With the new year right around the corner, here are Tutor Doctor’s school organization tips for 2021!
Like any other school year, we have some core recommendations that are consistently helpful for students to stay organized:
- Set goals. New Year’s resolutions are common, and it’s a great time to start thinking about what you hope to accomplish next year. Check out our blog on goal setting tips for the new year to get started on the right foot.
- Make a planner or agenda. Without a doubt, having a log of upcoming assignments and responsibilities is one of the most important organization requirements for students. Click here for some awesome ideas on how to create an agenda that works for you.
- Color code your materials. We like color coding materials because it allows you to easily separate subjects. You can also color code your agenda to correspond with matching classes.
- Prioritize assignments. Each week, estimate which assignments or responsibilities are going to take the longest. Make sure to prioritize difficult or time consuming tasks first to avoid being crunched for time.
We’ve got even more great tips about back to school organization right here!
Tutor Doctor Parent Tip: Without a doubt, this next year is going to be a bit unique (to say the least). After all, it’s not every year that the world recovers from a global pandemic – teachers, students, and parents are all going to be in a somewhat unfamiliar position when making the transition back to classroom learning. With that in mind, we’d like to share some organizational tips that probably wouldn’t be relevant any other year…
As schools reopen, here are a few suggestions to help ease the process.
- Stay up to date with local guidelines and mandates. The fact is every school (or district) is going to be different – some regions have been hit harder with the virus, and state regulations will determine when schools are reopening (in some areas, they may have already). Many schools may continue to offer remote or hybrid learning models throughout 2021. Knowledge and information are your greatest tools in determining what your family feels comfortable with throughout the reopening process, so make sure to find out what resources are available to you in your community. For parents, we recommend keeping a notebook or journal of reopening details and marking important upcoming dates on your calendar.
- Just because students may return to schools, it doesn’t mean that the pandemic is over. Health and safety guidelines should not be immediately abandoned, even once vaccines are being distributed. Mask use through at least a portion of 2021 should be expected, and we should remind our kids to continue to practice the “extra” standards of cleanliness they’ve become accustomed to. Making sure you are stocked up with “pandemic essentials” (hand sanitizer, masks, etc.) can’t hurt!
- Shop for “campus” supplies in advance. Although this might seem like an obvious tip, think about it – because kids haven’t been physically attending schools, there are several classroom essentials many students have not had a use for throughout the last year. Backpacks and lunchboxes are great examples – and for students transferring from elementary to middle school, it’s especially important to have a comfortable and spacious bag for academic materials. Furthermore, stocking up on organizational supplies like binders, dividers, and pencil cases is also a good idea – many students have gotten comfortable with learning from home and leaving their materials strewn about the house (as we’re sure many parents can attest to). It’s strange to think about, but some students may be packing up their backpack for the first time in over a year – so make sure you have these essentials ahead of time!
