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Tip of the Week
"The more we get to know each of our students, the better we can help them to be successful."
Time Saving Tips
  • Make a to-do list everyday. Check items off when completed.
  • Keep these lists for future reference and documentation.
  • Teach students to hand in papers, right side up, with their names at the top.
  • Have a basket for each subject or class so papers are sorted for you.
  • Give students the number, which corresponds to the number in your grad book. Have them write their name
    xxand number on all papers. You or a student can quickly put the papers in order for grading and recording. You can
    xxalso see easily whose papers are missing.
  • Use an answer column along the right margin of the paper for easy grading.
  • Make a stencil to cut out or hole punch to grade multiple-choice tests.
  • For short warm-up activities or bell work, cut worksheets into mini-strips. Or use and overhead.
  • Place assignments and instructions on the board in the same place every time. Teach studetns to look there to get started.
  • Write frequently used instructions on a chart and laminate it. When needed, hang the chart on the chart on the chalkboard.
  • Keep a traveling office for the times you are away from your room and have time to work. A cleaning supply tub or flip-tip
    xxbox works well. Keep pens, paper clips, scissors, tape, etc. in the box. Leave room for a file or set of papers to grade. When
    xxyou are waiting at the copier or on hold on the phone you will have what you need.
  • Keep everything you need ot plan with in a system file or notebook.
  • Use one calendar for everything, don't have several.
  • Identify your supplies with those little personalized mailing labels, or make your own.
  • Designate one day a week as filing day for student papers, teaching files, and office files.
  • Make two blank copies of students worksheets and tests; one for the file for future reference and one to make and answer key.
  • Have a personal care kit for you in your desk with pain medicine, band-aids, needle and thread, etc.
  • Create form letters and notes on the computer that you can fill in quickly.
  • Store materials near where they are used.
  • When you are going to do a project, gather all needed materials ahead of time and put them in a basket or box with a handle
    xxso you can move them or transport them easily.
  • When you put up a new learning center or bulletin board, take a picture of it and make a list of everything needed. Tape those
    xxinside the box or folder where it will be stored, so that next year you won't have to try and remember what to use or how it was
    xxarranged.
    • Use Small Blocks of Time Wisely
    In 15 minutes you can:
  • Grade the objective portion of a set of test papers
  • Create a quiz
  • Create a review sheet
  • Answer e-mail, find a web site with info for the next day's lesson
  • Photocopy a worksheet

    • In 10 minutes you can:
  • Call a parent
  • Write a lesson plan
  • Grade some essay questions
  • Put grades into the computer
  • Skim tomorrow's lesson
  • Check homework papers
  • Make a transparency

    • In 5 minutes you can:
  • Create a dynamic closing exercise
  • Collect homework
  • List key words on the board
  • Write a positive note and sent it home
  • Use the hole punch on a sheet of papers
  • Write a positive comment on at least 5 papers
  • Review key points in a lesson

    • In 3 minutes you can:
  • Revise your "to do" list
  • Record grades
  • Drill students
  • Remind class of homework
  • Grade the objective portion of a set of test papers
  • Put stickers on a set of papers
  • Praise a class for good behavior
  • Have students write an evaluation of the day's lesson

    • In 1 minute you can:
  • Straighten your desk
  • File a set of papers
  • Erase your board
  • Display a cartoon about the day's lesson
  • Have students tidy the room
  • Select the student of the day/week
  • Write an inspirational message on the board
    • 18 Tips for Managing Your Time
    1. Prioritize! You can't do everything all at once! Keep a list of what needs to be done and
      put the things you need to do in the order that you need to do them.
    2. If a task will take less than three minutes, do it now.
    3. Establish a routine for how you perform various tasks.
    4. Use a calendar to plan. Record specifics such as what, where, when, and any other necessary information.
    5. Don't just plan for a day, but for the week, for the month, for the semester, and for the year.
    6. Use the spaces on your calendar to record tasks, appointments, and other information that you need
      to remember. Keep your calendar in an easily accessible spot. Make it a habit to refer to it often.
    7. Prioritize your planning time so that you won't have to make three trips to the office when one would do.
    8. Arrange a time during your planning period to handle the routine paperwork that you face each day.
    9. Say "no" when someone asks you to give time that you can't spare.
    10. Don't waste all of your planning time just visiting with other teachers. You should make it a point to use your
      time at school as efficiently as possible so that you can have more free time at home.
    11. Remember to use your biological clock whenever you can. If you are not a morning person, then setting aside
      time in the morning to accomplish detailed work will not be as productive as if you were to stay after school
      and work more effficiently.
    12. Follow the old business rule: Touch each sheet of paper only once.
    13. When you are at your mailbox, deal efficiently with mail. Act immediately on items that need to be responded
      to in writing. Throw away or recycle junk mail. File catalogues for later.
    14. Create a binder to file e-mails, memos, and other directives that you will need to refer to at various times
      in the school term.
    15. Keep a file for each student. In this file, make sure each child has given you important information you
      need to contact his/her parents or guardians. Use this file to store all documents relating to that student.
    16. Color code as many files and other papers as you can for quick reference.
    17. Consider keeping a binder in which you store lesson plans, handouts, tests, notes, assignments, and other
      material for each class. If you have this all together, it is much easier to see what you and your students
      have accomplished during the term and what you have yet to do.
    18. Delegate as much as you can. Even very young students can accomplish many routine tasks such as putting
      up posters or keeping the supply cabinet clean.
    9 Principles of Effective Classroom Time Management
    1. Reduce Distractions
    2. Raise Student Awareness
    3. Establish Routines
    4. Monitor Constantly
    5. Be Very Organized
    6. Have a Back-Up Plan
    7. Take a Bell-to-Bell Approach
    8. Use Small Blocks of Time
    9. Give Enough Work
    20 Common Time Wasters
    1. Teaching lessons that are not relevant or interesting to students
    2. Not using the first few minutes of class effectively
    3. Not intervening quickly enough to keep problems manageable
    4. Confusing "teachable moments" with straying from the topic
    5. Not establishing routines for daily classroom procedures
    6. Calling roll instead of checking attendance by a seating chart
    7. Not enforcing a reasonable policy for leaving the classroom
    8. Misjudging how long it takes to teach a lesson
    9. Interrogating tardy students in front of other students
    10. Not providing assistance for those students without materials
    11. Allowing students to decide when class is over
    12. Not determining students' prior knowledge of new material
    13. Giving an inappropriate amount of work
    14. Not teaching students how to work collaboratively in groups
    15. Having poor transitions between activities
    16. Not giving feedback designed to help students learn
    17. Giving confusing directions
    18. Not teaching study skills
    19. Spending too much time behind the desk
    20. Giving homework as busy work
    adapted from First-Year Teacher's Survival Kit, Julia Thompson
    ©2006 North Forest ISD - All rights reserved.