Luckily, some smart teachers came up with a great solution: pizza boxes. Pizza boxes are a great vehicle to store your lil’ one’s (and your) favorite items from that year of school without taking up too much space everywhere. They also are fairly flat and can stack easily under beds, in closets, above cabinets, or behind couches when they’re not being used. If a pizza box is too big for the projects you saved or the storage space in your home, you can always do shoeboxes as well.

Decorate your pizza or shoe box on the outside to personalize it

First, have your lil’ ones decorate the box on the outside and inside with their favorite memories from the year, their handprints, signatures from friends and classmates, or any other creative way to help them remember that year in school.

Next, it’s time to fill your pizza box with projects and memories. Pick out your favorite art projects, papers, worksheets, and letters from the year and fill the box. Take the rest and throw it all out (your cluttered house will thank you later). If you choose items carefully, you won’t regret getting rid of the rest of the clutter.

Lastly, close it up with a piece of tape on the front so it can’t fly open when being carried around. Voila! Now you have a creative, cute, and efficient way of saving your lil’ ones memories and projects without taking over your home.

-Lauren grew up babysitting her neighbors and the kids down the street and now works in-house at BFC at the Creative & Social Media Coordinator. She loves creative, crafty projects… and pizza too

• Schedule a time when they can bring in their new toy for show and tell if they are younger. Older and younger kids can also bring toys to playdates after school so they can share their excitement with all of their friends.
• Countdowns. The end of school is faraway but luckily there are some significant milestones left before the end of the year. Volunteer to bring in 100 popcorn pieces or 100 m&ms for the day when there is only 100 days left of school. Or surprise lil’ ones with notes in their lunch boxes when they hit milestone days before the end of school.
• Let them wear their new clothes. Kids will love wearing new boots, princess outfits, etc. If they wear them to school, they will associate the excitement of a new outfit with the excitement of a day at school.
• Plan after school activities. Pack your kids’ schedules with playdates, classes, or even schedule in some free time or mommy&me time.
• Ask them what they learned in school. This question is usually met with an “I don’t know” (at least in my house it always is). Actually engage with them and make them give you 2-3 things they liked learning before they dig in to their after school snack. This will keep them thinking about what cool stuff they actually do in school.