GATHERING SUPPLIES
Notebook or Binder:
3-ring binder
spiral notebook
composition book
sketchbook
scrapbook
homemade comb-bound book
(See the cool binding tool we use below!)
Paper (any kind):
plain copy paper
colored paper
printed papers
scrapbooking papers
heavy-weight papers
cardstock
lined paper
construction paper
photo papers for personal photographs
Writing & Art Utensils (any kind):
pencils
pens
fancy & fun-colored pens
crayons
colored pencils
chalks
pastels
markers
watercolors
paints
scissors
... oh, & glue or tape!
Sheet Protectors (optional)
If your children will be putting their finished notebooking pages in a binder, then you may want to invest in some sheet protectors to keep the pages from being accidentally ripped out and crumpled up. Their notebooks will be dearly loved extensions of themselves and you will want to protect their work. Buy in bulk to get the best deals.
EXTRA FUN TOOLS
Special Scissors, Punches, Borders
paper trimmer
fancy edging scissors
hole-puncher
corner/tag/ticket or other specialty punchers
border templates
Other Decorative Items
clipart
internet images (try a Google "image" search)
lettering stencils
photos
mini-book elements
rubber stamps
stickers
brads
eyelets
ribbon or colored tape
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ORGANIZING SUPPLIES
It only takes a few years of homeschooling to acquire mounds and mounds of crayons, markers, colored pencils, and the like. So how do we organize all of these supplies in our household?
I have found it best for my brood to keep as many supplies in one central location as we possibly can. Each child has their own school box with their bare necessities, but the rest is kept on a long set of 3' tall shelves in our family/school room.
Crayons -
Each year, each child gets a set of new crayons to keep in their individual school box. The old crayons get recycled into one of two "community" crayon bins.
Colored Pencils & Markers-
We have these sorted in powdered baby formula cans & cake icing containers by color "families". A can for reds, yellows & oranges, blues, greens, purples, browns & blacks, etc. When needed, we put all the cans in the middle of the table in everyone's reach.
Scissors -
Each child used to have their own scissors, but finally these too became thrown together in one container. So we have an old pencil jar full of regular scissors and another full of our special edged scissors.
Paint Brushes & Paints -
All brushes stored together in big coffee cans. Paints are kept in mom's cabinet inside two large plastic containers.
Glues, Tapes, Punches, etc. -
Each child does have their own tape runner that they keep in their school box. The rest of our glues, tapes, punches, erasers, sharpeners, etc. are sorted in little baskets. I find it's much easier to keep like supplies in one place rather than trying to keep up with each child's individual supplies. Makes for faster clean up too!
Borders & Stencils -
We have some of the fun scrapbooking border and cut-outs templates. These are easily stored in a binder since they come with pre-punched holes. We also have some of the lettering stencils. We tuck these into the clear overlay of the binder to help keep them from becoming bent which distorts the more delicate stencils.
Papers -
We have some of the old "bulk bins" from our local Schnucks store. They are large clear plastic bins and our full-size colored papers fit nicely inside. We keep one generic plastic tote for all of our scraps.
Special Papers -
The more expensive papers are kept in plastic stacking trays - kids need permission to use these papers.
Big Tools -
Paper trimmer, 3-hole punch, stapler, and binding tools are all kept out in the open for easy accessibility.
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