Are you looking for ways to organize your curriculum kit? Good idea! Your days are busy and the curriculum is designed to make your life as the educator simplier. Being prepared and organized is required. Let Experience Curriculum help you with some ideas for organizing your curriculum and prepping for the month.
Curriculum Boxes Have Arrived!
Your curriculum has arrived at your door. It’s exciting to open it up and see what’s new for the upcoming month of learning! But wait – you may want to have a plan in place before you get too far in. How will you organize all these materials? What’s the best way to prepare for the month? Should you laminate these resources? What do you do with all of it? Let’s talk!
Every Educator and Program is Unique
This is a disclaimer that we understand each educator’s style and program is unique. Everyone has different teaching philosophies, spaces, group sizes, facilities, resources, practices, needs, ideas and personalities. This post will provide ideas and suggestions, but please use what works for you. There is no one right or wrong way. That is a benefit of using our curriculum – it’s very flexible!
Wait, don’t open it all!
While it may be exciting and seem like a good idea to open everything at once, it’s probably not a good idea. The curriculum box is sent organized by day (preschool) or week (toddler). If you want to open each bag to take a look or prep the materials, cut open the top but keep the contents in each bag. It will be much easier to find what you need if you don’t pull it all out of the bags.
Ways to Organize Curriculum Materials
There are many options for organizing your curriculum and you will find a way that works best for your program. If you’re just getting started, we have some suggestions for you including the box method, file box with folders, 20 drawer cart method or the weekly basket system.
Box Method
This is the simpliest. Keep each bag in the box. Stand the bags upright in order. Cut off the tops so you can access the materials, but keep them all together. Pros – simple, inexpensive. Cons – no extra room for additional gathered supplies or props for Invitations to Create or Circle Time.
File Box or Crate Method
You can use a file box to organize your curriculum for the month. If you have a large center, you may need a large bin, or more than one or use a horizontal rolling file cart. Have a file for each day. Open the bag and put the materials in the folder. Prep materials as needed or desired (separating, cutting, laminating).
20 Drawer Cart Method
A 20 drawer cart works wonderful for the preschool curriculum. The photos below show using the cart for 8 children. If you have a larger center, you may need to use a cart with bigger drawers. For this system, open each bag and put the materials in a drawer. Cut, laminate or prep materials as desired. Put Teacher Guides and larger items that will not fit in the drawers (Pocket Cube, craft supplies) in a basket on the top.
Weekly Baskets Method
Prep for the week, by pulling a preschool bag for each day of the week and putting the materials into baskets labeled Mon-Fri. Or if you’re using Toddler, find the weekly bag and separate the materials into the basket for each day.
Gathering & Supply Lists
As you are organizing your materials for the week or the month, this is the perfect time to reference your Gathering List. Designate a specific place to collect or store the materials you’ll need for the activities for the day or week. READ Sourcing Materials for Your Early Childhood Program (coming soon)
Next Step: Organizing Your Monthly Lessons
Beyond organizing the physical materials, you will need to create a plan for your month. You may also want to create a monthly activity calendar.
READ Organizing Your Monthly Lessons and get ready to Set Up Your Circle Time Display
