Organization

I find it so funny that while my classroom is very organized, my home is not. I very much live by the "everything has a home" philosophy, and don't even get me started on chairs being pushed in. I drove my assistant at another school crazy because every time she would stand up I would push in her chair behind her. Maybe that is why she retired after one year with me?

I just believe that a highly structured classroom with little clutter is essential to helping our kiddos stay focused on learning. With all that we now know about attention and even sensory processing disorders, I strive to create systems and structures not only for behavior expectations, but also for the paperwork and manipulatives side of things.

So, here are some of my all-time best organization tips for a great classroom environment:
*Don't underestimate the dollar store. I have purchased so many adorable bins/clips/etc here that would have cost me a fortune anywhere else.
*If you haven't used it in the last year and don't plan on changing grade levels any time soon, get rid of it. As a new teacher, I took everything and anything people were willing to give me- bulletin board sets, resource books... but when I plan on staying in Kindergarten for awhile, why do I have Mailbox books aimed at the 3rd grade?
*If you won't refer to it daily, it doesn't go on the wall. Especially if it's not something the kids will use independently. While I struggle with this myself, I have learned that having loads of charts on the wall- most of which the kids can't even read- just makes it harder for everyone to find what they need, when they need it. An alphabet line- yes. Every chart from every lesson that year- no.
*Keep it simple- do your kiddos really need to do every piece of morning work they missed because they were eating breakfast? I see teachers with folders and stacks and files of "To be completed" work for kiddos that were absent/late/in the bathroom/etc. Unless it's an assessment, never keep unfinished work. They can take the pages home or create a "Extra practice" bin for those kiddos who LOVE worksheets (I was one, I'll admit.)

And as always, my funny anecdote of the post: Three years ago, I was teaching 2nd grade. Coming from Kindergarten, these kids were huge and I often forgot just how young and inexperienced they still were. One day when I was surrounded by kiddos, I said, "I'm starting to feel claustrophobic." A little boy stepped back and said, "You're afraid of Santa Claus?!" :)