Thank you so much to everyone who participated in our Upper Elementary Hurry, Hop, and Win giveaway! The winners have been chosen and Joanne was the lucky winner of my $25 gift card. That means she gets to run over and grab herself all kinds of goodies at a deep discount when she combines her gift with the coupon code. Woohoo!
If you’re also shopping during the sale, don’t forget to use the promo code. I always get all excited with the discounted items that sometimes I have to remind myself to put in the additional coupon code. 😉
I’m also joining in with some of my best teacher friends to do a quick linky full survival tips for spring fever. For us, we’re right in the middle of testing season. Our state tests start Monday. We’ll test a week, take a week off, test again… repeat in April. Crazy, I know. Pair that with the looooong winter we’ve had out this way and we are all ready for a BREAK! So to help get you to that break, here’s a sneak into how I make planning a breeze.
First up, I use the copy machine once a week. Yes, ONCE A WEEK! Don’t waste your time at the copy machine waiting in line more than you have to. For me, I typically plan on Wednesdays and it’s my goal to have everything copied by Thursday for the following week. I keep a “to copy” folder handy and stuff things into it that I know I’ll need to copy as I plug along.
After I make my copies, I sit down with my plan book and my clipped stacks for the week. I put the papers into color-coded folders by day of the week. Then I put each folder in order from morning to afternoon.
Now all of my color-coded folders go behind my desk on the middle shelf, right at my level. I took out an extra shelf I didn’t need so I’d have more room. I use the top shelf for storing supplies we’ll need (game cards, crafts, etc.) along with my “to copy” folder so I can stuff things into it quickly when needed. The bottom shelf is stuff that’s already ready for the following week. In this case, it was a center we ran out of time for so I bumped it to next week.
Finally, I also snap a picture of my book when I’m all finished planning. If I have to be out unexpectedly, my sub can work her way through my folder that’s already been prepped and I can use the picture of my plans to write detailed sub notes without having to remember everything I had planned the week before.
Hopefully that helps you get yourself organized. Every extra minute helps, right? You can grab other ideas by visiting my friends! But don’t forget to jump back over to the sale to save yourself even more time by grabbing classroom-tested resources that are ready to go right into your new color coded folders for next week. Spring break will be here before you know it! =)
