Optimum Organization Linky - I'm in Heaven!

I'm linking up with two of my favorite bloggers for their Optimum Organization linky party! I LOVE organizing. It makes me feel accomplished and efficient, even when I don't feel like I'm being an effective teacher. Other teachers often come to me for organizing advice and help. I may be the only person who registered for (and received!) a label maker for my wedding.

I'm going to share some of my favorite techniques and tools for organizing your classroom.

First off, I DETEST filing cabinets. Pages sag and curl up. Things get out of order. Pages end up facing different directions in the file folders. In my opinion, the only thing that file folders are good for are lapbooks.

So I put practically everything in binders.

I prefer the ones with a clear pocket on the front and spine. That way I can make an insert and quickly see what unit it is. I also prefer the ones that have the rings attached to the back cover instead of the spine. I think that helps protect the punched holes. And I prefer several smalls binders as opposed to one large binder. I think that the larger binders start to rip earlier because they are used more often. Half-inch and 1-inch binders are about perfect for every unit that I teach. Last summer, Costco had a pretty decent sale on packages of binders.

Click on the picture to go to Amazon - affiliate link

I have also found that I'm picky about how I three-hole punch my papers. Not all punches are aligned the same, so I bought my own. Then that one jammed a lot because I was also punching transparencies. I think that the punches were getting dull. So I bought one just for punching transparencies so it stays nice and sharp. This year, my coworker rocked my world by telling me that a parent bought him an {electric three-hole punch - affiliate link}. Guess what went on my Christmas list! I'm pretty sure that my family had a good laugh about it, but that wasn't the first office supply that appeared on my wish list. I love this thing. It has made assembling my binders easy. It has also helped with the four different notebooks that each of my 65 students assemble.

For each unit, I made a coordinating tag to stick on a Sterilite tub or two. I like how these are clear and I can see the contents. I usually have one tub for books that I have out for students to read and another tub for my review games, bulletin board stuff, and things like that.

To make the labels, I printed them out on a patterned cardstock, cut them out, laminated them, trimmed them, then ran them though my sticker maker so I could stick them neatly to my tub. These two wonderful products, in addition to my electric three-hole punch, are the inanimate loves of my life. I should really name them, as they seem like part of the family. I will be adding the the family with the new {personal binding machine} that I just ordered! My coworkers think that I am a little crazy, until they need to borrow them...

Last summer, I also took a few canisters (formula and Pringles) and Mod Podged some scrapbook paper onto them. The shorter formula ones I use for random things - remotes, tickets, Ziploc bags to be used again. The tall ones I use for rulers.

My crate seats double as storage for writing journals and social studies interactive notebooks. One class has red folders that go in the red seat, one class has blue, and one class has yellow.

These cans work perfectly for holding sharpened and unsharpened pencils. The cute black and white labels came from linky hostess Kristen :)

Still reading? Great!

If you want to know more about how I made any of these projects, check the sidebar for my most popular posts, as most of them are included in my top five.

Last year, I started using Sterilite drawers to store assignments and materials for the upcoming week. These replaced pocket folders for each day. Although the folders were cheap and simple to use, I found that they weren't always big enough for what I wanted them to hold. And of course, they started to rip and tear and wear thin after twelve years of use!

I have two three-drawer Sterilite sets stacked together. I made the labels in the same way that I did for my tubs. I really like them. Each drawer is 12x12 and 2 1/2 inches high, so they can easily hold anything I need for the day. I made the bottom drawer to hold papers for upcoming weeks, in case I get ahead on my planning ;)

My last organization tip is for collecting/grading/entering assignments. I used to put my kids in numerical order and have them write their numbers on their papers. Eventually I would learn their numbers and would be easily able to figure out who had missing assignments. Since I have three different classes this year and an associate does a lot of my checking, I developed a checklist cover slip. For each assignment, I create a key and paper clip it to the assignments. I put a cover slip on top noting the assignment name, due date, and points possible. In the first column, the associate or I can check off who has handed it in so I can figure that out quickly if the assignments won't be checked right away. I also note if someone was absent or handed something in late. In the second column, the associate or I will write the score after checking. When I go to enter it online, I can quickly type in the assignment information and scores because they are already in order. I can also keep the cover slip and hand back the papers before entering them if I want because all of the information I need is on the slip. I keep a little basket for the entered cover slips and rubber band them together and stash them at the end of the quarter.

UPDATE 7/22/14 - Due to the popularity of these cover slips, I have written a more detailed post on how to set up your cover slips {here}.

This is what my baskets look like for papers that are ready to grade and papers that have been graded. Sometimes the bottom basket will just contain the different cover slips if I decided to return the papers before entering the grades, like for a test.

 

These are my hand-in baskets by class. I still get a ridiculous amount of no-names, so I need to separate them by class to help figure out from what class they came. We also enter grades by class, so it makes sense to collect assignments by class.

I look forward to seeing what other organization techniques work for you! I'm looking to getting some ideas for some fun summer projects!

And I'm also going to link up with Sabra for her Must-Have Monday (even though it's Wednesday). So, to summarize for her linky, you must have:

1. binders
2. a personal laminator
3. an electric three-hole punch
4. a sticker maker
5. Sterilite tubs

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