It’s almost the start of a new school year and I’m currently in the process of moving to a new school! This is my seventh move since the start of teaching, whether it’s classrooms, grade levels, or schools, so I’ve learned the importance of staying organized from Day 1.

This year, I’ve partnered with Walmart to bring you my top 3 tips for staying organized throughout the school year! All of the items in this blog post are super trendy, budget friendly, and practical to help you start your year off organized!

Teacher Organization Tip #1: Store Papers With Pre-Printed Binder Tabs

It’s easy to have an organized classroom, but nearly impossible to gain control of the pile of paperwork on a teacher’s desk! Field trip forms, running records, student information sheets, testing data… I could go on forever about the amount of papers that come across our desk every day.

I love keeping binders because they allow papers to be found quickly if they’re organized. However, I’ve been totally guilty of throwing random piles of papers in binders and then shuffling when I need something. My second year of teaching, our school’s Reading Recovery teacher showed me her secret to keeping an organized binder and it has been a GAMECHANGER: pre-printed binder tabs! I know binder tabs seem like common sense, but the ones often found in school supply aisles only have 3-5 tabs. Typically, you’ll need moe than that and the smaller they are, the harder they are to write on. Here are the types I use during the school year:

• A-Z Binder Tabs: I use these to store copies of running records & for student contact information and testing data.
• 1-10 Tabs: Can be used to organize curriculum documents by unit.
• Jan-Dec Tabs: Use for seasonal/holiday documents or meeting notes for your teaching portfolio.

Teacher Organization Tip #2: Keep important papers and writing materials in one place

 Nothing is worse than getting to a staff meeting and having to try to find a pen! I like to use different colored ink for grading, etc. so I love how this Yoobi pencil case holds all of my pens and markers in one spot. Right now I have Ink Joy pens for note taking, Flair pens for grading, and Mr. Sketch markers for anchor charts inside of it. I also love how the zipped document holder also holds everything in one spot! This year I plan to keep loose note paper, peer observation documents, and Post-It Notes inside when I visit other teachers’ classrooms.

Teacher Organization Tip #3: Have a filing system for copies

I’ve been using this system with 3-compartment Sterilite bins for the past 5 years and it really works for me. The bins are super durable and hold a lot of papers! I use Astrobrights “bright” cardstock to label each compartment and cover the papers/folders that are inside. It’s a really helpful system to have when a substitute is in your room, too! I use colored folders to take the master copies down to the teachers’ lounge on Fridays so I know which copies to make for each day the following week. It’s a simple yet effective system so there aren’t piles of paper on my desk or missed copies throughout the week.

What supplies do you use to stay organized throughout the year? Let me know with a comment- I’m always looking for new ideas!

This post is sponsored by Walmart. All items featured in this post were chosen by me and (as always!) all opinions are my own.