A January Homeschool Reset: How I Organize Our Homeschool Space for Cycle 2
Midway through the year, materials pile up, routines shift, and things can start to feel overwhelming if I don’t pause and reset. Over the years, I’ve learned that doing a big homeschool clean-up twice a year — once in the summer and once in January — makes a huge difference for our family. It gives us a clean slate before diving into the second semester and helps prevent clutter from getting out of control.
In this post, I’m sharing the simple, practical ways I organize our homeschool space and materials during our January reset. These are ideas that work well for our family, and I hope they inspire you as you head into the rest of Cycle 2.
This post contains affiliate links, which means I make a small commission at no extra cost to you. See my full disclosure here.
Declutter and Simplify
Every homeschool reset starts with decluttering. Before I organize anything, I go through all our homeschool materials and sort them into three piles: keep, donate, and toss.
January is the perfect time to be honest about what we’re actually using. If a curriculum didn’t work, an activity wasn’t a good fit, or my kids have outgrown certain supplies, I let it go. Holding onto too much makes organizing stressful, and I’ve learned that less really is more.
This step is always incredibly satisfying. When I remove what we no longer need, everything else becomes easier to manage.
Create a Dedicated Space for Homeschooling
Having a designated place for homeschool materials makes staying organized much easier. In our home, I use my office in the basement as our main homeschool storage and prep space. This is where I keep books, curriculum, and supplies we aren’t using daily, along with resources for future Cycle 2 weeks.
It’s also where I do most of my planning — prepping lessons, organizing activities, and setting up materials for the coming weeks.
For our daily essentials, I use a rolling cart that holds everything we need for our lessons. This cart stays in the kitchen because that’s where we do most of our homeschooling (right around breakfast time). I share more about what I keep on this cart later on in this post.
Use Storage Solutions
Over time, I’ve learned that having the right storage solutions matters more than having lots of storage. In my office, I use a mix of bookshelves, carts, file folder tubs, and a closet so everything has a clear home.
Office Bookshelf
My bookshelf holds books and curriculum we aren’t currently using every day but still want easy access to. I like being able to see everything at a glance while lesson planning.
On the top shelf, I keep our Story of the World books, which I often read aloud to my oldest child to connect with the history we’re studying in Cycle 2.
I also keep the Story of the World Activity books (Volume 1, Volume 2, Volume 3, and Volume 4) there. These are great for browsing during weekly lesson planning to find fun activities to incorporate.
I store a few favorite reference books here as well, along with select Classical Conversations resources I like to pull from throughout the year.
On the middle shelves, I keep binders with weekly printouts, organized by cycle. Each cycle has its own color, which makes them easy to grab quickly.
The bottom shelf holds a box for timeline cards, bins with extra folders, and printer paper.
Timeline Card Box
I love using this box to organize all our timeline cards. I have all four sets of timeline cards and this is a great way to organize them by week. Then you don’t have to spend time each week figuring out which cards you need. I use these index card dividers to separate the timeline cards by week and they fit perfectly in this box.
These Timeline Cards: Set 1 (Ancient World), Set 2 (Medieval World), Set 3 (New World), and Set 4 (Modern World) are a fantastic investment for both tutors and parents. They’ve been an invaluable resource for me, both in my role as a tutor and at home with my children.
File Folder Tubs
I love using these file folder tubs and these hanging file folders for each of the three cycles. I have a folder for each week where I store materials, especially laminated pages and games, that I plan to use during each specific week.
For example, in the folder for Cycle 2 Week 13, I have the following:
- Laminated memory work cards
- Memory Work Game materials (get these activities for Cycle 2 Week 13 here!)
- Review games and other activities for tutoring (download these here)
- Memory work fridge facts (you must be logged into ccconnected.com for this link to work)
See my video below where I explain more about how I organize these folders and the rest of my homeschool office space!
Organizing the Closet
Closets can be pretty daunting to organize, but if you make yourself do it, it’s so satisfying and saves significant time. I found these plastic containers to organize all the little things I’ve collected and use with tutoring in our community group. They are the perfect size and I love that they are clear so I can easily see what’s in each one. Some of the things I store in them are:
- Shaky eggs
- Play dough
- Balls
- Flashing wands
- Scarves
- Dry erase erasers
- Foam dice
- Dry erase dice
- Small erasers
- Cootie catchers
- Bowling pins
- Mini hands
I also have a large basket where I store art supplies that we don’t use on a daily basis but are still easy to access. I store my tutor boards and bags with tutor supplies in this closet. Here is my tutor board for Cycle 2 Week 13!
I also have a paper cutter, my felt United States map and body from Cycle 3, some old math curriculum, and some other homeschool related things.
Use a Cart with Drawers for Supplies
One of my favorite storage solutions is a cart with drawers that I use to organize our supplies like construction paper, stickers, memory work game pieces, and other craft essentials. Each drawer is designated for specific items, so everything has a home. This makes it easy for both me and my children to find what we need without digging through a mess.
This cart is also portable, so I can move it to different areas of the home when needed!
Plan Your Week
Planning ahead is one of the best ways to keep our homeschool days running smoothly. At the start of each week, I spend some time organizing our lessons, activities, and materials. My Cycle 2 homeschool planner helps me outline what we’ll cover in each subject and is where I keep track of any additional supplies I need.
I use the Cycle 2 memory work pages in the planner to map out how we will practice the memory work together. These pages make it easy to see each subject at a glance and jot down games, songs, or activities that I want to use with my kids. I also use the weekly and daily planning pages to schedule what we will do each day for math, language arts, and reading.
I’ve tried to simplify things this year so I don’t need to spend a lot of time prepping or printing. Having the Cycle 2 Memory Work Activity Book and my Cycle 2 Picture Book List ready to go means I can sit down and plan the week quickly without extra work.
Another part of the planner that I love is the monthly habit tracker. I use it to write down a few habits I want to focus on each month, like improving my health and being more present with my kids. It’s been a great reminder of the small but meaningful steps I want to take.
This planner has truly helped me stay organized so far this year, and it makes planning feel simple and purposeful instead of overwhelming. Get one for your homeschool year here!
Rolling Cart for Supplies
I love this rolling cart to store homeschool resources and supplies that I use when I lesson plan each week. I also have another cart upstairs where I keep our daily essentials. They are super handy!
Some of the things I have on this cart are:
- Devotional books I sometimes read to my kids (Big Truths for Little Kids and My ABC Bible Verses from the Psalms)
- All about Reading resources that I don’t need daily
- Foundations of the Bible activity book
- The Good and the Beautiful math cards
- Paper letters that I tape on timeline cards
When I plan, I also prep any printouts or activities. I love my Epson EcoTank ET-2988 printer and I use this laminator all the time to make reusable materials like flashcards and memory work game boards. Once everything is ready, I file it in a folder or binder so it’s organized and easy to grab when I need it. See here for what I have in my Cycle 2 Week 13 file folder.
I have a binder for each cycle of Classical Conversations, and I’ve assigned a different color to each cycle to make them easy to identify at a glance.
I use a separate binder for every six weeks of each cycle. Each binder is divided into sections for each week with these dividers, keeping everything organized and easy to reference.
When I plan, I also prep printables and laminate activities I know we’ll reuse. I keep master copies in binders so everything stays organized year after year.
Spending a little time each week organizing and planning helps me feel more confident and keeps our homeschool days productive and enjoyable. It’s a simple habit that makes a big difference!
An Essentials Cart
Having an essentials cart (or basket) is a lifesaver for staying organized during the homeschool day. I keep this cart in our kitchen, where we do the bulk of our homeschooling. It holds all the books and supplies we need on a daily basis.
On the top of the cart, I have a spinning container that organizes all our markers, crayons, and colored pencils, making it easy for my kids to grab what they need. I also store The Good and the Beautiful math curriculum and the Handwriting without Tears writing curriculum we use, along with other books and resources we use every morning.
Having everything on this cart is incredibly convenient. We can pull it out during breakfast and dive straight into lessons without searching for supplies. When we’re done for the day, I roll the cart into the pantry, keeping the kitchen table and counters clear of clutter. This simple system makes cleanup quick and helps keep our homeschool space tidy and manageable.
Daily Homeschool Resources We Are Using for Cycle 2
As part of our January homeschool reset I like to make sure the resources we use every day for Cycle 2 are organized and easy to reach. When our core materials are accessible our days feel calmer and review happens more naturally.
My European Countries Workbook is one resource we use often during Cycle 2. Since this cycle focuses heavily on European history and geography this workbook helps bring our memory work to life. It includes all 51 European countries plus the four countries of the United Kingdom and gives the kids a hands on way to explore maps locations and places connected to what we are learning.
We also use our Cycle 2 Geography Passport regularly for geography review. This printable resource includes a full color passport page for each of the 24 weeks with clearly labeled maps that match the weekly geography memory work. Each page includes a matching cut and glue stamp which makes review fun and memorable as the kids track their learning week by week.
Another helpful resource this time of year is the Cycle 2 Weeks 1-12 Review Activity Book. This book helps us review and connect everything the kids learned during the first half of the cycle including geography, history, science, math, Latin, English, and the timeline. The activities are meaningful but simple which makes this book perfect for gentle review and low prep learning.
We also use the Cycle 2 Memory Work Activity Book almost daily. This book includes one activity for each subject for every week of the 24 week cycle and gives the kids an easy way to practice memory work throughout the year. It works especially well after breakfast or lunch and becomes a special keepsake of what they have learned.
Creating an Easy Daily Homeschool Flow
During our January reset I make sure each of these Cycle 2 resources has a clear home on our daily essentials cart or nearby. When our most used materials are easy to grab we spend less time searching for supplies and more time learning together.
Be sure to watch my video above with more details about how I organize all of our homeschool materials. Have you found any great ways to organize that you’re willing to share? Comment below and tell me about any tips you’ve learned on your journey!
Cycle 2 Week 13 Memory Work Activities
Also check out the FREE activities and games that you can use at home to help your kids practice the memory work during Cycle 2 week 13!
Blessings to you on this homeschooling journey!
