Getting Organized

My colleague Kate keeps everything in binders. I originally didn’t understand why since I have an elaborate filing system on my computer. I just find what I need and print it.

And then I moved to Rhode Island.
Where I drive a car.
And pay for gas.
And like the trees that surround me.

That’s when I realized that I need to start putting everything (e.g., minilessons, teacher guides from the web) in binders like Kate does since I’m tired of cutting down trees and going through lots of ink every time I want to print things out for a day’s worth of lessons.

Thanks to Ruth, who seems to make the ordinary things around her extraordinary, I transformed a plain, white binder into a snazzy Interactive Read Aloud Binder, where I’ll keep things like publishers’ notes, background information I want to hand-out, vocabulary for books, anticipation guides, etc. While it doesn’t look quite as gorgeous as the stuff Ruth creates, it’s a step in the right direction.
Exterior of My IRA Binder
Sample Interior Page (Yes, I’m using sheet protectors. I got that idea from Kate. Thanks to the Recycling Center for Education, I pay $.20/lb. for them, so I have enough sheet protectors to fill multiple binders now!