My Top 12 Time Saving Tips for Teachers!
My teammates often ask me how I get to work on time (not early) and how I leave work on time (most of the time) and why I never ever have a giant rolling piece of luggage full of work to take home with me…
· Don’t waste your precious time! I use every spare second– wisely! I eat in my room. I don’t stand in the hallway and talk for 30 minutes, and while this does not make for the best way to develop relationships with all of my awesome co-workers, it does allow me to get home to my family on time and actually be with my family (rather than grading). Close your door during planning time. Try it!
· Stop making homework packets!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You will save paper and time! Invest in a weekly HW menu (you can use it year after year). Copy your spelling list right on the back and done – 1 page! This gives the students power of choice and they become responsible for getting the work turned in– not YOU trying to make a bunch of copies for work that may or may not get turned in! And if you’re in the early grades, you will have kids lose their HW packet and need another one (more copies!!!), but not anymore!!! Try this one:
· Take something with you to specials (papers to
grade, items you need to cut or prepare and so on). If your kids are at a music lesson
for 30 minutes, grab your something to do and take it with you! You can listen
to the beautiful music while you work!
· If you have 3 co-workers that take the same
recess time as you, have 2 teachers stay out to monitor and let the 3rd
go in and get some work done for 30 minutes. Rotate days so everyone gets that
extra planning time.
· Use monthly Folders! For everything! Anything
that you used in any given month and know you will use again next year, put it
in a folder for that month (only a master copy, not all of your extras). If you
start at the beginning of the school year, your folders will be ready for the
following school year. It is so wonderful to pick up my September folder and
know that everything I need for the month is there, including homework and
assessments. You can always add to them if you find new ideas…
· Start copying your September folder in August so
you have it all ready by September. Then in September start copying for October
and so on. When you get to May you will have it all done so instead of taking
May off… Copy for the following August. This will save you tons of time at
crazy back to school! And you won’t have to wait in long lines because everyone
waited to copy (and you know by the time you get your turn, the machine will
have broken down or started making smeary copies (is that word) or worse, run
out of staples that need to be ordered– ahhhhh!)...
· Use weekly baskets! Have a Mon, Tues, Wed,
Thurs, Fri basket on your counter. Everything you’re going to need for each day (that week) should be in the baskets. This will keep you planned and organized. It’s also
great if you have a sub last minute! For example, if you do a Number of the day,
make your copies (which should already be done because we’re copying in
advance now, right?), cut them and put them in each basket. If you give a
spelling test on Friday, have the templates copied and in your Friday basket.
Everything should go in your baskets before you leave from work the
previous Friday, if possible. Once you get in the habit, you will love this
system! Have a sub basket as well! Be ready!
· Put the students to work! Have them clean up
before you leave for the day. They made the mess and they can clean it up. You
don’t want to spend your planning time cleaning! Each student can pick up 20
things (or more) and show you before they put it away/throw it away. Assign a weekly
designated desk checker. They are responsible for making sure their table/quad
of desks are clean on top and under, daily. This will take a while before
it’s an exact system, but once your students know your expectations and have
had time to practice what it should look like, you will get results. If a group
leaves a mess at their table, be sure to have them come in for lunch the next
day for a timeout or to clean another area in the room. If you do this
consistently, the kids will be much better about cleaning up their areas!!!
· When taking down your May stuff (calendar, for
exp.) at the end of the year, put up your August calendar board and cover it up
with butcher paper. Done and ready and you can move onto other tasks in the Fall!
· Don’t reinvent the wheel! If you need it, it’s
already been done and created on Teachers Pay Teachers. If you don’t use TpT–
start! You will love it!!! Open a free account and start searching for that perfect resource/s!
· Invest in fabric for your bulletin boards or
even paint. It’s easier to hang, it looks nicer, it doesn’t fade, and it doesn’t
rip! You can leave it up year-round! Invest in multi-use borders (kids at work, for exp.) and you will not have to change your borders each month/season. You can leave them up all year!!
· Save your documents/downloads to a folder
with a name that makes sense. Do it now or you’ll be trolling the internet/your pc files looking for it later. Print a copy and put it in your monthly folder, if applicable! I keep labeled folders on my desktop! I add to them every time I download something new or create something new, such as lesson plans. So there is a plans folder on my desktop. I just open it up and get my plan from the year before, tweak as needed, change the date and done with lesson plans for the week. Your desktop is an easy place to find things you use often. Be sure to save a copy to your docs or a zip drive now and then, just in case that old school laptop takes a turn for the worse and you need to be issued a new one. You want those things you use often saved so you can quickly add them to your new desktop.
My
biggest time savers are my survival kits! Your year is planned and there are so
many teacher resources from Sub Plans and Back to School Kits to WHOLE YEAR ELA
Bundles and Teacher Evaluation Help! Check them out to save yourself hours and
hours of work and finding resources already done and created for you!
I hope you found this helpful!
Have a
great school year!!!😊
Please visit my store for more lesson plans and ideas. Thank You!!!
Mrs Wenning's Classroom on TpT
Mrs Wenning's Classroom on TpT
You can find me on Pinterest as well…
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