Organization only helps.....well Everyone!!!

As mentioned in the title, organization is only helpful to anyone that has a job, goes to school, has meetings with anyone, has goals, or wants to be more efficient. If you do not fit into any of the previously mentioned categories than you can stop reading right now. I find myself always struggling with being more organized. I have begun to really look at the methods that I use to get things accomplished and notice many flaws when it comes to my organization.

I think what makes organization so difficult for many people is that every person is wired differently. For instance some people like the more old school approach of writing down a list of tasks on a piece of paper or keeping Post It Notes in business. Others like to use technology and continue to find a plethora of resources whether it be from Google Tools, Apps, Task list or online resources. No matter which method you prefer there are many ways to help become more organized.

As a teacher I have discovered a lot of resources that can help with my organization. The one that I am going to focus on in this post is called Teachers.io. Teachers.io is both an application as well as a website. This is pretty much an online planner that a teacher can fill out and automatically sync with the students that are signed up in the particular class. Unlike a learning management system which I mentioned in a previous post, Teachers.io is purely a planner. Students do not turn in work on Teachers.io and you cannot grade on the app. It is to be used as a planner. My school has become a 1:1 with Ipad school and the students do not have planners anymore. I have found Teachers.io to be very helpful to have my assignments, resources, and announcements in a place that the students have access to. Another thing that I have noticed is how important it is that the school uses one platform. Every teacher at my school uses Teachers.io and that has cut down on the confusion from the students and the need for students to remember multiple passwords.

Teachers.io also works hand in hand with the MyHomework app. Students will use the MyHomework app and see it as a planner and teachers use the Teachers.io app or website to create the assignments. You can also create assignments for the week and month depending on how far you have planned ahead.

An overview of Teachers.io can be found here

An overview of MyHomework can be found here

Here is a quick tutorial video over the tool and how to set up your class.

As I mentioned if you think this is something that you would use in your classroom talk to your technology specialist or principal about implementing school wide in order to have continuity for the students.