ARTICLE: What do I do with my child´s art work?

When our children start kindergarden, or even before that, we start "collecting" art work. From drawings to models to projects, they start invading our closets, rooms... our house. What to do with them? Well, you have to consider the space you have, the number of children you have and the quantity of art pieces entering your house. However, always keep in mind that your child worked hard on the project and will not like seeing you toss it into the trash. Here are some tips on what to do with art work!

• Reserve a space in the refrigerator door. Display one project per week. Have your child understand that after that time, it will be another project´s turn. When the week is up, dispose of the project.
• Take pictures of the project. In today´s digital age, we can easily take pictures of everything and save in our computer. Take pictures of all art work, show them to your child and save them on a cd or computer. Label them with date and name. Then, dispose of the projects.
• If the project is really outstanding, frame it and hang in the family room.
• Save one or two pieces of art per month. At the end of the school year, staple them to a folder and save as a book with the name of your child and date.
• Buy a pocket folder and have your child choose the art work that has to be saved. Put in the folder and keep it with your files.

Some extra things to keep in mind:

• If you´re saving clay, remember to coat it with glue first to help preserve it.
• Don´t save anything that has glued pasta, rice, seeds or beans!
• Don´t save anything that has candy, sugar or jell-o!
• Make sure paint or glue are dry before stacking them together.
• Check what you´ve been saving constantly to make sure you´re not keeping too much that it doesn´t fit anymore.