Using the Break to Get Organized

Oh teachers... I'm sitting here in my little home office and thinking about the upcoming year. The break is half over and its time for me to start gearing myself up (yes... it takes me this long to gear up...). Every year one of my New Year's Resolutions is to get more organized. Every year, I do in fact, become more organized... but I struggle staying that way. I always fall short of my goal. This year, I will of course do my best and hopefully will do better than the last.

I've been pinning some other great blog posts and organization tips on getting (and hopefully staying) organized throughout the next year. Maybe they will help you, too! Even if they don't work for me this year, at least these posts and ideas are helping me get my mind wrapped around the idea of going back to work next week.

So without much further ado, here are my Pinspirations and current projects to get this year started off on the right foot!

I know, I know. I've seen a thousand of these pins everywhere and I have always thought... nah... that won't work for me. But my current system is definitely not working so I'm going to try it out. Simple enough for someone like me and doesn't require a lot of upkeep, so I'm going to try it out. Anyone else use this little organization trick? Let me know how it is going for you in the comments!

I absolutely love this idea to help with anchor charts. I have a great classroom with tons of storage but I don't have any wall space to speak of (they are all covered with cabinets), so storing anchor charts is a struggle. I have to tell you I have ordered a magnetic curtain rod TWICE from Amazon in the last few months and have had nothing but trouble receiving it. I guess I'll try actually leaving my computer chair for this one.

What would I do without Charity Preston in my life? Her Organized Classroom blog is a life-saver! This is actually a dish drying rack and I am going to snag one up (definitely decorate it with washi tape) and organize my files better. My current system of hanging file folders in my desk drawer for my frequently accessed stuff is just not working.

This year my schedule is amazing. My students have specials at the END of the day... meaning, I have my students non-stop from morning to afternoon and my planning period is at the end of the day. It's good and bad. The good thing is that after my students leave for specials, I have my 45 minutes of planning time, but then there's another hour after school till my contract time ends at 3. An hour and 45 minutes of time to myself?! It's a dream come true, right? Not really. Sometimes that 45 minutes is packed with meetings. If not, yes, it's great! Except I have a hard time focusing on getting things ready for the week/next day. I'm tired and ready to go home. So one of my favorite bloggers is going to help me. Miss DeCarbo rocks! I'm busy working on an after-school checklist similar to hers that will hopefully get me into some good habits this year.

Phew! I've got some work to do!