Classroom Organization

This is only my second year of teaching, but I am constantly looking for ways to keep myself more organized.  I feel much better when I feel like things aren't "cluttered," or in piles.

These are some of the ways I organize things in my classroom...

This is how I organize my weekly activities, lessons, worksheets, etc.  I put all of my stuff into these magazine files, and they are all labeled for each day of the week.  The orange file is for items that I have made for the "next week."  This keeps me on track and lets me know what we got to, or what we didn't.  It makes it so much easier to just walk over and pull out what I need.  I also put important notes to go home outside of the folders so I remember to hand them out at the end of the day.

These are the files I have on my desk.  I got a cheap file organizer at Walmart, got some regular manilla folders from my school, and just labeled the folders myself.  These folders are to help keep my desk clear of the paper clutter that seems to overcrowd my desk during the week.  At the end of the week, I check each folder.  The folders are labeled- To File, Originals (sheets I pull and copy all the time), Calendars, Discipline (behavior note), and To Be Copied.

These are my weekly lesson plans.  I keep these in a three ring binder, along with a monthly calendar that I write important dates down in, our class schedule, a class list with pictures, and other things that I need on daily basis.  I designed my lesson plans using a table format in Microsoft Word and absolutely love it.  It saves paper because I fit a whole week onto two pages, whereas last year one day took up a front and back.  I mostly type in my schedule and then leave space to write in any notes.  I love this format because it helps me see a whole weeks view of my lessons.  

This is our classroom library :).  I bought the colored plastic bins from Dollar Tree.  I got the blue shelf from Target, and the white plastic shelfs from Walmart and both work great!  The bins on the white shelf contain children's books that I mostly read to the kids, or they look at when they Rest Time.  

  

The books on the blue shelf are leveled readers.  Each bin contains about 10-20 books of each level for Kindergarten (Levels A-G).  I let the kids start pulling from these bins after we start Guided Reading groups. 

This is where the Sharp and Dull Pencils are located.  The kids have the opportunity to sharpen their pencils in the morning when they get here and at the end of the day before they leave, but if they need to sharpen their pencil during the day, they have to get one from the "Sharp" bucket.  They put their broken or dull pencil in the bucket labeled "Please Sharpen Me."   This helps keep the noise from the pencil sharpener disrupt learning time during the day.

The picture on the top left is the entire view of the Welcoming Post.  On the top right is a close up of the Willy Wildcat basket (Go KSTATE).  If the kids have any notes from home, lunch money, homework, or anything else they need to turn in to me, they put it in the basket when they arrive in the morning.  The bottom picture shows our class list display, and my "Graded Work" basket.  The class list display helps me and the kids remember what their class number is and where their mailbox is.  Having the Graded Work basket right by their mailboxes makes it easy for me to pass out graded work. 

This is a picture of one of my students' desk.  Inside their desk they keep their math spiral, number folder, journal, Writer Office, dry erase board materials, and school box.

This is how we keep our dry erase board materials organized.  I use gallon size baggies to put their board, marker, and eraser inside.  Their erasers are made out of carpet squares.

Here is the Password of the Day.  When they kids arrive in the morning, they have to read the password before being able to enter.  I also keep a bottle of hand sanitizer by the door so we can squirt whenever we go to lunch, or get back from specials.

These are things located on the outside of our classroom door.  I have another class list display with pictures, a class list, and a poster that tells visitors where we are when they stop by.