Strategies for a chronically disorganised and forgetful 9-year-old boy please...

[whippet]

DS1 is 9. Very bright. Massive brain. Never ceases to amaze me with his general knowledge.

But would forget his head if it wasn't attached.

He forgets his homework, his sports kit, his brother (pick up from after-school room on way out of school), EVERYTHING that's do to with day-to-day life.

So far I've tried to be as good a mum as possible - reminding him, giving him copies of timetables, nudging teachers, friends etc to help out.
But now he's in Year 4 he really needs to begin to sort himself out, as I saw his teacher yesterday, and I can see she thinks it's beginning to affect his work.

Any ideas? Anythign worked for your (similar) kids?

We're getting there, I think - all kit bags (multiple) re-packed immediately after use/washing and on pegs, shoes under stairs. Toothbrushes downstairs is an interesting one - our downstairs toilet is unheated and currently often sub-zero so I am not sure I am quite cruel enough to implement that except in summer.

Noticeboard by door could be the way to go (I like the 'rememberwall' tag - I may steal that) except that it will have to be out of DD's reach or she will 'borrow' anything which is on it so that she can go and nag DS herself [sigh].

I find it hard to get too angry with my DS though - since at 5:45am morning I forgot to take a booster seat out of my car before I left home, and then forgot my ipod (at home), my earrings (in the car) and my breakfast (also in the car) and had to make a 'phone call to retrieve my debit card which I left in a shop last night, I think it is catching hereditary .

My daughters nine,and she's very creative,but not very organised;she's managed to lose a guitar in school.I mean u could understand losing a book,but a "guitar",you'd fall over it on the way to the school yard!Anyway,I think we have to try to be a bit patient here and realise nine is still fairly young.Kids have a lot more to remember nowadays than when I was nine,and only had to remember 10 pence for a packet of crisps.We didn't have P.E.kit and books weren't taken back and for until comp.In life they will forget things,and its useful to learn how to get out of it when they do!
By the way with 3 kids in primary school I do have to rem. P.E 6 times a week,books every day and various money and sandwiches,so its inevitable occasionally we will forget something.Wish sometimes teachers would sound more understanding about our occasional chaos.

post it notes! Things to remember today - attached to his lunchbox, hw diary, head . I had a boy in my class once like you ds and this strategy did work. Perhaps you could get the teacher on side too to write him lists to bring home - that's what we did and it did work. The child in question sounds very much like your ds - his mind was on other things - the mundane realities of pe kit were quite beyond him! Lol at forgetting his brother