With September quickly approaching, it’s almost time for the kids to return to school following 6 weeks of what might have felt like non-stop chaos. But there’s still the return of the daily morning rush to contend with along with keeping them on top of homework and ensuring they get enough rest.

Fortunately, VonHaus have teamed up with experts to present some handy tips on how to prepare your home for the back-to-school rush and make the whole process as simple and stress-free as possible.

7 tips on how to prepare your home for the back-to-school rush

Working with Emma Stonham, a professional organiser and coach from Organised Co, VonHaus has these top hacks for sorting out your home before the back-to-school rush:

1. Homework Box

Many people won’t have specific desks at home to do their homework at and may have to use a shared desk or sit at the dining table – by using a storage box or having a set of drawers close by with homework supplies they can have easy access to get what they need. Try to enforce them tidying away themselves to help bring a sense of achievement and encourage independence.

Using drawers means you can keep items organised by subject or child, and they can be easily removed and placed back when it’s time to tidy – meaning less clutter at the end of the day when you’re trying to relax.

2. Ensuring a kitchen flow

Having a good flow in the kitchen will make busy mornings much more streamlined and generally make your life much easier. This can include keeping items to make breakfast and lunches accessible and using clear kitchen containers for staples such as flour, pasta, sugar so they’re easier to find.

For children, consider putting their plates and bowls in a drawer easier to reach so they can get their own cutlery, and placing healthy snacks in easy-to-see areas so they’re more likely to opt for them rather the more sugary snacks.

3. Shoe and bag stations

Leave large baskets for children to place their coats, shoes and bags in when they come back from school, this makes life much easier the next morning when both you and your children know where everything is. If everything is always in the same place, it becomes habit and routine.

4. Getting a good night’s sleep

It’s easy for the usual bedtime routine to slip during the summer holidays, but the return to school means it’s more important than ever to make sure they get the recommended 9 hours of sleep.

5. Counting down to going back to school

Whether just starting school or returning for the new year, creating a physical planner or calendar of how many days till they go back to school is a great way to encourage building routines in the lead-up to September, such as early bedtimes, making their beds and brushing their teeth.

6. Plan fun lunches and snack stations to keep kids fuelled

Fun and nutritious lunches will help kids keep going throughout the day, alongside a selection of healthy snacks and nibbles available when they get home from school.
This is a terrific way to experiment by making some fun recipes with your children in the kitchen.

7. Decorate your child’s space to promote productivity and relaxation

If you feel like giving your children’s room a clear-out and a bit of a spruce up before they return to the classroom, have you considered that the colours in their rooms can actually affect their productivity and relaxation?

Rebecca Snowden, Interior Style Advisor at Furniture & Choice, explains which colours you should include in your child’s bedroom.

“In a child’s bedroom, stay away from energetic colours such as red and orange as this may raise their heart rate and affect sleep quality. Stick to restful colours like blue, green, or white for a calming effect.

If you’d like to make the room, feel more exciting, introduce pops of a zesty colour like yellow for a boost of productivity. Whether it’s painting your doorframe yellow or going bolder with a feature wall, yellow is not only joyful to have around but is also associated with happiness and creativity.”