How Parents Can Stay Organized in the New School Year

Discover tips and must-have items to help parents get organized for the school year, and view a checklist for the night before school.

Updated February 28, 2025

by Baby Chick Editors

Medically reviewed by Nina Spears

The Baby Chick®: Pregnancy, Birth & Postpartum Expert

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A young girl wearing a backpack hugs a smiling woman with long blonde hair in a cozy living room. The room, designed to help stay organized, features a grey couch with colorful cushions, a wooden coffee table with art supplies, and various decorative items.

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Another new school year is about to start, which means everyone is getting back into the swing of things. Being organized once school begins means less chaos for parents and students alike! I am a mother and a teacher, so I truly understand the importance of making sure everything runs smoothly throughout the week. Planning and organizing before the week begins will set the tone in a positive way!

It takes a little extra work on the weekend, but you will be glad these things are done once the week rolls around. Through experience, I’ve found that going the extra mile to ensure everyone is organized and on the same page truly makes all the difference. By implementing a few simple habits and practices, you will have the most organized school year ever!

How To Stay Organized for the School Year

Here are some helpful tips and our must-have items to get parents organized and ready for the school year:

Start Planning

I know everyone has a calendar on their cellphone, but I truly believe in having things written down as well. So, I save important events and dates in my Google Calendar, followed by writing them down in a planner. The daily, weekly, and monthly combination planners are so easy to throw in your purse or bag for work. This way, they’re with you at all times to help you stay organized with what’s happening. Here are some planners to check out:

Life in Little Squares Planner

A spiral-bound planner with a collage of colorful images on the cover, including various people, artwork, plants, a car, and food. The name "nancy LYONS" is centered on the cover. Tabs for different months are visible on the side to help you stay organized.

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Create Your Own Design Planner

A woman and a child with curly hair are posing together on a cobblestone street. The woman wears a black leather jacket and sunglasses, while the child is dressed in grey. Appearing on the cover of a spiral-bound planner labeled "kimberly taylor," this image inspires you to stay organized.

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Daily LifePlanner Duo

An open spiral-bound planner lies on a yellow surface, showing a month filled with several handwritten notes in black ink. Stay organized with the pink floral notebook beside it, accompanied by a coffee cup and a small vase with pink flowers, creating a charming tableau.

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Erin Condren is a great choice for a personalized planner. You can customize the colors and name/title, and you can even add your own photos! These 12-month planners include extras like stickers, productivity pages, and quotes. There’s also a duo planner option that comes with a full-size book and a more compact six-month book.

The Happy Planner

A spiral-bound planner for the year 2023-2024 lies on a textured background. The cover, designed to help you stay organized, features white flowers, leaves, and abstract patterns in green, blue, orange, and white.

BUY HERE

Groovy Blooms Planner

A spiral-bound notebook with a colorful floral cover design to help you stay organized. The flowers are in shades of purple, pink, red, orange, and yellow. The notebook includes side tabs labeled "Schedule," "July," "August," "September," and "October.

BUY HERE

Sugar Paper Planner

An open spiral-bound planner with sections labeled "to do," "to email," "to call," "this week’s goals," and "etc." A gold and white pen rests beside the planner, helping you stay organized, while a gray folder is partially visible in the background.

BUY HERE

My other favorite place to pick up a portable planner is Target. There are a variety of different brands and styles available here (including Erin Condren!). These planners are all extremely affordable as well!

Black Glass Dry Erase Calendar

A kitchen scene showing a black magnetic weekly planner mounted on the wall above a light wooden shelf. The shelf holds various kitchen utensils including a whisk, a black towel, a spatula, and an orange apron. A portion of the kitchen stove is visible, helping you stay organized with ease.

BUY HERE

Sugar Paper Wall Calendar

Image of a wall calendar displaying the month of July. The calendar has a spiral binding at the top, with dates and days of the week clearly marked. Key U.S. holidays, such as Independence Day on July 4th, are noted. Stay organized with a preview of June and August months included at the bottom.

BUY HERE

Bloom Daily Planners Desk Calendar

A wall calendar for July 2024 featuring a floral design with days of the week from Sunday to Saturday. Stay organized as the bottom pages are partially turned up, revealing additional months. A sheet of colorful stickers is positioned next to the calendar.

BUY HERE

Global Printed Desk Calendar

A wall calendar displaying June 2024, with large daily squares for notes to help you stay organized. The pages appear to be flipping, revealing parts of July and the following months. The bottom shows small previews of previous and upcoming months, with December 2025 faintly visible.

BUY HERE

Acrylic Monthly Wall Calendar

A wall-mounted clear acrylic calendar above a desk helps you stay organized. The calendar is marked with dates and events for the month. Below it, hooks hold keys, notepads, and pens, while a small plant sits on the marble-patterned surface of the desk.

BUY HERE

Dry Erase Calendar Board

A gold-framed dry erase calendar with sections for days of the week and notes to help you stay organized. It includes a magnetic marker and a circular magnet. The calendar dimensions are 16 inches by 20 inches, with the packaging label providing product information and images.

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Dry Erase Wall Calendar

A wall-mounted weekly planner labeled "Anderson" helps you stay organized. The planner includes sections for daily entries from Sunday to Saturday, a To-Do list, a Menu plan, a Shopping List, and Notes. It is held up by four brass screws, with a potted plant to the side.

BUY HERE

Framed Magnetic Dry Erase Wall Calendar

A white dry-erase monthly calendar board with a wooden frame to help you stay organized. The board has individual cells for each day. There is a black marker and three black magnets attached to the board. Days of the week are labeled from Sunday to Saturday at the top.

BUY HERE

A monthly wall or desk calendar is an excellent option for keeping the entire family organized at home. Place it in a central space that all members have access to. This will make it easy to add events and important times to the calendar. Or, a more modern approach to the monthly calendar is a dry-erase option! They’re aesthetically pleasing and simple to change since you can easily erase them.

Get Organized

Although every family may not have a separate workspace for homework, you can still create a functional and organized space for this in your home! Having the necessary supplies on hand will help kids start tackling their homework much quicker. Storing these supplies in a caddy will make it easy to move them, especially if you don’t have a dedicated homework station.

multicolored school supplies caddy with colored pencils, popsicle sticks, glue sticks, liquid glue, scissors, and paintbrushes

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This caddy has eight separate plastic bins that you can fill with anything your child needs to complete their homework. The bins come out individually for easy usage, but your kids can put them back into the caddy afterward to keep everything organized.

A three-tier, pink rolling utility cart with mesh trays and metal tubes for support, perfect to help you stay organized. The unit is equipped with four black caster wheels, two of them featuring brakes. The rectangular trays are evenly spaced for optimal storage.

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A larger (and truly mobile) homework station organizer is a rolling cart. I love these because you can roll them into a closet when you aren’t using them. This cart comes in 15 different colors, but the rose gold is my personal favorite!

The Surf Portable Lap Desk

A young girl with curly hair, wearing a long-sleeve pink lace top and blue jeans, sits cross-legged while writing in a notebook. Using a red lap desk for support and holding an orange pencil in her right hand, she stays organized while jotting down her thoughts.

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Kids Lap Desk Tray

A bright red children's activity table with various colorful toys and crayons, perfect for those who love to stay organized. On the tabletop, there's a drawing of three animals in different colors, done with crayons. The table features compartments holding toys and supplies neatly.

BUY HERE

Portable Lap Pillow Desk for Kids

A hand holding a rectangular bag with a turquoise handle against a pink background. The bag, perfect to help you stay organized, is decorated with a pattern of colorful rainbows and hearts, featuring an integrated red storage slot near the top.

BUY HERE

If you don’t have a dedicated desk for your student to work at, consider a portable lap desk instead! They can use it anywhere throughout your home and easily store it when it’s not in use. You can also set up a dedicated area at your table or kitchen island if that better suits your needs!

Prep for Lunches and Snacks

What To Eat Notepad

A meal planning notepad labeled "What to Eat" is surrounded by ingredients including eggs, avocado, almonds, oil, butter, salmon, and a cutting board with a mushroom. The notepad features sections for "Dinner" and "Not Dinner" for each day of the week to help you stay organized.

BUY HERE

Sweetzer & Orange Magnetic Meal Planner

An angled view of a meal planner shows sections for each day of the week (Monday to Sunday) and a shopping list on the right side with checkbox lines. The top of the planner says "ON THE MENU" and includes a space to write the week, helping you stay organized throughout.

BUY HERE

Threshold Weekly Menu Planner

A blank weekly menu planner with grocery list. The planner includes sections for each day of the week, from Sunday to Saturday, on the left, and a grocery list on the right. Stay organized with headers that read "Menu Planner" and "Grocery List" against a blue background.

BUY HERE

On Sundays, I highly recommend writing down what lunch will be for each day of the coming week. Whether it’s a Lunchable, leftovers, or lunch money for the cafeteria, planning it out in advance will save a LOT of chaos. (Plus, I’ve found that if we write down our menu for the week ahead of time, we’re much more likely to stick to it and eat out less!) Be sure to check the school menu, and if your student eats lunch in the cafeteria, make sure they have money in their account or an envelope ready to go. And if packing their lunch, check out these healthy school lunch ideas they’ll love! If possible, do the grocery shopping on the weekend to ensure you’re stocked for the week ahead. Also, plan your dinners out to ensure you’ll have leftovers if you intend to use those as lunches.

Back Seat Organizer Caddy

Image showing three different views of a fabric car organizer with multiple compartments, perfect to help you stay organized. The organizer holds items including a stuffed animal, books, water bottles, a cup with a straw, a notepad, and other small items. Each view shows different storage layouts.

BUY HERE

Hanging Pocket Organizer

A transparent over-the-door shoe organizer with 24 pockets. The organizer is hung by four hooks and has white edges framing each pocket. Made of clear plastic material, it allows you to easily see stored items and stay organized effortlessly.

BUY HERE

Everyone is typically hungry when they come home from school or work, so make sure you have snacks easily accessible! If the trip home is lengthy, put a basket of them in the car to avoid stopping to pick up snacks. At home, I like to organize my snacks inside my pantry door using an over-the-door shoe caddy! I stick the snacks in the pockets so everyone can see what’s available. This keeps it all organized and helps keep the pantry neat.

Things To Do The Night Before

To help minimize stress in the morning before school, here’s a checklist to get you and your family ready the night before:

Check the calendar for events the next day. Be sure to speak with babysitters, partners, grandparents, etc., to ensure everyone is on the same page about school drop-offs and pick-ups.
Pack bags for any extracurriculars. If there are any sports practices/games or dance lessons, be sure the bags are packed and ready for those. Go ahead and even put them in the car if possible!
Have school items packed and ready. Check folders for important notes and make sure everything is signed. Pack your child’s backpack and place it by the door or in the car.
Check the weather. Find out if you’ll need a jacket, rain boots, or umbrella. Keeping the weather in mind, have the entire family pick out their outfits — down to the underwear, socks, and shoes.
Figure out breakfast. Decide what breakfast will be on the night before to reduce wasted time in the morning.
Make sure you have enough gas in your car. It always sounds like a good idea to stop by the gas station in the morning, but I promise you, it never is! Just go ahead and get it done.
Go to bed at a reasonable time. This will help ensure a good night’s rest for all. And set your alarm for plenty of time in the morning to get out the door!