They say that a clear space makes for a clear mind. This post will provide you with organization advice for your pencil case, backpack, desk, papers, and computer to help you function at your best!
Don’t go overboard with the stationery. From personal experience, these are the absolute essentials you need to bring in your pencil case/pouch on a daily basis:
lead refills (for mechanical pencils)
sharpener (for wooden pencils)
try to get a sharpener with a locking top so the shavings won’t spill out!
2 highlighters or colored pens
calculator (if your class requires one)
And these are some non-essential but useful items:
colored pencils (useful for drawing diagrams)
sticky notes and page flags
if your writing utensils are expensive and you don’t want them getting stolen, maybe bring an extra cheap pencil you feel comfortable lending out
Group writing utensils together with rubber bands. Save yourself the hassle of rummaging through your entire pouch to find one particular pen. Make groups of all your similar writing utensils (ex: pencils, gel pens, felt-tip pens, highlighters, colored pencils), then tie each group together with a rubber band for easy access.
Get an actual backpack. If you’re carrying more than one or two books, please please please get a normal, two-strapped backpack (and make sure to wear both straps!). Tote bags, purses, and messenger bags are terrible for your shoulders and spine.
Place the heaviest items closest to your back. Textbooks and binders should go in the largest pocket, while your cell phone, novel, pencil case, etc. should go in the front. This helps distribute the weight better and prevent back strain.
Alternate the directions of your binders to fit more. Don’t put all of your binders facing the same direction like this. Instead, alternate the direction like this– put the first binder in with the rings on the left, then flip the second binder so the rings are on the right, and so on. This also works for spiral notebooks to prevent the spirals from getting caught with one another!
I recommend keeping the following things in your bag:
obviously, books, notes, homework, binders, and anything else required for class
granola bar and/or dollar bills to buy snacks from the vending machine
feminine hygiene products
travel-sized hand sanitizer/wipes
Make “to-do” and “done” piles. Each evening when I get home, I take out all the work I have to get done and put it in a “to-do” pile. This pile is usually a mixture of textbooks I have to take notes from, worksheets I have to complete, flashcards I have to review, and books I have to annotate. As I complete my work over the course of the night, I move the finished items from the “to-do” pile into a separate “done” pile. At the end of the night, I take everything out of the “done” pile and pack it into my backpack to turn in the next day. This is by no means necessary to stay organized, but I’ve found that keeping a physical representation of both what needs to be done and how much I’ve accomplished is extremely motivating.
Take advantage of vertical space. If your desktop space is limited, make use of magazine holders, caddies, and stacking letter trays to hold more papers while taking up minimal surface area.
Use cable ties and labels to manage your electrical cords. Winding up excess cord, tying it with a cable tie, and labeling it with tape will keep your desk neat, keep your mischievous pets safe, and prevent you from tripping.
Book stands are your friends. Book stands can prop up your giant textbooks and save you desktop space. They also make reading for long periods of time more comfortable, since you can look straight ahead instead of down.
Keep a trash can and recycling bin within easy reach. This is a great way to prevent paper clutter. You won’t be tempted to leave junk papers lying around if there’s a bin right next to you.
Do a seasonal deep-cleaning. Every few months or so, take everything off of your desk and do a complete overhaul. Dust off the eraser shavings from the corners. Wipe down the surface with an antibacterial wipe. Go through all of your stuff before putting it back– if you find papers you don’t need anymore or pens that have dried up, don’t put them back.
I personally use a 1-inch binder for every subject. I like binders because they’re durable, easily dividable/rearrangeable, and they keep papers from falling out. Separating each subject makes it super easy to grab the work I need for just one class– for example, if I want to study math at the library, I can take that one binder and go, as opposed to lugging the papers for three other subjects along with me.
Within each binder, I keep 5 dividers. The labels on the dividers vary for each class but generally they include notes, handouts, graded work, and reference materials.
If you’re looking for lighter binder alternatives: consider 2-pocket folders, accordion folders, or binder/notebook hybrids.
Keep your papers in good shape. If you’re using binders, consider splurging on either reinforced loose-leaf paper or adhesive reinforcements so you don’t end up with a bunch of papers dangling halfway out of your binder. If you have a tendency to accidentally tear your papers or spill coffee on them, you may want to scan everything into your computer as soon as you get it so you can always print out a second copy if the first one gets destroyed.
Keep a “general” folder. Get a pocket folder and fill it with extra lined, graph, and blank paper. You can also keep other general things like your schedule, a map of your school, your report card, and/or school announcements in here. Take this folder with you to every class.
Organize weekly. No matter how well-oiled your system is, you’re inevitably going to end up shoving some papers into a random pocket. Once a week, take some time to rearrange things, put papers back where they belong, and hole-punch anything your teacher didn’t.
Transfer regularly. After we finish the first unit, I always ask my teacher if I can take out my old papers and keep them at home. The vast majority of the time, the answer is yes. I transfer all my papers from completed units from my 1-inch binder to large 3-inch binders that I keep on my bookshelf. I label each topic within them with page flags for quick reference. This way I have all the resources to study for midterms/finals, but I don’t have to carry them to school every day.
Purge yearly. At the end of the school year, I recycle all of my papers. The exception is papers for subjects I’m continuing with the next year. For example, if I’m taking US History II next year, I’ll save my US History I papers because there’s a good chance I’ll need to refer to them later. If you’re not sure whether you’ll take a subject again, I’d recommend keeping the papers in the big binder just in case.
Create a folder for each class. All of your files for one class should go into the same folder. If you have a big project that involves several files, you can make a project folder within a class. At the end of the school year, you may want to combine all of your class folders into a giant grade-level folder so your old files don’t clutter up your desktop.
Save your files properly. When you’re in a rush, it’s tempting to save your essay as “asdjksdfj” to the desktop, but your future self will thank you if you take ten extra seconds to give it a sensible name and save it into a class folder.
Use separate desktops for separate contexts. I have three different desktops on my laptop: school (for academic work), extracurriculars (for managing this blog and the other clubs/activities I’m involved in), and fun (for Netflix and online shopping). Keeping these three aspects of my life on separate desktops allows me to draw the line between work and play. I won’t get distracted by having Tumblr open next to my history project, and I can focus better on the task at hand when I “switch off” from one desktop and go to another. Learn how to set up separate desktops on your computer here: {Windows//Mac}.
Tag your documents. Create a tagging system to make your files easier to search for. Your tags can be by type (“essay”, “notes”) or section (“chapter 1″, “unit 8″).
Backup your devices weekly. Accidents happen, so always be prepared. Make sure to backup your computer, phone, tablet, etc. to cloud storage or an external hard drive every week. Or at the very least, get Google Photos, which will automatically backup your photos from your phone.
Thanks for reading! If you have questions, feedback, or post requests, feel free to drop me an ask.
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