The best of the best tips from Marie Kondo's second book, Spark Joy.
How to use the KonMari Organization Method to organize paper clutter in your home once and for all. Kondo's organizing method is straightforward and simple and will help you conquer your paper mess for good!
Swimming in a sea of paper? Use these tips to create a simple, sane storage system.
I love using Boomwhackers in my elementary music classes! Not only are they fun and accessible for even the youngest students to play, but they are a really helpful tool for exploring some key musical concepts that make them useful well into the upper grades. You can see some of my favorite ways to use them in class in this post, but today I'm kicking things off by addressing the most common setback for teachers: organizing and storing them so they're not a pile of plastic hot mess! If you don't have a good way of organizing Boomwhackers, they can quickly become a major problem. They're too large to fit into nice neat bins, especially the longer ones, and they topple over easily. If you search the internet for Boomwhacker storage ideas you'll come up with some great ideas: some of my favorites include this idea to use plastic shoe organizers, this idea using plastic bag storage containers, and this idea using cardboard magazine holders. But for me, I have found hanging them on the wall with this type of strong velcro very effective (and fun to look at)! I always get questions about my wall-hanging Boomwhackers when I share pictures of my classroom, so let me start by answering those frequently asked questions: Yes, they have held up well. I've had mine up for 6 years and have never replaced any velcro. No, the velcro does not affect the sound of the instrument. I tell students to hold the velcro side in their hand and strike the other side on the floor/hand/whatever they're using. The only time we can't do this is when we're using octavator caps, which don't fit over the velcro- then I just have them tap the velcro side and it still sounds fine. You want to make sure to put the soft side on the instruments and the scratchy side on the wall so that they can hold the velcro without getting scratched. Besides being aesthetically pleasing and keeping the instruments from being a hot mess, I like having them on the wall this way because I often use them with small groups and I like having each octave set separated so I can tell each group to get the ones they need from one row, and they can clearly see the notes next to each other in order when they refer to them for musical concepts like solfege, chord functionality, etc. I've seen many other teachers hang them on the wall with all the same notes next to each other, but I think having one of each note together makes it easier for the ways I use them most. It also makes it easier to get out one set to use in a center etc by taking all of the ones in one row rather than having to go through and collect one of each note. If I had all the chromatics and extended octaves (bass / treble) and such (which I don't), I would not keep them together with the others because I wouldn't want to confuse my students when they're using as a tool to understand a concept- I would store them in one of the other methods I mentioned above off to the side, and pull them out when we needed them for a specific activity. I hope this helps you get your Boomwhackers in order so that they can be more of an asset and less of a headache for your classroom! Next week I'll be sharing tons of ways I like to use them to meaningfully and effectively teach specific musical concepts, so stay tuned, and if you have your own favorite ways to use them in your lessons I'd love to hear about them in the comments below!
A collaborative blog by Pre K and Kindergarten specialists. Child growth and development, information, free printables.
Join me as I share 'My KonMari Journey', inspired by the best-seller book The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by organising enthusiast, Marie Kondo.
Let's create beautiful, organized spaces where you and your family can thrive!
I’m so excited to finally give you a craft room tour! Come peek inside my special place and see all of my organization projects and storage solutions. I didn’t always have a craft room. In fact, for the longest time, I simply crafted wherever I could find some free space. But about a year into...
Declutter your wardrobe for a more joyful 2019…
Find out how organizing guru Marie Kondo folds clothes, packs a suitcase, and more in her new book
Unlock the secrets to a clutter-free life with these insightful organization books. Find practical tips to simplify and declutter your space.
Homeownership comes with a lot of responsibility - and paperwork! Learn how to create a homeowner journal and get all these docs organized in one place.
Join me as I share 'My KonMari Journey', inspired by the best-seller book The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by organising enthusiast, Marie Kondo.
Interview: Marie Kondo, Japan’s superstar tidying guru, tells the Telegraph how Shintoism influenced her methods - and how life with a new baby has not dented her devotion to order
Find out how organizing guru Marie Kondo folds clothes, packs a suitcase, and more in her new book
After I bought Marie Kondo's book, I was surprised by some of the things her decluttering list. This post simplifies the list and has a free printable I can use at home!
You are not alone if you struggle with paper. Which is why we are making a home for every piece of paper in life! To help guide us a long the way we’re following the chapters in the ebook 10 Steps to Organized Paper by Lisa Woodruff. Lisa’s book clearly divides up the type of […]
Vocabulary/Word Analysis Graphic Organizers Product/Materials Preface: This is a simple, basic product and is just three pages. There are two graphic organizers and they are perfect for building student vocabulary because they cover various aspects of language, etymology, and semantics. The graphic organizer revolves around any given vocabulary word and allows space for: definition, synonyms, antonyms, variations, part of speech, an example sentence, prefix, root, suffix, and language of origin. There is also a modeled exemplar. Use the organizers for independent work, group work, assessment, homework, during shared and guided reading, book clubs and literature circles, read-alouds, etc. What you see is what you get. Enjoy! Please feel free to ask any questions— I will definitely respond to all inquiries in a timely fashion. Please, check out my other products and resources at my teacher store: SophistThoughts™ Hopefully my products will help strengthen your lessons, help your students learn, and make your life easier. Thank you and enjoy! —J.D. Whitaker {{Some images used are in the Public Domain}} Copyright © 2013 James D. Whitaker, SophistThoughts™ All rights reserved by author. Permission to copy for single classroom use only. Electronic distribution limited to single classroom use only. Not for public display.
SKETCH #63! Here's the latest addition to my Stampin’ Pretty Sketchbook! DON'T MISS THE PROJECT! Please check back on Thursday, March 9! I will share a project using this sketch as my i
The Konmari Method, Organizing and Tidying is such a great book to get you in the right mindset to finally get your home in order.
Ready to tame the digital photo chaos once and for all? Join the Digital Photo Organizing Challenge and have a collection of organized digital photos in 10 weeks
Organizing schoolwork at home is a breeze with this simple system! Keep your children's art projects and favorite school work organized quickly and easily.
The KonMari decluttering craze is hitting homes everywhere, and has many moms asking, “Does this spark joy?” with everything from old sweaters to memorabilia. I first learned about Marie Kondo's methods when I read The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up several years ago. I enjoyed the book, but I didn't put it into practice until […]
Use these tips from Marie Kondo's book, The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up, and your decluttered and organized kitchen will spark joy for you! Here's how I reorganized my kitchen following the KonMari process.
Links contained in this post and elsewhere on my website may include affiliate links. When you make a purchase through these links, I earn a commission at no additional cost to you. I only link to products and services that I love - and that I think you will love, too! I’ve been writing a […]
A simple system to tell you exactly when & how to organize your pictures. Get caught up on all devices with this step by step photo ...
An Easy Way To Backup and Organize Digital Photos so you don't lose any and can find the ones you need quickly and efficiently
Keep a house clean and tidy with these 11 daily habits. They are simple to follow and anyone can do them!
Interview: Marie Kondo, Japan’s superstar tidying guru, tells the Telegraph how Shintoism influenced her methods - and how life with a new baby has not dented her devotion to order
Mit diesem Kurs lernst du schnell zu zeichnen. Der Zeichenkurs beinhaltet Videos und ein eBook zu der Theorie. Zeichne noch heute los!
A quick and easy guide to digitized, organized, and backing up your family photos and videos on the cloud for safe keeping.
Download and print these knitting planner/crochet planner pages and get your fiber and supply stash organized!
Packing for a holiday, if you have limited room, can be tricky business. But there is a way to streamline the process. Here, tidying expert Marie Kondo reveals her best tips and tricks.
Is your yarn piled up and shoved in a box (like mine used to be!)? Or are you super organised and neat (like I’m trying to be!). I’m the furthest thing from “neat” that you…
If we are truly honest, a great deal of our time is spent on classroom management. I recently went into a classroom to do a faculty evaluation. I usually try to blend in and act like a student. I s…
Check out this post on 20 reasons to own less stuff and learn how you can benefit from not just decluttering but by owning fewer possessions.
Figuring out how to keep your makerspace organized can be a daunting task. Here's what I've learned about creating makerspace organization that works.
Welcome to part 2 of my KonMari summary. (Part 1 HERE if you haven't checked it out already!) I hope you will enjoy these illustrations and share this
Don't be overwhelmed! Learn how to organize digital photos with Amazon Photos. Even years of photos can be quickly and inexpensively stored and organized.
Lately when I post anywhere about organizing tons of people ask if I've read the book "The Life-Changing Book of Tidying Up: the Japanese Way of ...
Modern homes are not just about living rooms, the kitchen, bedrooms, the dining space, or the bathrooms. While they do constitute the bare minimum,
If they don't, there are several reasons for this. One is generational and the other is science based. Read the article and find out what to do so that your memories can be enjoyed for generations.
