The evolution of our workboxes from the first use to now

I have been a bit of a Pinterest addict lately, and one of the key focuses has been the workbox. Yes, even though we have been on the workbox bandwagon for years now, I still love to check out other folks' boxes and how they implement it in their schooling.

So I got to thinking.  Perhaps a post highlighting our changing boxes throughout the years may be helpful to the new-to-workbox peeps; and to those who love to see how a family will tweak their boxes as they go along. When we started I had an 8 yr old elementary student and a high school student.  So I had to create two types to meet my family's needs.  

Version 1: Elementary

This is how we started our elementary student. Since I did a review of Sue Patrick's book, I wanted to implement the workboxes as close to her suggested way as possible. Some things worked, others did not. My son does not need many of the repetitive steps and I did not want finished boxes on the floor, so I eliminated those ideas pretty much right from the start. Hey, I do my own thing. I also know that at times we'll need to tweak the process when different issues and needs pop up-and am totally fine with changes. I just stay true to us and what works for us.

The shoe rack and clear shoe boxes set-up.  Highly recommend using this as your first style (unless you are in a tiny space) because it is one of the least expensive ways to go.  

This is an example of how I had the area set up for my son to put finished materials and work. It changed a lot because I tend to move things around a ton.

Version 1:  High School 

My high schooler needed some organization but I did not want to spend much money because she only had 3 years of school left.  So we didn't get all giggity with her workboxes.  This is what I came up with for her at first, then when I decided to go to the Trofast system, she had 6 boxes and my son had 6.  

I bought this clear, acrylic file holder at Staples.  It worked great for all her lighter weight assignments.  I also bought color top loading files.

 Her station for putting her completed work and activities.

She usually had a 'Holding Station' 

card for her heavy textbook work.  

FINAL VERSION: OUR FAVORITE

IKEA Trofast storage drawer units

These move easily, and are in two separate units. They can fit many 

different arrangements that our room seems to 

experience throughout the year.

[Wonder how that happens?  LOL]

The return boxes usually were on the floor nearby 

or they left the stuff in the drawers.

I now have a large red box in the bottom of the right unit

 for him to use as the return box.

And there you have a quick look at how we tweaked the units to work for us.  I didn't need to worry too much about space (for once) so I was able to get larger workbox systems. Those who have smaller school areas/homes would need to use less space absorbing ones like file totes, wall hanging holders, binders and so forth.  Pintrest is full of many, many ideas, so be sure to check out that valuable resource.

Finally-I have been able to upload the documents for All About Spelling on Scribd

I have these done for level 1 and 2 so far. Basically, I went thru each step, noted all the tiles, cards and other supplies you need per each Step. That way, you can fill the workbox with exactly those items-so you spend more time doing the lesson-and less scouring thru the goodies to find what you need for that lesson.

Sadly, they are not in the cute landscape layout that I originally designed them to be-as I think that was why I was having such troubles loading them. Well, they are there and that is the good part. Look for 3 and 4 soon!

These are all for Level 1

All About Spelling Level 1, Part I



All About Spelling Level 1, Part II (this includes the Step Cards for the WKBX).


These are all for Level 2

AAS Level 2, Part I

AAS Level 2, Part II

All About Spelling Level 2 WKBX Step Cards

In/Out Session Center cards

Here is another part of the WKBX system that still has me wondering...the jury is still in deliberation regarding the necessity of them for my children [again folks-this is a personal decision and must be based on your child(ren)'s needs/learning styles, etc.]. I decided I wanted to do something else, a bit different (again) than what is included in the purchase of the book. I like graphics that are bold and colorful, and when I stumbled upon these in MS Word, I saw the potential for the Session cards. As a part of the review process, I truly want to try all the different ideas/components of the WKBX system, and so I broke with my normal aversion to such things, and made the kiddos a set each.

I loved the color and images and didn't want to "cover it up". One of my fellow TOS Mates mentioned she used clear packing tape to create a pocket-well, that got me to thinking!  I had accidentally run an extra laminating sheet thru the machine and so I had a whole big piece of see-thru possibilities right under my nose. I simply cut to size the section I needed to create a "pocket". Then I used my ever trusty clear packing tape to secure it.  I also cut a strip of cardstock to make the background base for this, added an extra cooridinating piece of cardstock for drama (scrapping skills coming thru here!) and print out of their names (which are blocked out) to pull the Session Center together.  When I originally created the cards in Paint-I didn't realize the size!  Oi!  SO when I went to print-they were pretty large-I have resized them now. Not being one to waste good ink/paper, I worked with what I already created.  So they are big (about 4" across)-but maybe that is a good thing-they certainly cannot claim that they can't see 'em!

Here is the boy's....[clarification-the In/Out cards are separate pieces I glued back-to-back before laminating...but I suppose you could have 2 cards instead-I just didn't want to make another area to store them-hence the flipper-over card.]

Uh, it is not hanging crooked on the wall-for whatever reason, guess my angle, it just appears to be so. I have these right next to the chart to hold the WKBX number cards (ones that come off of the boxes)-so it is very visually noticeable!  

So if you decide to go this route-I will try to get those downloads up soon-for whatever reason, when I go to upload I am not seeing them-and I know they are there! Oi. Otherwise, making your own is easy too. I have a few different backgrounds made up for different tastes...look for them soon (I hope).

Daily Planner strips for workboxing

Because I designed my number cards and such, before reading Sue's book, I cannot use a lot the ones found on her site. I can use some of them, but the schedule strip is not sized to fit my cards. So it was much easier, and more economically sensible to just create some Daily Planner Strip [my name for it] that would work with what we already had. Therefore, I have my version of this idea and wanted to share. Now, I want to point out, that I still believe you should purchase the book in order to truly understand her system, and to also gain access to the various downloads she provides.

Here is a pic of what one sheet looked like a few days ago. I can put the "Do workbox number ..." on the strip as per my layout for their day, along with any thing else that would be a good break of activity for them. I also created the "Do wkbx number" cards (download link in side bar) [please note this is not exactly like Sue's design...I chose to switch up some components because I know this style will work better for my kids-so you will have to figure out which version will work best for you]. I simply chose 2 different card stock colors to separate the kiddos and then a coordinating color for the cards. The other activity cards fit fairly well in the sections-and those I really, really use a lot I can resize and reprint. The dish holds the cards once the task is complete (I have switched the boy to a small box-for safety reasons-but you get the idea). I hope all the sections are the same size in the download (looks to be), if not-I guess one will just have to tweak it a bit to match-it is sorta hard to get them exact...but hopefully, that will not be an issue....

I initially bulked at this component of the system, so I am still not sure if I will continue-or drop the idea.  For the boy-it was kinda nice.  He liked it; and it offered me room to put a few extra things on it.  For my teen-she may buck it like a wild Mustang.  I will have to see how it goes next week, when I start her on it.  It may be a blessing, and help her focus on getting a bit more organized-we'll see.

So there ya have it...my version of schedule strips.  Nothing earth shattering by any means-but for those with larger cards, it may help you out.

So I was looking for wall hangings that could serve as a workbox for those with tight spaces

My, this is what I found Library Pocket Charts

So if I am reading this right-you get a pocket chart that has 12x12 pockets (12 of em on it, no less! Wow!) with little pockets in front of that-can we say a place for extra notes and the number cards. This looks to be durable too. I see K12schoolsupplies.net (first site listed) has them for the best price for $29.19 each. This would be a good way for those who have limited space to still do the workboxes and have it hold larger items.

Hope this find helps some of you out.

Our Shelf/Workboxes

I opted for a larger bin to replace two smaller ones-we do lapbooks and large projects frequently and I just did not want to have to cram them in to be crushed or bent. I found a Rubbermaid one that is just about 5" high, so it can be moved to any shelf and still fit. That way I can vary his large projects through out the weeks.




This is the Velcro center in our classroom area. I have the red one for his numbers to be placed, and the blue one is for our calendar pieces (to prevent them from coming up missing, and because I can place several there per week and not have to remember to toss one into the workbox each day).

These are just some of the samples of items that we have been putting in.


I love the All About Spelling Program-I made up some cards to pop into the workbox which are laminated (wow, big surprise there) that I can write the lesson on (mostly for my sake), the chart and actually, I have some flashcards under there too.



Those blue strips you see in the box (paper clipped) are the Top of the Line and Double Time Lines available thru the Heads Up! company. I did a review on these Line Reading Frames which are amazing. They keep my son's eyes focused on the line he is reading, and keep him from becoming frustrated with losing his place.


Here is one of the game cards I made. I stuck a time clock on it, so he knows how long we can play it. These are shown in the post about my Workbox Folder.


I am utilizing one of the sticky notes I laminated (found on the yahoo groups' file section) with the page numbers noted and his pencil. I actually have to throw in some color pencils as well, since the Memoria Press Copy Book has pages for the student to draw a picture that correlates to the verse they copied.

Now when my son is done with his tasks-we have him replace the numbers on their board and the items get put in either the Return Box or the Assignment Box. I have those on the window seat area across from the workbox shelf (I moved it to take the picture so you could see it, as it get lost next to his desk...) for easy clean up. I chose to not go the route of piling empty boxes on the floor. Lack of room and my need to keep things orderly are preventing partaking in that aspect of the S.P. W.B. System.



The blue box is for all the info cards that he will receive in his workboxes-he will put them there so that they do not become lost in the shuffle of returned goodies.

Well there you have our basic layout and set up for our system. I am sure I will be adding more as the weeks progress, but for now I think we are ready to give this system the green light [we have up to this point not done a complete week due to Easter and then our mini-vaca this past week, so this will be our first full week using them].....