Getting Kids Organized Idea- Library Time!

We recently moved to a new city/state and are LOVING our new home & community. One thing that our family is big on is READING, so our kids (ages 12-1/2 and 5) LOVE libraries and books! This week, we finally took our kids to our local library. We got them signed up for their library cards, and as we do every summer, we got them signed up for the reading program. Our kids enjoyed picking out their books and then getting to check the books out all by themselves (our library has a self-check out system). Once we arrived home, our daughter (12-1/2 yrs old) put her bag of books on the couch and went to her bedroom. Our son (5 yrs old) had his bag of books on the counter top in the kitchen. After seeing that our kids' books were located in 2 separate areas and just knowing that this would not turn out well, I decided to create an organization system for our library trips.

Voila! Introducing our Family Portable Library!

To create this, all I did was use a portable file holder. The one pictured is actually sold by the company "Thirty-One Gifts." When I purchased this one, last year, it cost $25. I put all of our children's library books inside the holder. I also put all of their reading program sheets/brochures inside the holder, along with the books. This file holder has 2 mesh pockets on the outside, so I have one pocket holding their book markers, the book marker that has the library's operating hours and turn-in locations, and their library cards. In the other pocket, I have their receipts from their check outs at the library, and I highlighted the due dates on each receipt (since they are 2 separate dates).

I have explained to my husband and kids on how we are going to utilize this system. Each time a child wants to get a book to read, he/she will take the book, read it, then immediately return it back to the file holder. The file holder is located on top of the kitchen counter, which is easily accessible (in height) to both of our children, and it's a location where it won't be forgotten, overlooked, and most importantly, the books will be safe from getting lost or damaged. Once they read their books and have returned them, they will take out their reading program sheets and fill them out (I will fill out our son's), then return them to the file holder. When it is time for us to go back to the library, we will CARRY the portable file holder with us. Our children will check their books back in. They will turn in their reading program sheets, if needed. They will check out their new books, and then they will put the new books inside of the file holder for transport. When we get home, they can continue to utilize the system above. Everyone was happy about Mom's new system! (Thank goodness! LOL)

I don't know why I never thought to do something like this before, but I'm glad the idea popped into my head! I hope this idea helps!