updated 8/17/22
Back-to-school is that time of year where everything changes. Whether your kid is going into kindergarten, sixth grade, or their senior year at high school there is a lot that has to be adjusted.
Whatever happened in the previous schoolyear can be put aside for a fresh start. And that means a lot of engagement from you, the parents.
Here’s a few key things you should consider for making back-to-school a positive time:
Check the Peer Group
The hope is that your child will find some positive influences in their circle of friends. You can help insure that by getting involved. Ask to not only meet the new friends but also their parents.
You’re all in this together.
You also should be up to date on all their social media postings. That means having total access to every account. As the parent you have the responsibility of protecting them, and that includes online. And if your kid thinks that you’re spying on them simply remind them that they shouldn’t have anything to hide!
Don’t Forget the Family
The older the student, the more intense the studying becomes. This might mean that special family time can easily fall by the wayside. However, this doesn’t need to happen.
It’s important that everyone stays focused on the family throughout the school year. While having family dinners during the week might be too much of a challenge, at the very least there should one major family dinner on the weekends – even if that means going out to eat together.
And if there are opportunities for family outings or mini-road trips, then these should be a priority.
Set Up a Kitchen Command Center
This can be easily done by setting up one bulletin board that everyone in the family passes by at least once in the day. This bulletin board can be utilized as the ‘Family Command Center’ for the group with a master calendar that has all the dates for every activity clearly noted. It should also be where things like permission slips or flyers for fundraisers can be posted.
Start Without Clutter
Organization can be a challenge for families with kids going back to school so another good way to start the new school year is by removing any clutter in the house.
Start by making a major sweep through all the closets, dressers, storage bins, and anyplace else in your home where things are being kept with the purpose of removing all the unwanted and outgrown items.
If your home is big or your family is large, you’ll likely end up with some impressive piles of junk and unwanted items. And the good news is that those can all be turned over to Junk King Fort Worth.
These are the junk removal pros who can come in and quickly remove any number of bags, boxes, or bins of junk and rubbish you need to get rid of. Booking a junk removal session with Junk King Fort Worth will make ‘Back-to-School’ time go a lot smoother this year.
What is Junk Removal, Exactly?
While it may seem a bit obvious to some, asking the question, “What is junk removal?” is actually quite reasonable. That’s because, when you think about it, junk removal can mean something a bit different to different people.
For some, it simply means loading unwanted stuff or trash in the back of truck or on a trailer and hauling it to the dump. For others, it means calling a professional junk removal firm like Junk King Fort Worth to load and remove their junk for them.
At Junk King, we tend to define junk removal as the choice of hiring one of our junk removal crews and 18-cubic yard capacity trucks to haul away your items. And the best part is, with our full-service junk removalyou don’t have to move a muscle. You just point and we do all the heavy lifting by removing your household junk, yard debris, and other waste for you!
How Back-to-School Junk Removal Can Save You Money
When it comes to Back-to-School junk and waste removal services, Junk King Fort Worth can be your most economical and cost-effective option.
Even though it seems like just about everyone in Texan drives a truck, the truth is that not everybody owns a pickup. And most large junk items and rubbish won’t fit into the back of a Toyota Camry! (Which happens to be one of the top-selling cars in the state, by the way.)
Besides, with kids going back to school and all the shopping, meetings, and general chaos that takes place around this time of the year, who wants to make a dump run anyway?
And then there’s the cost of gas, dump fees, and possibly tarps and tie-downs for the long trip to the nearest waste disposal facility. Not to mention your own time. While you may not get paid to be a stay-at-home mom (or dad) your time is still valuable, especially to you!
So, the bottom line when it comes to back-to-school junk removal chores, calling a professional team like Junk King can actually save you money.
Before You Start to Shop for the School Year Get Rid of All the Old Stuff First!
It can be quite easy to stuff all the old school clothes and gear away each year to make room for the new stuff. Kids get bigger every year and clothes get smaller. Shoes that might still fit (but probably not!) are too worn out to wear to school, and clothing styles change relentlessly.
However, the smart thing to do is to get rid of all the old stuff first, before you go shopping for all the back-to-school clothes, shoes, accessories, and gear.
But you don’t have to toss it all out. Much of it may be usable and, therefore, valuable.
So, how do you sell your unwanted items? One of the easiest ways these days is to post them online in places like Craigslist and Facebook Marketplace. And there are many other sites for this type of thing, as well. Of course, there’s nothing wrong with a good, old-fashioned yard sale, either.
Getting rid of the old stuff in your home helps to clear storage space and create a stronger sense of organization and calm – which are great things to have when its ‘Back-to-School’ time.
So, here are some tips to declutter your home easier and with less stress:
Take your time and don’t try to sort through your entire home in just one day. A few days or even a week is far more realistic. And go through one room at a time with several breaks along the way to avoid burnout.
Avoid starting with the largest room in your house. A linen closet or the laundry room is a great place to begin instead. Avoid tossing out small items that you may find yourself having to repurchase later. Also, if possible, save all the furniture for last.
Your kitchen might have multiple spatulas and ladles, two or more crockpots, and cookie sheets of three different types and sizes. And this type of accumulated, duplicate stuff can happen in other rooms throughout your home, as well.
Ideally, you should create four piles labeled Keep, Sell, Donate, and Junk. And stick to the One Year Rule: if you haven’t used it in the last 12 months, donate it, sell it, or toss it. Photos, for example, can take up room. But digitizing them saves space and may save your irreplaceable images, as well.
Collections like dolls, plates, or snow globes can take up a great deal of space. Consider keeping only your favorites out for display and store the rest, preferably not at home. And if your collection consists of really large items, consider dedicating one room of the house for that collection – or try collecting something smaller like stamps!
Not everything needs to be held onto, but not everything needs to go to the trash either. Whether you choose to make use of consignment shops, online selling sites, flea markets, yard sales, or the like, there’s likely someone who’s willing to pay for your unwanted but valuable items.
Emotional attachments to our belongings can stem from little more than sentiment, a sense of nostalgia, and even just a tad bit of “can’t let it go.” But the bottom line is that in order to successfully declutter your living space you must make hard choices. If you don’t need it or don’t want it, then it goes into your “junk” pile.
Tips to Make Back to School Easier for Everyone Involved
We believe that the easiest way to get organized is to declutter first. And an uncluttered and organized home creates an environment and sets the stage for less stress and smoother transitions.
Here are some tips we like to help make the Back-to-School transition easier for everyone:
Talk to your kids about what to expect
Fear of the unknown is unsettling for kids. Give them a heads up on what they might encounter in the first few months of school.
Do a school walk-through
If you can, take a trip to the school the week before school starts to show your kids where their new classes will be, and the routes they’ll take from their classroom to the lunchroom or to the bus.
Make it a special occasion
Whatever your family enjoys doing together, have a school-year kick-off a night or two before the first day. That could be a family feast, a swim party, or a hike together.
Have a playdate with a classmate
If they don’t know anyone in their class, a playdate can help your child feel more comfortable knowing there will be a familiar and friendly face at school.
Prep a ‘make-your-own-lunch’ station
A little prep work in advance can eliminate some frantic scurrying in the mornings. Have your kids help using bins with different snacks and foods so they can easily get their own lunch ready.
Create a schedule
Visual schedules can be powerful for kids. Creating a calendar with the day’s activities gives your child(ren) a visual timetable of the day ahead.
On the night before the first day of school you can help your kids make the important decisions of choosing which new outfit they’re going to wear first. And, in the morning on the first day of school, have a sit-down breakfast with your child to make that first day of school special with a breakfast prepared ahead of time.
Decluttered and Organized? Now Get Rid of the Junk!
No matter how much junk you’ve managed to get out of your home, and how many piles you made, the junk removal pros from Junk King Fort Worth can get rid of it all in an efficient, safe, and affordable way.
We make it easy for you to dispose of your excess junk or even those extra-large trash items.
And, if you need our services several times during your Back-to-School clean-up and decluttering project, or just one time when you’re done, our hauling professionals will ensure that all the junk and debris is out of your way so that you can get on with your life.
We can often be at your home in the same day, so call us today!
Our team is fully insured, professional, and highly trained, so you can trust them to get rid of all your unwanted items in a professional and courteous fashion. That’s because they’re nice guys, too!
And one of the best things about hiring Junk King Fort Worth is that we recycle most of the material we pick up. This is proof of our commitment to being a truly green and eco-friendly junk removal service.
If you have questions about what we can do for you, give us a call at 1-888-888-JUNK (5865).
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