ORGANIZATIONAL SKILLS Karen Baggot Student Support Service Provider Chicago Academy

Organizational Skills How will developing organizational skills now help in the future? College Job Collaboration Security Home Manage finances Budgeting money Leisure More time for relationships with others

Organizational Strategies Spatial – organizing your space to achieve maximum results Advantage: All you have to do is look at your space to prompt you to know what to do next. Informational – organizing information to achieve maximum results Advantage: A To-Do list allows you to see the details of what needs to be done.

Spatial Organization Stacking school books in your space in homework by the class schedule order, place writing supplies in the same place, etc. Arranging binders in your space for each class Employing one folder with clearly labeled folder Putting the book bags at the door the night before. Maintain a neat book bag Other useful devices: Electronic organizer (palm pilot, blackberry, etc) Using a Filing cabinet, bins, or filing systems in your space for old work or work in progress storage Desktop organizers

Informational Organizer Dry erase board a “To Do” list Informational Organization includes the use of: color-coding, three ring binders, matrices (tables), outline, hierarchical organizers, etc. For example, color-coding may be used to organize time management planners. Assign a different color for each subject area. The colors are then used to quickly distinguish different activities or pieces of information. Three ring binders may be used to sort printed information by subject heading. Again, it is personal preference as to how you prefer to organize. There are a variety of methods to choose from.

Completing Assignments Prioritize your assignments and complete the most important assignments first. Check off your assignments when you complete them Have an assignment folder for all completed work that you always have with you

Notetaking Take detailed notes in all classes Place new vocabulary words at the back of the notebook = creating a glossary at end. Write down the points that the teacher is stressing and mark them in some way Develop your own note-taking style and use it for all of your classes

Techniques to make notes helpful Use sticky notes to jot down thinking Each night, reread and highlight key terms and concepts Use a type of outline during note-taking or rewrite the information into an outline or graphic organizer to help reinforce concepts Use different colors of ink to highlight ideas

Benefits for being organized saving time spent on looking for misplaced items; thus being more efficient in the work place. Lower stress and frustration levels. Having strong organization skills help keep you in control at the work place. Once you have mastered the skill of being organized, you will find yourself feeling a sense of balance and composure. All you need to do is stick to the discipline. Keep in mind that organization is a personal thing. What is organized for one person may not seem very organized to another. It is important to develop organizational strategies that suit you and your child personally.