How many minutes per year do you suppose you spend looking for something you know you had only days, hours or even minutes before?\u00a0 Students and teachers are both notorious for misplacing papers.\u00a0 Students lose their papers in disheveled desks and backpacks and teachers lose the copied math worksheets they made during prep period just as quickly.<\/p>\n
A great strategy for managing those pesky papers is to follow what is known as the \u201cOHIO Principle.\u201d\u00a0 Ohio stands for O<\/span><\/strong>nly H<\/span><\/strong>andle I<\/span><\/strong>t O<\/span><\/strong>nce.\u00a0\u00a0 This principle recognizes that papers are often lost when the recipient receives them and places them somewhere (in a disorganized folder, on the desk amidst a sea of other papers), thinking that he\u2019ll put them in the proper place later when he has more time. Under the OHIO principle, upon receipt of the paper (whether it be students receiving handouts or teachers receiving completed work), the recipient will \u201conly handle it once\u201d by immediately<\/em> placing the paper(s) in the proper place.<\/p>\n Of course, this principle assumes that students and teachers are organized enough to have a \u201cproper place\u201d for the paper to begin with.\u00a0 As such, creating an organizational method ahead of time will be crucial to the success of this concept.\u00a0 Teachers will need to have a place to put turned in work, graded work, copied handouts, notes from parents, etc.\u00a0 Likewise, students will need to know where to place their notes, handouts, homework, returned work, permission slips, etc.<\/p>\n Some students seem to have been blessed with an \u201corganization gene,\u201d and will need little to no help organizing their backpacks and desks, but many\u2014if not most\u2014students will need guidance and incentives for maintenance.\u00a0 Teachers can aid in the success of their students\u2019 organizational pursuits by directly instructing students in organizational methods.\u00a0 Many students benefit from having a clear guide as to how to organize their binders, where to keep various kinds of papers, and from having frequent graded binder or backpack checks.\u00a0 Another way teachers can help students maintain organization is to allow them regularly scheduled times to clean out their backpacks and desks.\u00a0 Allowing students five to ten minutes of \u201cclean up\u201d time at the end of each day is a great way to help students keep their papers and learning items organized.\u00a0 In order to avoid lost papers, teachers should also give students ample time to place handouts and returned work in the proper place once they are passed out.\u00a0 There is nothing more frustrating for a student than to receive a paper or papers just before the bell rings, when there is not time to put it in its designated place in the binder before leaving for lunch, the next class period, or to go home.<\/p>\n It is also beneficial for teachers to give direct instruction in the OHIO principle itself, especially until it becomes habit.\u00a0 For example, the teacher can say, \u201cClass, I am handing out your math homework for the evening right now.\u00a0 I would like you to turn to the math homework section of your binders and place the assignment in the front of that section.\u00a0 Then record the assignment in your agenda.\u00a0 Once you have done so, lift your pencil so that I know you\u2019re finished.\u201d\u00a0 Teachers should look for visual confirmation that all students have, indeed, placed their papers in the proper place in their binders.\u00a0 After a few weeks of this kind of instruction, the OHIO principle will begin to become habit and students will begin automatically placing their papers in the proper place once they are handed out.<\/p>\n Teachers can also model the OHIO principle in their own actions.\u00a0 For example, when the teacher collects the previous night\u2019s math homework, she can say, \u201cThank you for submitting your homework on time.\u00a0 I am going to place this stack of work in my \u2018To Be Graded Bin\u2019 for math.\u00a0 When I am done grading them, I will place them in my \u2018Outgoing Box\u2019 and they will be filed in your student files by this month\u2019s class filers.<\/p>\n Organization doesn\u2019t come naturally for many people, however, with practice and consistent application of ideas such as the OHIO Principle, teachers and students can both make strides toward never losing a stray (or dare I say stack!) of papers again.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" How many minutes per year do you suppose you spend looking for something you know you had only days, hours or even minutes before?\u00a0 Students and teachers are both notorious for misplacing papers.\u00a0 Students lose their papers in disheveled desks … Continue reading