Clearing the Clutter

At times, I get asked how I manage to find time to do everything. I won't lie to you... it's tricky.

I have also been told that I am a very organised person. But you see... most 'organised' people don't actually think they are very organised at all, and that things could always be a little more... well... organised, or prepared. Have you heard of the analogy of the calm swan gliding along the pond, with the flippers under water flapping wildly.

That is kind of how an 'organised' person feels at times. For everything to glide along smoothly, there is lots of effort underneath the glossy exterior.

I am lucky, for some reason, some things in my life just seem to come together in the end. I don't know if it is good intuition, or just lots and lots of practise at planning ahead. Perhaps many years of trying to manage 5 year olds has helped...

Anyhow, my very top, all time, number one tip for being organised and having it 'all together' is very simple - I try to handle things ONCE.

Mostly paper. But it also applies to other things.

And that really boils down to having a spot for everything - or as I tell my little learners - a home for everything. How many time have you picked up things time and time again to try to sort them out... this is wasted time.

Time is precious to teachers. I believe it is the MOST precious thing we can utilise as teachers. Time is like gold to a teacher, and a learner. The better you can organise your time, the better your teaching and the learning within your room will become. Money and resources do not make great schools. Time and the wise use of time is what will make a great classroom and a great school.

But, back to handling paper ONCE.

In my classroom, I have 3 places for paper

3 filing cabinets,
a series of 5 'working folders', and
a 'teacher tray'

The Paper Gets Handled Once

When I get a piece of paper (and let me tell you newbie teachers reading this post... you will receive, hundreds and hundreds of pieces of paper in a year that have the potential to literally flood your desk), I have trained myself to handle it once.

I read it immediately, and decide if I can file it. It might go in

A Filing Cabinet (3 types)

In my 'resource' or 'content' filing cabinet (files in here are things like 'Phonics', 'Frogs', 'The Seasons'... you get the drift - worksheets, units of work etc)
In my ~~'boring~~' 'theory' filing cabinet - here, I file things like policies and curriculum notes
In my 'day to day' filing cabinet - near my desk - here I put all current school newsletters, staff memos, spare notes, proformas, class lists. In the top draw of this cabinet, I also have a file market 1 through to 10 (we have around 10 weeks in a school term). If I get a piece of paper that pertains to a particular week, for example, a seating arrangement for a school performance in week 6, I will file it in file #6. I always go through my week files on a Friday afternoon ready for the week ahead

A Binder

In one of my 5 working binders. They are always in my teacher carry bag or in a magazine holder on my desk. They include

Day Planner / Diary
Program (Curriculum Plan & Activities)
Assessment Folder
Payments, Permission, Student Infomration
My Teacher Bible

The Teacher Bible

is nothing fancy
as light as possible to carry around and
simple

No time for fancy pants covers and pretty title pages with this one. You just get a plain but functional display book and your label maker. Label each plastic sleeve pocket in your display book in the top right hand corner. This is where I store all those bits of paper that are essential for the every day running of my room and program, but are not 'officially' part of the formal program documentation.

I put these basic labels in my teacher bible:

Class Timetable (I copy at least 5, so if anyone asks, I can give them one)
My Class Lists - I am not sure if you have these at your school, but we have official class roll lists and I copy 20 blank ones and have them handy for anytime I need to create a checklist of roll. Ours have a list of names and around 15 columns, in a grid like formation
Rest of School Class Lists - I get a class list of every class in my school, and have 2 copies of each. This is particularly good for the Kindergarten teacher! You need to be able to track down siblings, buddies and helpers and what classroom they are in. It is also helpful if you are coordinating a school wide function or activity.
My Filled Out Class Lists - Here I keep all the checklists I have made for my class for things that are current, e.g which students have permission to use the Internet, groups, sport houses, et
School Timetables - copy of any school timetable going around! Halls, fields, RFF/Specials, Library etc
Notes Home - I keep a master copy of the notes sent home in the last 5 weeks. After 5 weeks, they are filed in the filing cabinet
Things to Photocopy - Here I put anything I need to take with me to the office to get copied or filed in the school office

I add other labels as they are needed. The teacher bible gets regularly cleared out to keep it as functional as possible.

Teacher Tray

If I cannot decide where to file it, or don't have time to think about it (yes, sometime my mind is actually on the twenty or so 5 years olds in front of me), I will put it in my teacher tray or for a better name, my 'clutter bucket'. It saves my desk from getting cluttered and I have a rule that I do NOT go home until I have worked through the teacher tray and emptied as much as I can, filing it properly.

Clutter Buckets

I have 'clutter buckets' of one sort or another in just about every room at home. It helps me feel organised and tidy, which is sometimes difficult with little children in the house. They help to get the house under control, and maintian my 'lets handle it once' philosophy when sometimes, there is no time to get it sorted straight away. Clutter buckets are like holding bays....

I ask my daughter to tidy her toys every afternoon after a day's play. Most things have a place, as we have quite an organised play space. I do have clutter buckets for her, where she can just put little bits and pieces that otherwise do not have a place to live, until we can either find its proper home, or file it in the recycling bin ;)

It is a stand, that has lots of little baskets that rest on the shelves. Here, my daughter can place any little toy that seems lost of that does not have a 'proper' home. It is a great way to organise the 'un-organisable' and is also, in itself a wonderful place where she can go (along with her cousins and friends that visit) to 'dig for treasure'. Because there are so many little odds and ends, she enjoys having a poke around to see what can be discovered.

Today, on her 1001st 'mum, what can I do nooooooowwwwwww?' I asked her to sort them all by colour. She had a blast! We got all 12 baskets, emptied them out onto the floor in one big clutter pile, and then we just sorted it all by colour. So she put all the red toys in one basket, orange in another and so on...

How do you keep organised in your classroom? Do you use 'clutter buckets'?

Binder Covers

If you do love to have your binders and organizational folders looking pretty, be sure to hop pver to our TpT store to find no-prep covers and spine labels to make them pop!