The One Routine That Will Guarantee a Clean Classroom (& a Freebie)
Have you ever looked around your room and wondered if a tornado ripped through it while you were dropping your kids off at specials? You’re not alone. In my opinion, a messy classroom is a sign of a top-notch day of learning…but…I don’t like to leave it that way for long. Today I’ll share my top tip for keeping things organized and sanitized.
Messy Classrooms are Happy Classrooms
At least, I think so. In my classroom, we love to play. And play makes messes! Sometimes, we don’t have time to clean up those messes in the moment (Hi my name is Sarah and I’m always late dropping my kids off to specials), so we have to get creative.
Expectation vs. Reality
I had to include these pics because they just make me laugh. On the left is my classroom before a single student had ever stepped foot in it for the year (Narrator: It was never that clean again). On the right is the year I thought it would be a good idea to bring my two-year-old with me to school while trying to set up my classroom (and a much more accurate representation of what 18 6-year-olds can do to a room in minutes flat). While our classrooms don’t have to be spic-and-span every single day, there’s one routine that has saved my sanity over the years.
Tidy Up Tuesday
Tidy Up Tuesdays are my sanity saver. Each Tuesday of the month, we “tidy” a different area of the room. One week, we focus on desks and cubbies. The next week, we focus on backpacks (have you looked in there lately?! Whew boy). Then comes the community spaces. And last but not least, we sanitize. When we’re done, we start all over again. This weekly routine keeps any one area of our classroom from getting too out of control. Keep reading for more details about each Tidy Up routine (and stay tuned for a freebie!)
Tidy Up Desks & Cubbies
First up, desks and cubbies. On this Tidy Up Tuesday, students are working on getting their personal desk areas into tip-top shape. You’d be amazed at how many assignments my students find shoved in the back of their desks, not to mention how much trash gets shoved in there. Some teachers like to dictate how each students’ desk or cubby is organized, but I find that letting my students decide is best for me.
Tidy Up Backpacks
When the next Tuesday rolls around, we tidy up our backpacks. This is one of those things that I completely overlooked during my first few years of teaching. I figured that parents were sorting through backpacks each day, so I didn’t need to worry about it. Boy, was I wrong. I get it, we’re all busy. It made such a difference when I started taking a few minutes to help students get their backpacks cleaned out. Just like with their desks, you’ll be so surprised by how many missing assignments your students will find crammed down in the bottom of their backpack.
Tidy Up Community Spaces
On the third Tuesday of the month, we tidy up our community spaces. This will look different for every classroom, but it could include your classroom library, writing center, math center, reading group table, etc. The first few times you do this, you may want to assign a student or two to every community space and give them a bit of direction about what you would like them to do (ex: Classroom library - return books to the correct bins and dust the shelves).
Tidy & Sanitize
This last one is probably done daily in the COVID classroom, but in the before-times, we spent one Tuesday per month really sanitizing our space. If your students are not able to use Clorox wipes or other disinfectants, have them wipe things down with baby wipes (it’s better than nothing!) and then you can hit everything with a good Lysol spray once they leave for the day.
Teacher Tip
Here’s my biggest tip for Tidy Up Tuesday - once you have students familiar with the tasks and expectations, take this time to tidy YOUR space too. You’ll be modeling exactly what you want your students to be doing while clearing the clutter from your own space. Believe me, you’ll thank yourself later.
When Do You Tidy?
Tidy Up Tuesdays are always part of our Afternoon Meetings, that happen at the very end of the day. It gives students a way to channel that end-of-the-day energy into something productive and brings a bit of structure to a time of day that can otherwise feel out of control.
Are Afternoon Meetings for You?
If dismissal feels crazy in your classroom, you're not alone. These afternoon meetings may be just what you need to rein in the craziness! These paperless, no-prep slides will give you your time (and sanity) back in the afternoons.
Daily Pack-Up Song
This routine alone made such a difference in our afternoons. Each day, I play a song while students pack up and challenge them to get back to their spots before the song is over. It keeps students focused on the task at hand and makes our pack-up time so much more efficient.
Activities
That end-of-the-day energy is no joke. Once we’re all packed up, I like to channel that energy into something productive. Here’s what our schedule looks like:
Mindful Monday - we practice yoga and other mindfulness activities
Tidy-Up Tuesday - we clean a different area of our classroom each Tuesday
Whatcha Know Wednesday - I ask a brain-tickling question that gets students talking
Turn the Page Thursday - a read aloud from Youtube
Feelin’ It Friday - a guided dance each Friday
My afternoon meetings include an activity that’s already planned for you for each day of the school year. The best part of these activities is that the majority of them can be done semi-independently while you pass out last-minute notes, figure out last-minute dismissal changes, and prep for the next day.
Glow & Grow Reflection
A daily Glow & Grow reflection comes next. We celebrate our successes make a plan of action for the next day. Each day of afternoon meetings includes a Glow & Grow slide already prepped and ready to go.
Coming Soon…
I use the “coming soon” slides to give students a heads up on anything they need to know or remember for the next day. This is a great time to review assembly expectations or remind students about spirit days. I’ve included blank “coming soon” templates for each week of my afternoon meetings.
Farewell, Friends!
During morning meetings, we greet each other, so it only makes sense that we should say goodbye to our friends as well! Each day, I’ve planned a different way for students to say goodbye to their friends. Some of these are quick, whole-group goodbyes and others allow each student to say goodbye by name.
