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Teacher Organization Tips

by Mary Adalbert | Jan 15, 2016 | 3 min read

Homeschooling can challenge the organizational skills of even the most organized parents.  How can you keep different ages and abilities organized with academic work, field trips, extracurricular activities, and other appointments?  If you’re looking for a few quick and simple methods for organizing your homeschooler’s work, then have a look at some of our favorites.

1. Let’s talk storage.

There are way too many options for storage than could fit in one post; but to keep it simple, a few of the popular favorites include the Ikea KALLAX shelving unit and some of these ClosetMaid cubes.  We all know that before you can even think about organizing papers and books, you need to have your shelves and cubbies picked out.  The best part is that you can have fun picking out different colored baskets or inserts that all of your kids love. And the colored cubes are perfect to store not only books, but also manipulatives, alphabet tiles, color cubes, lacing buttons, blocks and more- keeping the school workspace clutter free. And if you would like to see some inspirational school work spaces that have shelving units set up in different ways, this article shares some fantastic ideas!   

2. Don’t forget about binders.

Just as there are a wide variety of storage units for all of your homeschooling needs, there are also an endless variety of binders and folders, all of which have the potential for being used in their own neat little system.  This homeschool organization site has some great images of different ways that you can color code your binders, as well as a few helpful hints for how to actually go about the process for placing sheets in the correct folder by week or month.  

You don’t have to be an artist to come up with some creative ways to organize school work with binders.  Some homeschool moms and dads like to keep all of their finished worksheets in annual binders which makes creating the end-of-year portfolios much easier. Others use folders to organize each child’s work by week or by subject and these Blue Organizer Bins from Lakeshore Learning are an amazing visual to see if that’s the best way for your family to organize.   

3. Take a load off.

Now that you have decided on your shelves and binders, it’s time to create some multi-functional items to use in your homeschooling space. Try sitting down on a Storage crate seat to think of all the work your homeschooler is going to complete in the next week and how exciting it will be to not have loose leaf papers scattered all around the house.  These crates can be used to hold books or binders for the week, and they are comfortable and cute to leave in your homeschool space. 

4. Seat sacks are where it’s at.

Ever wonder how the table can get so cluttered in a matter of minutes?  It seems like every project needs additional papers, colored pencils, scissors, pens, glitter, erasers, etc. And by the time the project is completed, the workplace has spun out of control!  Try creating some seat sacks for each of your kids. Possibly one of the cutest ideas for homeschoolers, this bag gives your child the chance to store all of his or her work in a tidy little bag that fits neatly on the back of your kitchen chair.  If you’ve got sewing skills, this could be an easy weekend project. And it can be a great opportunity for kids to help by choosing some fabrics and colors they want. 

5. When in doubt- color code.

Color-coding simplifies life, especially in multi-child families. All you need to do is assign each child a color (or have them pick their own color), then organize storage cubes, binders, organizers, file folders and crates based on their colors. Lots of homeschool families use this kind of system and it really works wonders on keeping school work organized and neat.  And it gives each child a sense of responsibility for the schoolwork assigned to them each week. Want to take color-coding to the next level?  Use colored pens for adding entries or planning events in your weekly calendar. This will help you visualize the overlap of which child needs to be where and at what time. 

Most of all, when trying to create a better organization system remember that every family is a little different and organizing tips that help one family, might not work for your kids.  Be willing to try some of these teacher organization tips with the understanding that you may need to tweak them for your family.

Want more homeschooling tips?  Follow our blog and facebook page to get additional tips and resources for your family!

Mary Adalbert
Hello! I’m Mary Adalbert, Marketing Project Manager for Bridgeway Academy. As a result of being homeschooled during my middle school and high school years, I am passionate about families finding a perfect fit for each of their children. After high school, I went on to study music and business at college where I found a love for helping kids use their creativity in music. I still enjoy teaching music to students and integrate their learning style as we work through lessons at their own pace. In my free time I love playing sports with my husband, spending time with our family, and playing music. And most of all, I love seeing how God works through each and every situation.
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