Promoting Organization

Benjamin Franklin said “A place for everything, everything in its place.” If you look around your classroom you will probably see many messy student desks. Instructional materials may be lost in a jumble of crumpled papers and miscellaneous items that have nothing to do with the lesson you are teaching. Have you ever seen the insides of your students` backpacks? Some may resemble disaster zones.
Every minute students spend looking for things they need for a lesson are minutes lost from learning. Here are some simple things you can do to help your students be more organized.

  • Require students to remove unnecessary items from the tops of their desks.
  • Require students to keep items they need in a plastic pouch in their loose leaf binder or in a small storage box on their desk.
  • Require students to clean out their backpacks as a homework assignment.
  • Require students to keep papers in folders, preferably a folder for each subject.
  • Require students to take work home that has been completed and graded.