There are tons of back to school tips out there, but I have found that one of the hardest parts of back to school for me always seems to be staying organized since it is such a busy time. Today, I am sharing 3 of my top tips for staying organized that have been a lifesaver the first couple weeks of school.
#1: First Week of School Crate
This is my favorite and something I wish I would have started my first week of school! I have created a crate with the materials I know I will need the first week of school and have made it easy to access every year moving forward. These are often materials that I am scrambling to find, during that first week when I have a class full of students that are still learning where the materials are, too.
Here is a list of some materials I like to place in my 1st Week of School Crate:
- Tape (clear tape, masking tape and colored scotch tape to label notebooks)
- Index Cards
- A couple of my favorite first week read alouds
- A couple clipboards (I take a lot of anecdotal notes that first week and it is great to have these easy to access when I want to take notes)
- A binder filled with any of the 1st week of school templates and papers I use.
- This includes my Back to School Spiral Review Strips. 4th grade teachers, click here to grab a FREE week of Back to School Spiral Reviews.
- Raffle tickets (a great way to encourage student behavior from day 1)
- My Emoji 1st Day Entrance & Exit Slips (grab them here for FREE)
- PLUS anything else you want to have easily accessible that 1st week of school
#2: End of the Day 30 Minute Cleanup
You know how we like to use timers for our students? Well, they work great for us teachers sometimes, too! During the first week of school, I like to set a timer for 30 minutes at the end of the day and spend that time cleaning/ organizing the room. I do NOT let myself do anything else, but that until the timer goes off. If another teacher walks in, I just chat while I continue to clean. This will help you avoid getting to the end of the week and having piles of messes that you have to clean up. We all know that is the last thing we want to do at the end of the 1st week of school!
#3: Creating a System for Filing Student Papers
The amount of papers that go home with students the first week of school may be more than any other week the whole year. Trust me, when I say that you want to have a system for sending home student papers ready to go by the first day of school is a must! My favorite system is the crate and hanging folders system that you see below. It is simple to set up. All you need to do is get a plastic crate and enough hanging folders for all your students plus a couple extra. Put the folders in the crate and either use student names or numbers. Then, I put my students take home folders in there for the first day of school. As the office or other teachers give me papers to send home to students, all I have to do is quickly place one paper in each hanging folder. This is a student job for me after the first week of school and sometimes I start “training” students for this job during the first week. Then, at the end of the day, my students know to grab their papers and place them in their take home folder to bring home. The next morning when they come in, they just need to place this folder back in their hanging folder. After the first week of school, I send this folder home at the end of the week, but I have found it helpful to send home daily the first week to make the papers less overwhelming for families at the end of the week.
I hope you have at least one new idea for the first week of school! Would you like some more back to school teacher tips? Click here to follow me on Instagram. I will be doing weekly Back to School Teacher Tips on Tuesdays & Thursdays for the month of August!
