Here are five ways to save time in and out of your classroom.
1. Use In and Out boxes to reduce clutter
It’s easy to set up In and Out boxes for each of your class periods. They help take the clutter off your desk and create a structure that organizes everything from assignments to grading.
2. Log your time
Part of figuring out how to save time is learning where your time actually goes. Keep a log for a few days so that you can see how much time it takes to accomplish each task. Once you have a clear picture of how your time is spent, you can create a plan to use your time more efficiently, whether by eliminating time-wasting activities, or finding ways to tackle time-intensive activities like grading essays.
3. Number your students
Assign each student in your class a number and have them write it with their name on each assignment, preferably in the upper right hand corner of each paper. The best system numbers students in the same order they appear in your grade book or grading program. This number can allow you to quickly sort papers, identify gaps where there is missing work and then translate grades into your recording system.
4. Label everything
This will help you save time finding what you need and reduce the amount of time you have to spend answering questions about where things are located in your room.
5. Right-of-way
If you have a large class or a classroom where students are moving to numerous activities, lay down a definitive path and right-of-way for how students are supposed to move through the class. This can be printed footprints or lines of colored tape like you might see at a large hospital. If students regularly need to come to your desk, or to a station elsewhere in the room, then organize it so they approach and leave in a consistent flow – the same way you wish the elementary pick-up and drop-off lines would work.