The papers will kill us all 
Hubby does most of the paperwork, but the kids’ school stuff tends to be my area.
Homework papers and artwork go in a newspaper-size basket on a shelf in the kitchen. Generally I only have to go through it twice a year. 99% of it ends up in the recycler, but it’s easier for me to do it that way than to decide every day what is a “keeper.”
I use magazine files – those cardboard narrow boxes that can stand upright on a shelf – for the other stuff to be filed and I keep my categories broad. The most effective one is simply called the “handy file” – I even put that on the label – and that’s where I put all those random things that I might need in a few weeks or months, such as paper copies of schedules that I’ve already put in the computer, the information booklet from the kids’ piano teacher, the summer camp fliers that come home – all that “just in case” stuff that times out after a while. When the box gets too full, I weed it out.
3 mail pockets by the door: one for mail, one for the kids to put papers in that I need to see/sign; and one with my name on it. In that one I have two folders: “To Do” and “Calendar.” I might add one for store receipts as well. Whenever I add something, I quickly leaf through to see if anything needs immediate attention; if not, I have a standing weekly appointment on my calendar to update the calendar and deal with the papers in the To Do folder.
Regular weekly chores on the calendar as recurring appointments. Different chore for each weekday. Less-frequent chores on weekends on a rotating schedule, also on the calendar.
Dry-erase markers by the bathroom mirror, along with those round cosmetic cotton pads to use as disposable erasers. I write the reminders right on the mirror. Way better than Post-Its.
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