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How Do You Organize?

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Lesson Plan

How Do You Organize?

Students will learn and apply strategies to organize their physical and digital materials for assignments, using a personalized organizer template and demonstrating success via a clear rubric.

Organized materials and systems boost students’ executive function and working memory, helping them complete tasks more efficiently and independently.

Audience

5th Grade

Time

25 minutes

Approach

Model, practice, and self-assess organization strategies.

Materials

Prep

Prepare Materials

10 minutes

Step 1

Introduction & Discussion

5 minutes

  • Project the first slide from the Organization Strategies Slide Deck.
  • Ask students: “How do you keep your papers, folders, and digital files organized?”
  • Record their ideas on the whiteboard, clustering similar strategies (folders, color-coding, checklists).

Step 2

Modeling Organization Strategies

7 minutes

  • Advance through slides 2–5 of the Organization Strategies Slide Deck.
  • Think aloud as you set up a binder with dividers and color-coded tabs for subjects.
  • Demonstrate creating a digital folder structure on a sample device and show naming conventions.
  • Highlight why each step helps reduce forgetting and clutter.

Step 3

Guided Practice with Organizer Template

8 minutes

  • Distribute the My Organizer Template.
  • Guide students to:
    • List their subjects and materials needed for each.
    • Assign a folder or color to every subject.
    • Note where digital files will be saved.
  • Circulate and support as students fill in their templates.

Step 4

Self-Assessment via Rubric

3 minutes

  • Hand out the Organization & Material Management Rubric.
  • Review rubric criteria (e.g., “All materials labeled,” “Digital folders organized,” “Regular review plan”).
  • Students rate their own templates against the rubric, circling levels 1–4 for each criterion.

Step 5

Share & Reflect

2 minutes

  • Invite 2–3 volunteers to share one strategy they added to their organizer.
  • Emphasize how using these strategies on their next assignment can save time and reduce frustration.
  • Collect templates and rubrics for review and feedback.
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Slide Deck

Welcome to Organization Strategies!

Today we’ll learn simple ways to organize your physical and digital materials so you can work faster and stress less.

Welcome students and introduce today’s focus: keeping workspaces tidy and files in order. Ask: “How do you keep your papers, folders, and files organized?” Note a few answers on the board.

Why Organize?

• Saves you time
• Reduces stress
• Helps you find what you need
• Lets you focus on learning

Explain why organization matters. Share a brief story about losing an assignment and how being organized can prevent that.

Physical Organization: Binder Set-Up

• Use dividers for each subject
• Color-code your tabs
• Label every section clearly

Model setting up a binder. Think aloud: “I’m adding dividers for Math, Reading, Science. I’ll use blue tabs for Math and green for Science so I can find them fast.”

Binder Example

(Show a binder with dividers and colored tabs for different subjects.)

Show students an example binder (or projected image). Point out tab colors, labels, and how pages are grouped.

Digital Organization

• Create a main “School Work” folder
• Add sub-folders for each subject
• Use consistent naming

Switch to your device and demonstrate creating folders. Narrate each click: “I’m creating a main folder called ‘School Work’, then sub-folders for each subject.”

Naming Conventions

Examples:
• Math_2024-04-20_Homework.docx
• Reading_Summary_2024-04-20.pdf

On the projector, type out example file names. Emphasize date format and clear labels.

Guided Practice

Use your organizer template to:

  1. List your subjects
  2. Choose a color or folder for each
  3. Write where digital files will be saved

Distribute My Organizer Template. Guide students: list subjects, assign a color/folder, and note where digital files will go.

Self-Assessment

Use the rubric to rate yourself on:
• All materials labeled
• Digital folders organized
• Regular review plan

Hand out the Organization & Material Management Rubric. Review each criterion and model circling a level. Then let students self-assess.

Share & Reflect

Turn to a partner and share one strategy you’ll try this week.

Invite a few volunteers to share one new strategy from their template. Reinforce that these steps will make homework smoother. Collect templates and rubrics.

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Rubric

Organization & Material Management Rubric

Use this rubric to assess your success in organizing both physical and digital materials for assignments. Circle the level (1–4) that best describes your work for each criterion.

Criteria4 – Exemplary3 – Proficient2 – Developing1 – Beginning
Physical Materials LabelingAll materials are clearly labeled with subject, date, and title; color-coding is consistent across materials.Most materials are labeled with subject and date; minor inconsistencies in color-coding.Some materials labeled, but missing important details (date or title); color-coding incomplete.Materials are unlabeled or labels are unclear; no color-coding used.
Digital Folder OrganizationDigital folders follow a clear hierarchy; every file uses consistent naming conventions and is placed in the correct folder.Folders are mostly organized with consistent naming; only a few files are misplaced or misnamed.Folder structure exists but lacks a clear hierarchy; naming conventions are inconsistent.Files are scattered; naming is inconsistent; no clear folder structure.
Use of Organizer TemplateTemplate is fully completed: subjects listed, materials detailed, color/folder assigned, and digital file locations noted.Template is mostly complete but missing one component (e.g., digital location or color assignment).Template is partially complete; several fields are blank or unclear.Template is minimally completed or left blank.
Review & Maintenance PlanA clear, regular plan is in place to review and update materials (daily/weekly) with scheduled reminders or check-ins.A review plan is outlined but with vague schedule or no set reminders.Student acknowledges need to review materials but lacks a concrete plan or schedule.No plan for reviewing or maintaining organization.

Scoring Guide:

  • Total possible points: 16
  • Add up scores from each criterion for overall performance.

Reflect:

  • Which areas did you score highest?
  • Which area will you focus on improving?











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