING CONFIDENCE IN THE FUTURE.

on FINDING HER CALLING: I was fortunate enough to be a stay-at-home mom for 20 years with my three children: Bryson (23), Emma (21), and Jeremy (18). Once I was ready to work again, I realized I needed a new career. That’s when I decided it was time to pursue real estate. I love helping people and I consider myself an extrovert — I must socialize! My love for homes and helping people landed me my dream job. As a child growing up my mom would say, “Ashley, you can’t talk to everyone.” But I never listened. I talk to anyone, anywhere. I never meet a stranger.

FARAWAY PLACES: I love meeting new people and socializing at the events held in downtown Mooresville. I also love spending time with my friends and family at the beach and at the lake. With a love for travel, I’ve visited 22 states, and I’ve made three mission trips to Honduras. Those trips have been the most memorable to me — just to see God working in the lives of the people that have so little but love so hard … it’s humbling for sure.

Personally, I am the proudest of myself for never giving up — on me, as a single mom, and my children, for all they have accomplished in their young lives. Professionally, I have that same strong will and desire to succeed. I am my business, and it is what I make it. No one else can get me there besides myself.

on EMBRACING HER INNER KID: People would probably be very surprised to know I grew up as tomboy! I still enjoy anything outdoors — hunting, fi shing, visiting a shooting range, camping, hiking, etc. I’ve even been skydiving! While I enjoy dressing up and looking professional, I don’t mind a little dirt.

My fi ght song is “Rise Up” by Andra Day. When I hear it, it gives me the strength to be brave, stand taller, and always move forward. Each day I challenge myself to put in the effort to achieve my goals for work … and to get at least two of my kids to return my text messages. w

Ashley Towns is a Realtor/Broker with Lake Norman Realty located at 522 River Highway in Mooresville. She can be reached at 704.880.9858 or online at www.LakeNormanRealty.com.

our team of exceptional therapists has over a century of combined experience helping children & adults of all ages overcome speech & language disorders so they can lead more empowered lives.

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