As a teacher or school personnel, you need to see organising as a necessity. Organised classrooms pave the way for mental clarity for both teachers and students, as they leave little to no visual stimulation and distraction. Classroom organisation also helps the class finish activities faster, as everyone can find and keep materials more quickly.
However, organising a classroom can sometimes prove easier said than done. So, you want to have a classroom organisation strategy that’s easy and simple enough to initiate, and even easier to follow through. Your strategy should also help you maximise classroom storage effectively.
Here are some classroom organisation tips that will help you maintain a classroom that’s both neat and conducive for effective and safe learning.
1. Label everything
An oldie but always a goodie, this is the most basic organisation tip you should never forget. It will be easier for everyone in the class to find and store items where they should be kept when you put labels on everything. If you’re feeling extra, you can also colour-code the labels to make bins, jars or other containers easier to sort and locate.
2. Bins are your best friend
Bins are a teacher’s best friend when it comes to organising the classroom. They come in a wide range of sizes, colours, and shapes, making sorting so much easier. You can get bins small enough for pens and crayons, and you can also get some that are huge enough for bigger supplies. You can get bins of the same kind to add a sense of uniformity. These bins can also be placed on shelves, somehow substituting as drawers.
3. Trolleys for items shared by the class and moved around often
Having a trolley in the classroom can make distributing and cleaning up items and supplies faster and easier. Imagine having to walk back and forth to get and collect items, or carrying around a heavy bin. Wouldn’t you prefer just pushing or pulling around a trolley?
4. Make a checklist that everyone can easily follow
It’s one thing to initiate a classroom organisation strategy, but it’s another to keep up with it. So, it might help to make an organisation checklist for every station in the classroom. Every day, everyone should make sure that items and supplies are put in their correct storage as specified in the checklist. Sooner or later, the entire class will already have a mental note of where things should go. This will also help in developing routines.
5. Individual storage for each student
Of course, every student has their own set of supplies. They should have individual space for their items. You can let them have their organisation style so they can also apply their ideas. You can, of course, lend assistance when they ask you for help or give suggestions if you think they’re having a hard time organising their cubbyhole. By letting kids organise their things, you are also teaching them the value of responsibility.
6. Clean up your desk
Finally, it all starts with your desk. It will be challenging to find the motivation to organise the entire classroom if your work area itself is not organised. Furthermore, as a teacher, you should set a good example.
Organising the Classroom is More Fun When Everyone’s Involved
Classroom organisation will only feel like a chore if you’re the only one doing everything. You can make it a fun part of the learning and bonding experience if you enlist the help of your students. You might be surprised at how willing they are to help.
