Saturday, May 31, 2014

Diggin' into Next Year: Classroom Organization

Well, our school year ends on Wednesday, and as we all reflect on this school year, we get ready to ramp up and revise for next year.  Well, really, I've been thinking about this since March when I went on maternity leave!  So to help everyone in bloggy world, I'm participating in a Linky party all summer long to reflect on different parts of the school day!



...organize different items!  Now, my role has changed a bit in the last few years, but I'm going to share some organizing things I did when I was teaching and then what I plan to do now that I have an office rather than a classroom.  

A couple of years ago, I realized that my math supplies needed a MAJOR overhaul!  We were changing math programs, so I was able to keep my old supplies, but I had received a lot of new manipulatives and materials to use with our new series.  So what did I do?  I took EVERYTHING out of my cabinets and began organizing by topic. It did not make any sense for me to have globes next to my place value mats.  I know this sounds pretty obvious, but I had just started putting things in my cabinets when I started teaching because I didn't have much.  After five years, I had really ramped up how much I had (as well as accumulating some supplies from a teacher who retired).  It was time for some organizing.  I took a day, went into school in workout clothes, turned up the tunes, grabbed a large Dr. Pepper on the way in, and got to work.  


    *Freak out mode started here...when I realized just how much stuff I had and it was all over my room!




 **But I didn't give up.  I was surprised at how many bins I already had after cleaning everything out.  Although I really wanted to buy matchy matchy bins, I figured it was probably a waste of money.  But, oh my, it was SO much easier to find everything and to remember what I actually had for each topic.  It was all in one place, and if other people needed things, I felt MUCH better about opening my doors and being able to find it right away.



So now that I've been in my admin. position for a couple of years, I feel like I actually know what I need to access on a daily basis and how things should be organized for efficiency purposes.  So, I'm starting with my files this summer!  When I first started I would realize the need for a new file folder, make it, and shove it in front of the rest of my files.  This summer, things will go from manilla to color coded, and from scrambled to alphabetized!  I. can't. wait.  This will make things so much easier, and will also help when I need to add files because I'll know where to put it.  



** This is going to be an empty space, because my office needs a total makeover this summer!  I'm not committing to anything staying the same other than the furniture. :)


*Here's a picture of all of the blogs participating in the Diggin' Into Next Year Linky!  Head over to join in on the fun and see how everyone else is organizing, or reorganizing, next year!

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Friday, May 2, 2014

Mayhem! It's Currently Time then...

Happy Friday to all!  Although it's a bit gloomy here in Indy, it's still Friday!  Can you believe it's May already?  May is always a great month...dad's birthday, Mother's Day (my 1st!), flowers blooming, and the Indy 500!  The month of May is jam packed with great things, and I love it!  To get the month started off right, here is my May Currently from Farley's Linky.



Listening: One of the many perks of staying home with my baby is getting to watch The Today Show! I just love it!

Loving:  Our weather has been pretty hit or miss, but 80 degrees is coming our way!  Can't. Wait!

Thinking: I'm not going to lie...I really enjoy staying in my PJs while at home with my baby!  It is so much fun to stare at him, play with him, and know that I can do it all in my pajamas!

Wanting: I hate cleaning the bathrooms in my house!  I don't know why, because I just love it when I actually do get around to it, but there is minimal motivation to actually do it on a regular basis.  A magic wand would be awesome!

Needing: I haven't had a Frap from Starbucks in over a year and for some reason it's calling my name today!  Friday treat?  I think so!

Surprise: I've had two good friends who have been blogging and TpT motivators for me, and I'm so lucky to call them both friends!  

Krista now lives in California with her family and is Super Mom, Super Blogger, Super everything!  Check her out at Teaching Momster!

Amanda is a dear friend of mine who lives in the Chicagoland area and is a sorority sister of mine.  She writes Learning to the 

On a separate note, I've been working on some 1st grade common core math games this week!  Check out these two at my TpT store.  More to come next week too!  Any specific games you would like to see as you review/wrap up your year? Any grade, any topic.

 

 


Alrighty, well I gotta run!  Have a great weekend!

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