Back To School Paper Projects

If you are like me, school supplies are kind of like candy! They come in all sorts of shapes and colors and they just have the smell of a fresh new start! I’ve been giving in to my crayon/glue/folder addiction in the best kind of way. Today on Studio 5, I showed how to make your child’s school supplies unique and chic using my favorite paper crafting products.

For many of you, just getting the list of school necessities from the store may be overwhelming. Although crafting up your child’s supplies may seem like an item at the end of a very long list, it is a great way to make your kids feel special as they approach another year. You can also make it a family activity, allowing each child to decorate his or her own folders and notebooks.

Tips to consider in your crafting endeavors:

Pull out your supply of crafty bits and pieces and let the kids go to town together. They will have a blast creating and labeling. Crafting up supplies is a great way for teenagers to interact with younger children as well. Although they all have different supplies, they can unite in the fact that they are headed back to the classroom. While your high school student decorates a binder, your 3rd grader may label his pencil box.

Craft your supplies on your level, don’t let it become an overwhelming project. It should be a fun little extra for you and your kids. Try to cater your decorations and embellishments to your child so that they feel it was made especially for them.

Remember that school supplies are consumables. They are meant to be used and abused, so don’t spend too much time or money on any individual item.

Here are some fun ideas for taking your student’s supplies to the top of the class:

Backpack tags- Giving your child’s backpack a way home is always an A+ move. My free, downloadable templates make creating a custom tag a breeze. Add as much or as little as you want to give these tags your personal touch. The owl tag comes in three different color waves, while the chevron print is printable in 6 colors! If they are young enough to be influenced by strangers, you may consider not including your child’s name and personal information on the tag. Instead, include the child’s school information so the back pack can be returned safely.

Folders and Notebooks- The flat surfaces and covers of notebooks and folders are a blank canvas for your creativity. The cheapest supplies make the best crafty surfaces too! Don’t worry about finding the most adorable folder in the stack, instead, buy the $0.25 folders in colors that coordinate with your paper and fancy them up! You can add paper, stickers, ribbon, buttons, etc. to dress up and individualize these items.

Crayons and Colored Pencils-Boxed supplies are so much fun to dress up. They are like little miniature presents! I loved crafting up my crayon boxes and colored pencils. I simple wrapped each box in paper and added embellishments as desired. Coloring is way more fun when the crayons come from a darling package.

Locker Supplies-So many locker supplies are customizable. Just add a few stickers or a bit of paper to a trash can, a magnet board, or a mirror and you take your standard supplies to a whole new level!

Pens and pencils-If your child seems to misplace pens and pencils, decorating them is a great solution to finding them again. Consider using ribbon and decorative tape to help pens stand out in a crowd.

Pencil Boxes- These little supply houses are such an fun canvas for adding stickers and paper. Let your kids go to town making their pencil box their own. Buy the simplest box possible to give them lots of creative space.

A few school bonuses for mom:
Even with super chic school supplies, we all know the first weeks of school can be a bit overwhelming. Here are a few fun ideas you can use to encourage your little ones to keep up a great attitude and work hard in class.

Lunch notes- A little love at lunch goes a long way. Lunch notes are such a fun way to remind your child that you are thinking of them and encourage them to be great. Even if your child doesn’t bring lunch from home, you can stick a little note in a folder or pocket for them to find. With the hundreds of downloadable lunch note options, you can easily have a stack of lunch notes ready to go before school even begins. To find the perfect notes for your kiddos, simply type “school lunch notes” into your search engine and peruse the darling downloads. I of course found several options that I just had to print. Here are a few of the favorites I found:

Printed lunch bags-bring back the classic brown paper sack in the coolest way possible! Try printing a message, encouraging thought, or even a picture directly on a traditional lunch sack. It is unique, inexpensive and will really make your child feel special.

Back to school care packages from Grandma- If you don’t have little ones at home, but have grandchildren going back to school, consider sending a “Back to school Care Package”. You can easily craft up a few cute supplies and send them in the mail to your students. It is just one little way to remind them that you love them and encourage them to have a great year in school.