Tuesday, May 10, 2016

Cleaning House


“My hope is that all employees, teachers especially, will undertake a similar process - looking at old materials asking...
  • When was the last time I used this? Did it work then?
  • Does this align to the current curriculum?
  • Does this reflect the values of cultural proficiency?
  • Can I do this activity or present this resource digitally?
We all of us grow comfortable in our habits, routines, and familiar lessons.”

As it nears the end of the year, I think it is time to clean house. It is time to go through stuff and get rid of the things I no longer use. I am going to make 4 piles: Don’t fit, out of date, broken, sentimental.

Personal: I will go through my multitudes of clothing and if I haven’t worn it in the past year, I’m donating it to Goodwill. I have so many items that no longer fit me and will probably never will.

Professional: If my books are outdated, I’m going to pull them from the shelves. Travel books that are out of date need to go in order to make room for current books. Old lessons that are no longer relevant need to go also. Why in the world am I keeping this old stuff?

Broken: Anything broken that will not be repaired this year needs to be trashed or recycled. It needs to stop taking up room and making me feel guilty. I know that “someday” I might fix it but odds are, I won’t.

Sentimental: If it is sentimental but of no use, I will take a photo of it and upload it to my computer so I can keep a memory of it. (I still have things from students from 30 years ago!)

It is too easy to keep things because I’m comfortable where they are and I don’t want to change.

Do you need to clean house? What plan will you make to help you get organized? Please share.

No comments: