Everything I Need to Know about Organizing I Learned in Kindergarten
Mrs. Fitzgerald’s classroom is full. Look around and you’ll see books, games and toys. Crayons, markers, pencils, highlighters and glue sticks. Dice, beans, beads, blocks, clips and popsicle sticks. Add in 18 or so 5-year-olds, and it’s fair to say there’s never a dull moment.
A kindergarten teacher at Hamblen Elementary, Mrs. Fitzgerald has lots to accomplish over the course of the year. In the fall, many students don’t know any letters, and by June they are reading. That’s huge!
“In kindergarten we work on social skills and foundational learning – the alphabet, reading, writing, math,” she said. “There’s so much growth and developing independence.”
All that work cannot happen without a plan, as well as the necessary tools and supplies. Mrs. Fitzgerald structures her classroom to best support the needs of her young learners. With organizational systems in place, students can more quickly learn the rhythm of the school day, what happens where, and how to find the materials they need. Their foundational learning stretches to include organizing as well.
KEEP THINGS NEAR WHERE THEY ARE USED
Mrs. Fitzgerald organizes her classroom so that everything’s right where she uses it. Next to her teacher station, where she works on math and reading with small groups of students, she has several drawers filled with the activities, books and supplies used by those small groups. She uses a white board at the front of the class to do daily lessons. Her computer and a small collection of essential supplies are nearby, at the ready.
2. THINK ZONES (OR STATIONS)
Four 10-drawer carts contain dozens of math games, each labeled with a picture and word, and filled with instructions and all the items necessary to play. Students learn that this is the math station. Sensory stations are packed into their own labeled bin, as are language arts stations for practicing things like coin and letter sorting, lacing and tying. Books are organized by theme (“dogs & cats,” “farm & plants”) and sit in small tubs, waiting to be read.
3. SORT LIKE WITH LIKE
Best of all (to me) is a big bin of many small, lidded containers, each filled with small things – colorful beads, plastic figures, shiny stars. Students can practice sorting the small objects in various ways. “Like with like!” as we organizers like to say.
4. USE THE RIGHT STORAGE
Mrs. Fitzgerald helps students stay organized by having individual purple tubs that sit on top of their desk to hold crayons, glue sticks, highlighters and other writing instruments. It’s just the right size for the things they need to have handy. She posts a photo of what the tub should look like when it’s filled so that students can easily see how it’s expected to be. Students also have a special folder for items they need to bring home, and each day, they talk about what should be in it.
5. MAINTENANCE IS CYCLICAL
At any given time in a kindergarten classroom, there are many children doing many activities that involve many things. But when it’s time to transition to lunch or PE, everyone knows the drill.
“I signal them with 1,2,3, eyes on me, and then we have a clean-up song,” Mrs. Fitzgerald said.
She models her expectations, showing students exactly what it looks like to put something away. For an activity that involves push pins and papers, for example, she shows them how to put the pins away in a tub, and to stack the papers underneath. Everyone aims to complete clean up in one minute. There is lots of praise for those who are successful, and sometimes a reward – like a few Froot Loops. And that brings us to the last organizing tip:
6. REWARD YOURSELF!
It doesn’t have to be Froot Loops. 😊
