Taming the Paper Monster

Effective organization is a vital component of academic success, as it significantly influences both academic achievement and overall well-being.

When students possess strong organizational skills, they are better equipped to manage their time, keep track of assignments, and mitigate stress. A well-organized student is more likely to excel academically, as they can readily access necessary materials and maintain focus on their goals. 

Strategies for Sorting and Storing Student Papers

Organizing Physical Papers

For physical papers, students can use color-coded folders or binders to categorize materials by subject, assignment type, or due date. This makes it easier to locate specific papers when needed and reduces the risk of losing important documents. Additionally, students can utilize labels and dividers to further organize their materials and create a streamlined filing system.

Managing Digital Documents

When it comes to digital documents, students can take advantage of cloud storage services such as Google Drive or Dropbox to keep their files organized and easily accessible from any device. By creating folders for each class or assignment, students can quickly locate the materials they need without sifting through a cluttered digital space.

Maintaining a Clutter-Free Study Environment

Furthermore, regularly decluttering and organizing digital files can help students maintain a clear and efficient digital workspace, reducing the risk of losing important documents or becoming overwhelmed by digital clutter. By implementing these sorting and storing strategies, students can take control of their academic materials and create a more organized and efficient study environment.

This video shows a quick tip for how to organize student desks and folders.

Separated by colors, students will be able to tell quickly where their work is and be able to put it back into the proper folder.

It also enables the teacher to be consistent and fair instead of students comparing folders with one another.

Prefer to read the transcript of the video? I have it listed below.

Transcript of video:

“Hi everyone. Charity Preston here again from the Organized Classroom Blog. Today we’re going to talk about taming the crazy paper monster from all of your students’ papers, all over their desks and all in their binders, all disaster area.

I’m going to show you a quick and easy trick that I’ve used in the past and it seems to work fairly well.

It keeps it a little bit more under control.

What you’re going to need are two things. The first thing you’re going to need are labels.

Now I have Avery brand. Walmart makes them office supply stores, make them in a generic brand, whatever you need.

I get the two by four labels and then I also get the one by two and five, eight labels. They come 300 labels in a pack or 30 labels per sheet as what those ones are. I use the big ones and the small ones.

Other thing that you’re gonna need are two pocket folders and a variety of colors.

You’re gonna need as many colors as you need for your classroom, so you need to base that on how many subjects you have.

So maybe you’re doing reading, math, science, social studies and writing, so you might need five different colors. If you teach all seventh grade math, but you have different sections, you might need a different colors depending on how many sections that you have.

I buy these at the beginning of the school year when they’re a penny or 5 cents a piece at the office supply stores and I buy enough for an entire class at however many I’m going to need that year plus probably five or six extra ones as well.

Mine are folders with the metal brads in the middle. They don’t have to have the brads, but I like them for having the option to place page protectors or important notes securely inside that are easily seen. It’s up to you. Your own personal preference.

Once you have your class sets of folders and your labels, what you’re going to do is for each student you’re going to make labels for they the small labels, about a half a page for each student, so the top half would be one student.

The second bottom half would be at the other student.

Just make about 12 to 16 of them so that way it’s all the same name.

I’m there and I do realize that students can move out, students can not show up.

So I wouldn’t do tons of this before you actually see the bodies of students and if they do move out, it’s a small price to pay for being organized. Right?

Hey, so once you have a half sheet, I would actually cut it myself. So that way each student has the half a sheet.

You’re going to peel one of the labels off with the student’s name and on your folder up in the top right hand corner, you’re going to put that student name.

Okay. Then with the other labels, the large labels, you’re actually going to put your heading.

I have math, writing, reading, homework, independent study, seat work, whatever you want to use your folder scores, what the bottom one will have.

This folder is going to be writing. I’m going to pull this off and I am going to stick it right in the middle.

You’re going to do this for your class set of writing. All the writing folders would be blue in this instance.

So your students will know, Hey, when you say get out the blue writing folders, they will all have the same folder. They will get out. It won’t be different.

They’ll all be the same and they’ll know exactly where to put the papers. At the end of the class, you’ll always have your students put their work inside their folder and they can store all of their folders right inside their desk.

They’ll have their name on it.

It won’t get mixed up with anyone else’s.

And if they get ruined or lost, you have your hands on another set.

The last thing I do is when I’m finished with my labels, (you’re always going to have extras and I would actually make extra sets from when you have students that move in), put them right inside of a folder, aptly named labels.

Stick them in your files. You have them for the next time when you need them.

Okay, well hopefully this was helpful and I hope you have a wonderful day. Bye.”

How to Declutter and Streamline Your Study Space

Benefits of Decluttering

By decluttering their study space, students can reduce distractions, improve concentration, and create a more conducive environment for learning. This can be achieved by removing any items that are not essential for studying or completing assignments, such as old papers, broken supplies, or unnecessary decorations that take up valuable space and contribute to visual clutter.

Strategies for Decluttering

By clearing out unnecessary items, students can create more room for essential study materials and reduce visual distractions in their study area. Additionally, organizing materials into designated storage solutions such as shelves, drawers, or bins can help students keep their study space tidy and easily accessible.

Creating an Organized and Efficient Environment

By implementing these strategies for decluttering and streamlining their study space, students can create an organized and efficient environment that promotes focus and productivity.

The Benefits of Maintaining a Well-Organized Student Paper System

An organized student paper system can help students develop important life skills such as responsibility, accountability, and self-discipline.

Furthermore, maintaining an organized student paper system can lead to improved academic performance by reducing the risk of missing deadlines or losing important materials.

When students have easy access to their study materials and can quickly locate the resources they need, they are better able to focus on their studies and achieve their academic goals. 

Additionally, an organized student paper system can contribute to a more positive overall experience by reducing feelings of overwhelm or disorganization. By maintaining a well-organized student paper system, students can create a sense of order and control in their academic lives while reaping the benefits of improved focus, productivity, and success. 

By implementing effective strategies for sorting and storing student papers, managing digital documents, creating a study schedule and filing system, keeping track of assignments and deadlines, decluttering study spaces, and maintaining an organized student paper system offers numerous benefits that contribute to academic success and overall well-being.

By staying organized throughout their academic journey, students can reduce stress, improve time management skills, maintain productivity levels while achieving their academic goals with ease.

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~Charity