Home-School Workbox Solutions

Dear Creative Mama,

I'm interested in putting together a workbox system for my children's homeschool lessons.  See here: http://heatherpreckel.blogspot.com/search/label/Workboxes  That is a cute set-up, but I can't figure out where to get a nice looking rack and boxes or how to make cute labels.  There are many unnattractive set-ups (I won't link any specific photos, I'd hate to offend).  Do you have any ideas?  Ordering over the internet would be easiest for me, but I maybe able to get to a store, too.

Thanks,

Lien

Dear Lien,

I was at my local Target when I came across the itso™ storage system. I thought it would be a perfect solution for your workbox system. You can customize the system to make it work for your classroom/home. They come in plastic or laminate wood for the cubes; you can then choose from a variety of bins, shelves, drawers or cabinets to use for the inside. Each child could have his/her bins in a specific color in order to distinguish which activities were theirs. The Target website has a great itso™ builder tool to customize your own system (http://www.target.com/b/ref=sc_iw_r_1_0/?node=676256011).

I have a few ideas for the labels on the bins; your solution depends on how you want to organize your workbox;

1.  If you are going to use a number system you could take pictures with the children holding numbers and adhere them to the bin.

2.  You could spell out numbers in English, or in another language.

3.  You could paint a rectangle on each bin with chalkboard paint, or paint small frames with chalkboard paint to put on each bin (like in the picture below, the chalkboard labels were from Pottery Barn Kids).

4.  You can use chipboard covered with nice scrap booking paper to make labels, and then put Velcro on the back so you can switch the labels easily.

Good luck with your workbox, I would love to see a picture of your finished product!

Happy Home-schooling,

dcm