As summer break draws to a close across the country, many teachers are using these last few weeks to get their classrooms organized and ready for the start of school. Perhaps you’re changing grades or schools, or just trying something new this year. You might even be sticking with a proven format for your classroom. Whatever your situation, getting ready for school to start is a lot of work!

When I was beginning my student teaching, I was assigned to a wonderful supervising teacher who taught me a lot about planning and organization. She was a meticulous planner, keeping binders full of detailed lesson plans for each class she had ever taught. Each year she updated the dates on her lesson plans and revised or replaced any plans that needed improvement. As a result of her planning, she knew exactly what she needed and when it was needed. I learned that there is value in being prepared—ahead of time—and that having things ready to go allowed me to make the most of the instructional time with my students.

Regardless of how you may have put your classroom away at the end of the last school year, here are a few hints for getting things ready for the start of this year and optimizing your time with the students.

Make Unit-Based Manipulative Sets

Rather than looking a day or two (or even a week) ahead in your plans and pulling out the manipulatives you need, take a close look at the first instructional unit or two in your curriculum map. Then use baskets, tubs, or bins to put together the manipulatives that students will need for the entire unit. This saves time on a daily or weekly basis and also exposes students to multiple manipulatives, even though they may not be using them every lesson. It also reinforces the idea that there are multiple tools that can help us understand a concept.

Prepare your Digital Resources

We’ve come to rely on digital tools to support our instruction, whether it is a slide deck or an interactive tool. However, when it comes to technology, it seems like problems are unavoidable. The process runs smoother when we take the time to organize these tools as well. For computer-based resources, organize your files and links by unit using folders or a cloud-based drive. For links to resources like virtual manipulatives or graphing tools, use your browser’s bookmarking tool to organize them into units. You’ll thank yourself later for your excellent organization skills.

Learn from the Past

You might already be an organization master, but there is still room to learn from last year. Don’t be afraid to adjust your system, or even do a complete overhaul, if you find that a piece of your plan didn’t work out. If we look at organization as a way to make the most of the instructional time, then look for ways to improve the system with that goal in mind. You’ll find that a few minutes at the beginning of the unit gives you many more minutes during the unit.

I’d like to say that I am as organized today as my supervising teacher was then. I know my lessons have always gone better when I took the time to plan ahead and students aren’t waiting for me to get organized. We’d love to hear your ideas for getting organized and making the most of your instructional time!