10 Terrific Teacher Tidy Tips: From classroom chaos to daily bliss

The day I entered a 3rd grade classroom for my first classroom Konmari I instantly recalled my dad calling school “the brain factory,” as in, “how were things at the brain factory today?” While that made me smile it also made me think, “how fitting, this place is complex!” Just like any factory, a “brain factory” has its own set of challenges. Instead of conveyor belts, you’ve got rows of desks, instead of machinery, you’ve got whiteboards and smartboards, and instead of spare parts, you’ve got rogue crayons, runaway paperclips, and glue sticks that mysteriously multiply like rabbits.

And much like a real factory, when your “brain factory” gets cluttered and chaotic, efficiency plummets, quality control goes out the window, and you feel like you and your students are surviving rather than thriving.

But fear not! Just as a factory needs a well-organized assembly line to function smoothly, your classroom can benefit from a little order and structure too. Enter the KonMari Method, your blueprint for turning the chaos into a streamlined operation where every book, binder, and box of tissues has its place. It’s time to declutter your “brain factory” and get those mental gears turning smoothly again – because let’s face it, we all know there’s no such thing as “extra” time in the teaching world.

Before you dive headfirst into your cluttered classroom, take a moment to become a student yourself. Familiarize yourself with the KonMari Method. At its core, it’s about keeping only what sparks joy and letting go of the rest. For teachers, this might mean holding onto that one trusty stapler but finally saying goodbye to those dusty overhead projector sheets. Check “The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up” out of the library, have a close read and tune into the six tidying principles that will change your life!

Decluttering can be a daunting task, especially if you are dealing with volume, so don’t go it alone. Recruit a fellow teacher, your favorite classroom aide, or even a couple of eager-to-please students. Pick someone who won’t judge you for the six dozen coffee mugs stashed in your cabinet or offer unsolicited opinions on what should stay and what should go.

And, as you will quickly find out, it’s best if your helper is not allergic to dust.

Organizing your classroom isn’t something you can squeeze into a 15-minute break between lessons. Set aside dedicated time for this mission – think a weekend or a couple of long afternoons with no expected distractions. Schedule your tidy sessions like you would an important meeting or a much-needed massage, because your future self (and your students) will thank you. Plus, knowing there’s a finish line will help keep you motivated when you’re knee-deep in a pile of laminated posters.

Note, if you are decluttering over a couple of intervals, you won’t want to pull everything out for a tidy session, run out of time and leave yourself in chaos. The solution is to work on subcategories that are of a dimension or size that allow you to get the work done in the amount of time you have available for that session.

When you’re ready to tackle the clutter, don’t tiptoe around it – dive in! Be brutal, empty shelves, clear out drawers, and pull out all those materials lurking in dark corners that belong to the category you are working on. Seeing everything laid out at once might be overwhelming (and a little horrifying), but it’s the only way to truly assess what you’re dealing with.

Start with low hanging fruit – discard anything that’s broken, outdated, or no longer useful.  Haven’t used that math manipulative set since the last Olympics? Let it go! It’s like ripping off a band-aid – intense, a little painful, but ultimately, a tremendous relief.

Marie Kondo’s approach is about categories, and your classroom has its own unique set. Write a list of subcategories specific to your classroom.

Let’s say, for example that you are working on the paper category – you might have graph paper or poster paper or draft paper or homework assignments – many varieties of paper. List the different types of paper on a whiteboard and organize them virtually before you physically organize them. Doing a bit of mental work in advance will save you time, give you perspective and help you achieve your vision for an organized, supportive classroom more effectively.

Additionally writing out subcategories will help you focus and avoid getting distracted by the random things you’ll inevitably find, like that frog puppet you borrowed from the drama department three years ago.

Before you start putting anything away, you need to take care of the discards. Discard First is one of the six KonMari principles; it is highlighted here because most every client I’ve worked with wants to put things away before discards are removed from the space. It is a strong, natural tendency to want to jump ahead to start storing things. The consequence of doing that is that the piles of discards are distracting and diminish your ability to visualize ideal storage solutions.

Classrooms tend to evolve overtime, and when a new item comes into a classroom. It gets stuck in the corner, you know, that it can fit in at that moment. But when you’re doing the KonMari tidy, you have an opportunity to place everything in an ideal location. Getting discards out of the room frees up new and better locations for storing things.

One teacher’s trash is another teacher’s treasure. Before you send excess supplies or books to recycling, see if anyone else in your school could use them. Reach out to your colleagues to see who is interested in your discards, take photos and send them around or set up a “free to a good classroom” table. Adding a “pick-up” deadline to your give-away offers ensures your discards won’t pile up and derail your decluttering process.

Remember, it’s easier to organize a smaller collection of things that you truly need and love than to try to cram everything into an already overcrowded space.

Here’s an organizing nugget of wisdom: 70% full is full. It means aim to fill storage units to no more than 70% of capacity. When storage bins, shelves, or drawers are crammed to the brim, you are setting yourself up for trouble and increasing the stress in your environment. However, when you put things away at the end of a KonMari session and stop filling a shelf or bin at 70% capacity you are acknowledging the dynamic nature of a classroom and making it easy to add and remove items.

Leaving space in storage areas creates room for new materials you’ll acquire and helps prevent that panicked feeling you have when you can’t find something buried under piles of stuff. Plus, it gives your classroom that open, airy feel that will get you copious compliments from the custodian to the principal.

Repeat after me: flat surfaces are for working, not storing. Your desk is not a dumping ground for random papers, and your tables shouldn’t be buried under craft supplies.

Respect the flat spaces and leave them as empty as possible. A couple of items of decor or tools that you know you need on hand, like a holder for pens or pencils, are fine but otherwise honor that flat space and keep it empty. When those spaces are clear they’re ready for their intended use – whether it’s teaching, grading, or having a place to set your coffee cup. If you can see the surface, you’re winning.

Play fast and loose with the label maker – box, bin, drawer or shelf – it gets a label!

You’ve reevaluated your classroom, the items in it spark joy and you’ve put things away in the most convenient places for you. Now you want to label. Whether it’s a substitute teacher, student or an aide, labeling is going to help everyone who operates in your classroom find what they seek.

Having clear labels not only helps you locate things quickly but also makes it easier for students to put things back where they belong (in theory, anyway). And labeled containers can feel incredibly satisfying – adding a touch of serenity to your day.

Congratulations, you’ve KonMari’d your classroom! Now, instead of drowning in a sea of stuff, you’re teaching in a space that’s organized, functional, and maybe even a little bit zen. So take a deep breath, admire your handiwork, and enjoy starting the school year with a clean slate – and maybe, just maybe, extra joy.