It’s that time again for some of us – the end of the school year. For those of you who are located on the other side of the world and are still in the middle of your school year, put this newsletter away for now and pull it out again when the time is right. So, the end is drawing nearer, bringing with it those end of the year checklists and requirements. You’ve got to turn in your books and equipment back to the proper people, get all those last minute assignments graded and entered for students, and pack up all your stuff for summer rehab work or perhaps a new classroom.

When it comes to packing everything away, where do you begin? Should you just throw everything into the filing cabinet, some boxes, or your bookshelves and deal with it all next year? It’s an appealing option since right about now you are completely exhausted. The days are getting longer, hopefully the weather has turned warmer, and everyone in the classroom is anxious to be outside and away from school. The last thing you want to do is get everything organized and ready for next year. However, what will happen in August or September when you are excited about new ideas and strategies you want to prepare for your class? You’ll be ready to use those creative juices and instead will face a mess of papers and materials that must be cleaned out and organized before you can do anything else.

When I think about organizing at the end of the year, I think about the statement all personal trainers make – “if it burns, that means it’s working!” Yes, it does burn a bit to think about getting organized when all you want to do is walk out of the classroom and have a little bit of freedom. But just like regular workouts, when you stay on top of your clutter, you’ll feel better and have more energy for the fun stuff.

Below are a few thoughts and ideas to help you through the packing process: (student teachers, scroll down to get specific ideas for you to use this summer)

·         Use your student helpers while you have them. Is your classroom library a shambles with books misplaced or missing? Assign a few student helpers to go through your inventory list of books and match them with the books on the shelves. Or, if you set up a check-out system, be sure you remind those students who still have books to bring in either the book or replacement money.

·         If you have to pack up your books for renovations or a move, try to pack all the similar genres together and be sure to check off each book on an inventory list. This list can help you unpack and be ready to check out books at the start of the new school year.

·         It’s time to pitch the clutter! My favorite lady – the FlyLady – calls this the 27-Fling Boogie. Sort through your materials and resources 27 items at a time. Ask yourself  - how long has it been since I used this? Am I ever going to use this again? If it has been collecting dust and cobwebs, it is time to either donate or pitch. Other teachers may have a use for the material, so ask around before you completely toss it in the recycle bin or garbage can. Clean out those cob webs and sweep away the dust bunnies before heading out the doors that last time.

·         Make an inventory list of items in your classroom. This is important for everyone, but especially for those going through renovations or moving to a new classroom. It is so easy for items to be lost or stolen when the school is open during the summer. Take items of personal importance home. I’ve had many items given to me by students stolen while I was away, thinking them safely locked in my classroom.

A few organization tips:

Student Teachers

You are busy right now trying to find a job, filling out applications, and interviewing with schools. You may also find yourself anxious about your new job or classroom. Whether you have a job in hand or not, take some time to organize those materials you’ve collected so far. Find a 3-ring binder (or two) and get some tabbed dividers. You’ll want to organize all that information by subject and area of teaching. Some section headings may include: Special Education, ESL/ELL, Classroom Management, Student Discipline, Parent Communication, Assessment, Technology, First Day of School, Professional Development, and of course sections for every subject you plan to teach. Place the handouts, ideas, samples, and other materials into these sections. Now you’ll have everything organized in a specific location so you can easily find it.

New Teachers

You’ve been through your first year in the trenches and have added to your collection of materials. You also have a much better idea of what works and what doesn’t in your school and classroom.

·         Take 15 minutes each afternoon to go through your old student teaching files. Do you see any ideas, forms, or handouts you know you’ll never use? Take the plunge and either recycle the paper or put it in a separate 3-ring binder with tabbed dividers for organization. I would suggest you recycle that which you KNOW you will not use.

·         Once your student teaching files are sorted, move to the files you created this year. Are there any left over handouts? Keep one master copy and recycle the rest. Trust me, you’ll forget you have them next year and they’ll just start piling up. Even worse, you may choose to tweak a handout or test next year and end up with a pile of useless copies. Recycle!

·         Consider making Unit Binders. Place all of your lesson plans and handouts for each curriculum unit in a single binder and label it. When you are ready to teach the unit next year, you’ll have all the lessons and materials at your fingertips ready to be used or modified.

·         Go through your classroom library as suggested above.

·         Be careful about recycling papers with student information, especially contact information. Those need to be shredded instead or handed over to the office for filing in the student’s permanent record (if important).

Veteran Teachers

            How long has it been since you last sorted through your old files? Get started today! If you spend just 15 minutes a day for the next couple of weeks, you’ll be so much more organized and clutter free than you were last year!

·         Begin by organizing your units of study. Place all lesson plans and handouts for a particular unit into its own binder and label it. This will begin the process of cleaning out the file folders moldering in your cabinet. When you find handouts or assignments you no longer use when teaching this unit, recycle or place a master copy of each in the back of the binder behind a tabbed divider labeled “Other Possible Assignments.” Now you can refer to these and look over different ideas you’ve used in the past without cluttering up your filing cabinet.

·         While sorting and organizing the unit folders, pull out those extra handouts and put them in the recycle bin. If you know for a fact you will remember these extras and will use them next year, no problem. Otherwise, go ahead and recycle the paper. All that unused paper is a perfect target for termites and other nasty paper-eating bugs. Recycle and give those papers a new life!

·         Once the unit files are sorted and organized, begin working through those other files you’ve collected over the years. You know the ones I’m talking about – lesson plan and grade books from 10 years ago, staff development handouts, calendars and memos from five years ago, administration memos, files of items you’d planned to purchase but never did, etc. The entire top drawer of my filing cabinet is dedicated to these kinds of files and yours probably is too! Take 15 minutes a day, no more, and go through the files one at a time. If you find something important you need or want to keep, hang on to it. Otherwise, pitch it into the recycling bin.

·         Be careful about recycling papers with student information, especially contact information. Those need to be shredded instead or handed over to the office for filing in the student’s permanent record (if important).

·         Files that contain ideas you’d like to use should be placed either in a unit of study binder, or a special “idea” binder that organizes these into categories. Using tabbed dividers will allow you to quickly place your hands on ideas for all areas of the classroom. (See the student teacher idea above for possible section headers)

·         You might consider adding important certificates from trainings into a special binder that houses your portfolio. Place these documents into clear sleeve protectors so you don’t end up tearing or punching holes in them. You never know when these will be needed for a higher degree or a different position in the district.

·         Are all the memos from this past school year still necessary? If not, recycle, recycle, recycle! Do you see a pattern among several files? Could you place those documents into a single binder with tabs to keep everything organized and easily accessible? If you do not find binders to your liking, stick with file folders, but using hanging files to keep related folders together.

Remember, spend only 15 or 20 minutes each day sorting and organizing. Otherwise, you will burn yourself out when you are already exhausted from everything else that must be done this time of year. Yes, it will take some time, but just think how nice it will be next year when you walk into your classroom knowing that everything is organized and ready to be used. When we organize at the end of the year, it makes the start of a new school year that much better. So feel the burn and know you are helping your classroom (and you) stay healthy and happy!