The Organized Student: Teaching Children the Skills for Success in School and Beyond [Paperback]

Donna Goldberg (Author), Jennifer Zwiebel (Contributor)

Book Description

Release date: June 28, 2005

Hands-on strategies for teaching your disorganized child how to organize for school success!

The overstuffed backpack, the missing homework, the unused planner, the test he didn't know about. Sound familiar? When the disorganized child meets the departmentalized structure of middle school, everything can fall apart. Even the academically successful child will start to falter if she misses deadlines, loses textbooks, or can't get to class on time.

This practical book is full of hands-on strategies for helping parents identify and teach organizational skills. Educational consultant Donna Goldberg has developed these methods by working with hundreds of students and in this book she provides:

• Assessments to gather information about your child's learning style, study habits, and school requirements

• Guidelines for taming that overstuffed binder and keeping it under control

• PACK -- a four-step plan for purging and reassembling a backpack or locker

• Instructions for organizing an at-home work space for the child who studies at a desk or the child who studies all over the house

• Ways to help your child graduate from telling time to managing time

• Special tips for kids with learning disabilities and kids who have two homes...and more

The Organized Student is a must for any parent who has heard the words, "I can't find my homework!"

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Donna Goldberg writes with the head of a professional and the heart of a mom. Her tips, tricks, and techniques are extraordinarily sensitive to the time constraints of today's families. Don't keep this book on your bookshelf. Keep it on your nightstand because you'll refer to it again and again."

-- Rick Lavoie, author of It's So Much Work to Be Your Friend

"Of all the how-to books I've read, this one gets first prize. I predict that levels of parent-child frustration will drop significantly if they take the lessons to heart."

-- Clarice J. Kestenbaum, M.D., professor of clinical psychology, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons

"Donna Goldberg has been a pioneer in helping students get organized and achieve more in school."

-- Barry J. Izsak, president, National Association of Professional Organizers

From the Inside Flap

"THE ORGANIZED STUDENT is the best! At last a book kids and parents can really USE. If your child--or you--suffer from the slings and arrows of outrageous disorganization, buy this book! The suggestions in here really work." -- Edward Hallowell, M.D., author of DELIVERED FROM DISTRACTION

"Donna Goldberg writes with the head of a professional and the heart of a mom. Her tips, tricks, and techniques are extraordinarily sensitive to the time constraints of today's families. Don't keep this book on your bookshelf. Keep it on your nightstand because you'll refer to it again and again." -- Rick Lavoie, author of It's So Much Work to Be Your Friend

"Of all the how-to books I've read, this one gets first prize. I predict that levels of parent-child frustration will drop significantly if they take the lessons to heart." -- Clarice J. Kestenbaum, M.D., professor of clinical psychology, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Touchstone; Original edition (June 28, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0743270207
• ISBN-13: 978-0743270205
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.2 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (48 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,966 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #10 in Books > Parenting & Relationships > Reference

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

74 of 75 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars She knows what she is teaching... November 27, 2005

By W. ALLEN

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

First a warning: I bought this planning to hand it off to my disorganized junior high school kid who gets either A+ on his homework or F- because he cannot find it in his backpack. BUT this book is written for the parent. And it is a great book. It is an easy read in the best sense. The book is very logically organized, progressing thru backpack, workspace, locker, etc... The author became a professional organizer many years ago when she had to rescue her own disorganized kid. We spend so much time and money teaching our kids English, math, foreign languages but we forget to teach them how to organize their work and thereby teach themselves. It was worth the price for me.

46 of 47 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars This book has student organization nailed! October 23, 2005

By MDP

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

I especially like that that the author describes more than one way to get organized, and the methods are not complicated. I've observed that schools (& parents) tend to attack lack of organization with even more folders, binders, etc., as if adding to the quantity will somehow reduce chaos.

The initial thing I was looking for was advice on a workable planner for my middle school son. The author recommends one that has 2 pages for all 7 days of the week, and lists subjects down the side, so that the student can easily see patterns in assignments as well as a weekly view. The author writes over a teacher planner, as the proper layout is impossible to find. I ended up using this model to create one of our own using a page layout program (MS Word) & getting it wirebound at an office supply store ($6).

The author describes a simple yet very effective way to set up a ring binder system for keeping & filing papers & notes. However, ring binders can be awkward for some students: left-handers, those who must cope with small desks in class, or those who find binders hard to work with in general. The alternative system involves a portfolio with divided pockets to hold papers by subject; these are later filed into a binder or tote box at home. Either way, the student must "own" his system in order to make it work.

There are other very valuable chapters on organizing lockers, desks at home, and filing old papers.

This book is an extremely valuable resource for parents and students, and I discovered it just in time.

Update, 11/8/11: My now high school senior son has been using his planner & filing system every year with great success. He gets a new planner every semester for class changes & to make it a bit thinner.... Even though he now takes a laptop to school for note taking & monthly calendar, the paper planner is still invaluable for schoolwork. It is faster to access, never runs out of power, & will never crash. I expect he will take a version of his planner to college.

This book is something every parent needs for helping children develop & maintain workable organization skills. Read more ›

28 of 28 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Concrete help July 31, 2006

By J. D. Fegler VINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

This is an excellent book that will be helpful to most students. I checked it out at the library and found it so helpful that I am now purchasing my own copy. My 12 year old daughter doesn't have a lot of trouble with organization, but occasionally loses an assignment here or there. I have read the book - only a motivated high school student could handle this solo - and found it to have some excellent ideas. The book gives several options as far as organizing notes and assignments, individualized as to the student's personal preferences or learning styles. The book includes pictures of how binders or accordian files, assignment logs, etc... should be organized. We will put her ideas into use this Fall so that hopefully things can be found quickly, assignments can be seen as part of the "big picture" and even fewer things can be misplaced. I highly recommend this book.

19 of 20 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A ray of sunshine in a world of disorganization April 28, 2006

By Brenda K. Amodo Carinio

Format:Paperback

The book is a road map in the world of disorganziation. My son and I both have ADD/ADHD and I really lacked the necessary organization skills to help my child succeed at school. I also apply the same principles to help me at work. This is not just for kids. It's also great for adults.

We finally have a tool that can help us be succesful. The examples are easy to follow. The example photos were great. This is an extremely valuable resource for any struggling parent who has children who are struggling academically. The book is empowering and so easy to read and understand. This is definitely a resource you can't afford to be without.

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars The Organized Student September 19, 2005

By Joe Organizer

Format:Paperback

The Organized Student is a must for all parents of middle school children - especially if your child is constantly losing their schoolwork and/or forgetting their schoolbooks they need for homework at school. I am a parent of a middle school child but being that his Mom is a professional organizer, he is pretty organized but I still picked up quite a few tips. The book helps with organizing ideas for the locker and backpack. Organizing ideas for the traveling papers (back and forth to school). Organizing ideas for the papers that live at home. It touches on time management, calendars/schedules and bedroom organizing. Each topic had a list of questions to help determine the best solution for your student. I found that to be very beneficial since different kids have different issues. It really helped to pinpoint the issue and a solution for it. The back of the book contained `further reading', `resources' and `shopping lists'. All of which I found very helpful. As a professional organizer, this book is sure to help you with your middle school age clients!

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Very Helpful December 22, 2005

By intanswer

Format:Paperback

I am an obsessively organized mom, who thought that just by being so, I would have organized children. What this book taught me is that just because I am an organized thinker, my child won't necessarily be. She really taught me to empathize with my 10 year old son; who can make straight A's when he can find his papers. Her tips were practical, and her book is so "readable" that it's a pleasure to pick up at night. I feel truly equipped to help my son get organized for the New Year, while maintaining my patience with him. The only reason I didn't give this book 5 stars, was that the second half of the book didn't feel quite as helpful (cleaning the teenager's room, etc). Although, I was very impressed with her chapter regarding "winding up" projects. I realized that it is a terribly useful skill, one that I myself fail to do at times.

The most helpful chapters were on the organized backpack, travelling "office", cubby/locker, etc. I have a 12 year old who is already very organized; but there are some clever tips for her as well.