If you missed one of my previous posts, How to Survive The Final Weeks of School- Teacher’s Edition, I mention how important it is to get organized during the final weeks of school. This can be overwhelming for many teachers as we juggle so many end of the year activities and events. But the organized teacher inside me knows that this is not something to be ignored. With just a few weeks left, it is time to take charge and get organized now. You’ll thank yourself later.
First up, take inventory of supplies and materials that you have and supplies and materials that you need to pick up over the summer. I make a supply list in my journal and make sure I pack it up with me before I head out for the summer. My top items to pick up are always pencils, name tags, sticky notes, dry erase markers and flair pens for me of course!! Depending on who you teach and what you teach, inventory lists will definitely vary.
Now you might be the teacher that has a closet full of supplies and goodies from hoarding over the years. You know who you are! The primary teachers have 15 bottles of glitter, 100 sheets of stickers, and 50 glue sticks somewhere lurking in that classroom. I secretly stock up on pencils, all kinds of paper, and dry erase markers like they are going out of style. I don’t judge because teachers never know when and where supplies are coming from next and we all have our favorite must-have supplies. If you have more than enough to go around (which I know is rare) consider donating some supplies to a new teacher…they will be your new BFF and be extremely grateful.
Now you can’t pack everything so it’s time to sort through it all. I make piles specifically for keep, trash, and donate. Now the resources and classroom materials that I use and love were certainly in the keep pile and were organized by subject, grade, unit of study and so on. Anything that I haven’t used in the past year or two, is outdated, could be found online or on my flash drive went right into the trash pile. Each year I try to get rid of more and more. Education is constantly changing and so are the resources. I got rid of whatever I could. I let go of the idea of “maybe one day I will use this” and just trash it. Through experience, I have learned that you could find anything you need online and it will be better than when you found it the first time around. And last, there’s the donate pile. I would think about resources that have helped me in years past as a new teacher or items that pertained to another grade and would donate them accordingly. New teachers or teachers that got moved to another grade or assignments are appreciative of any donations that are in good condition and are immediately useful and helpful. We have all been there and have done that so this is a great way to support your teacher peeps.
After sorting through, it’s time to pack up all materials. Putting materials, like books, supplies, and resources on shelves or in closets would be lovely, but I never had that luxury. It was mandatory that all materials be packed up in boxes as if you were moving out. And boy was I glad that I packed up in an organized manner because I moved to 6 different classrooms in 12 years. Yes…averaging a move every 2 years!!! So I had to get organized and smart about how I packed up all of my classroom materials for the big move. I used large clear bins and made sure I labeled everything. A parent in my class made me these labels for the books in my library. Personalized printed labels were really important for items such as books. Genius idea…and cute too! (Does that little lady look familiar?) This made moving and unpacking my belongings a lot easier.
I love my anchor charts, especially the ones I have made and laminated. I hated folding them up because they got creased and ruined. Need some ideas for storing anchor charts. I use an anchor chart bag like this one that could easily slide behind shelves, a file cabinet, or in between tight spaces.
I love these ideas too.
As crazy as this may sound, start preparing for next year. Before school is out I leave with all of my copies, lamination, resources, and materials ready for the following September. How you ask? The organized teacher inside me keeps a top secret folder with everything I need for the first 6 weeks of school: back to school newsletters, icebreakers, getting to know you projects, open house materials, beginning of the year assessments, read alouds, modeling scripts, books, resources and more. With some small revisions, I’m able to get many of the things I need to be done for September now. I put this all in a labeled back to school bin in a safe location so I could retrieve it with ease when I return. Smart, huh?! And then we hope and pray that our grade doesn’t get changed over the summer. 😉
Don’t do this alone. Utilize your students well. What could they do to help you organize, pack, file, sort, label, rubber band, paper clip, staple, trash or deliver? Assign students to help with these responsibilities. They love doing these types of jobs at the end of the year and how could they say no to their favorite teacher.
Be sure to communicate to admin anything that needs to be moved, removed, or repaired so you are ready to roll into your classroom in September with your supplies in hand, everything in its place, your classroom materials from your organized, labeled bins, and your first 6 weeks of school ready to go.
After all is said and done, give a hug, high 5, or a handshake to your favorite teacher peeps and skip out for the summer!!! It will feel so good leaving organized.
Got any great organizing tips? Leave them in the comments. I personally need a checklist for everything so here is one I use, The Final Weeks of School Checklist, that might help you stay on track as you get organized at the end of the school year.
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Missed it? Read my previous posts 5 Meaningful Ways to Engage Your Students at the End of the Year and 5 Must Do End of Year Activities.
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Christine Weis is a passionate educator, classroom management coach, wife, and mom of two busy boys. She enjoys teaching, writing, and creating resources for teachers.
Such great advice, Christine! I love all of the storage options for anchor charts. This will take some time, but it’s worth it. Very motivating!
Thanks Margo! Yes, putting in the time to get organized helps in the long run! Thanks for reading!
Christine at For The Love of Teachers
“Maybe one day I’ll use this” is my downfall. I’m really trying to break that habit though.
I hear you! I have said that so many times. It’s definitely hard to break that habit whether it is at work or home. Thanks for reading!
Christine at For The Love of Teachers
I’m not a teacher, but it’s always so important to stay organized no matter what career you have! I hope you have a wonderful summer break!! 🙂
http://www.wonderlandsam.com
Great point! I agree! Thanks for reading!
Christine at For The Love of Teachers
Great tips and well organized article!
Thanks for reading! Appreciate it!
Christine at For The Love of Teachers
This is something I have never thought about! I always LOVE seeing my teacher friend’s newly decorated classrooms at the beginning of each school year. But I never think about then having to tear everything down! I love your storage solution ideas.
Thanks Jane! It’s so much work to take down and box everything up only to do it all over again before School starts. That’s why teachers have to master “organization”. Thanks for reading!
Christine at For The Love of Teachers
great tips! I always feel better when i’m organized
Thanks! Me too! There is something about organizing my work space, my home, my mind and my life that makes it all so much better! Thanks for reading!
Christine at For The Love of Teachers
Love your tips! My mom teaches elementary so I will share this with her 🙂
Thanks! That’s great…pass it along! Thanks for sharing!
Christine at For The Love of Teachers
Love the post and the tips. I tech English and I’m always in a hurry to get stuff organised for the next class. Sometimes I just can’t find the time and get it done on my way to work.
Thanks Elena! I bet is is difficult to transition from one class to another with only a few minutes to spare in between. We need to take take a breathe and prepare. I find that is it hard in the elementary classroom too, going from one subject to another. Transitions are challenging for both teachers and students. Thanks for reading!
Christine at For The Love of Teachers
These are such great tips for teachers! I love a post like this to show how organized you are and it’s so helpful. It also shows how much effort goes into simply preparing for the school year, not even including teaching! Such a great post!!
Fromunderapalmtree.com
Thanks Christina! It does take a lot of planning and effort to be prepared for the school year and that is only just the beginning. Thanks for reading! Appreciate it!
Christine at For The Love of Teachers
These are all great tips! I will have to bookmark this page and share it with some fellow teachers I know!
XO-Lisa
http://www.thatssodarling.com
Thank you Lisa! Thanks for bookmarking and sharing with fellow teachers..appreciate it!
Christine at For The Love of Teachers
I’m going to send this to my sister-in-law. She’s always a mess at the end of the school year. It’s a really good idea to take inventory. It’s ridiculous you have to get your own supplies, but since you do, you might as well treat them like the school would treat them and know what you have.
Thanks for sharing this Beth! The end of the year is tough with a lot going on so it’s easy to get disorganized. Taking inventory is a great way to get back to being organized.
Thanks for reading!
Christine at For The Love of Teachers
Cute ideas! I feel like organizing before the school year starts is the best way to get off to a great start.
Thanks for reading! Organizing before the school year is a must do but with all the back to school meetings, preparation, labeling and everything else, it helps to walk into an organized classroom or workspace at the beginning of the year.
Christine at For The Love of Teachers
I am a homeschool mom. It seems like it took forever for the school year to end, although it really doesn’t end for us. I like to continue with teaching throughout the summer with a more laid back schedule and more hands on activities. I give my students (children) a few weeks off then it is back to learning. Have a great summer.
Wow…you are incredible for homeschooling your children. That is a difficult task to take on and so many amazing moms do it these days. Taking a few weeks off is a good idea for the kiddos! We all need a break but then we will be refreshed and ready to learn. Thanks for sharing!
Christine at For The Love of Teachers
It’s a really critical time if you want your summer to go well. Organization is really the key.
It sure is! After I organize I feel so much better and my mind is in a much better state over the summer. Thanks for reading and for leaving a comment!
Christine at For The Love of Teachers