Classroom Time Management - Pencil Organisation

by Leanne
(Adelaide, South Australia)

At the beginning of each year I always buy 5 extra sets of coloured pencils.

Each child has their own pencil pot set up with coloured pencils, lead pencil, scissors and a glue stick.

With the extra pencils I make up colour tins, a tin of all blue pencils, a tin of all green pencils etc also spare glues and spare scissors.

Now when the children get a broken or blunt pencil they put it into a box next to the pencil sharpener and take a sharp one from the colour tins.

They never have to ask me to sharpen their pencil (I just do them at the end of each day and I don't have to go through pencil tins looking for pencils that need sharpening)

It also works really well for all the pencils, scissors and glue that seem to end up on the ground and no one knows who they belong to.

When we are cleaning up if the children find a lost item it goes straight into the colour tins, glue tin or scissors tin.

If the children start work the next day and are missing something they know where to find them.

It really helps develop organisation skills and there are no more excuses of "I've lost/can't find mine" and so work begins on time.

Classroom Time Management - Pencil Organisation...