First week: Getting Organized

Wow, what a great first week of school! I absolutely LOVE my job!! This was my first week as a school counselor, and it went surprisingly smooth! Yes, I'm feeling slightly overwhelmed, and I'm starting to think there is no way I can possibly get everything done that needs to be done, but I'm excited to see where this year will take me. I've met a good percentage of the students already, and have most of my classroom introduction meeting scheduled. There is quite a steep learning curve so far, like how to use the phone in my office that kept blinking at me and talking to me at random times... but I'm learning. The teachers and administrators are still being patient with me and for that I'm very thankful!

First Week Get-Organized MUST HAVES:

1. Weekly 15-minute increment calendar: I write down every appointment that I make, and everything that I do in my office when I'm not with students or parents. At the end of the week, all I have to do is glance back at my calendar to create a quick summary of my week. (As the school's first ever school counselor, it's extremely important that I prove that I'm worth the investment! I want to keep this school as long as I can!) My schedule notebook goes with me any time I leave the office.

2. Student Notebook: I have a large 3-ring binder that I keep all of my student data in. I have a sheet for EVERY student in the school, with tabs divided by grade. When I meet with the student, I write down brief notes about what was discussed, along with anything else that is relevant to the student. Attached to each grade level tab is a list of the students in the grade and their schedule.

3.Binder clips and index cards: After I found out that I got this job, I started making list after list, to the point that I needed a list OF my lists to keep track of my lists. I discovered that by using a stack of index cards, I can easily keep up with all of my lists and add to them as needed. I found that this was much easier for me to have all these lists on separate sheets that are binder-clipped together.

4. Sticky notes: Though they MUST be the Super Sticky notes, or else I will get too frustrated with them. (If you haven't tried the super sticky kinds, just try a pack. You'll be hooked.) They're great to write a quick reminder on when someone pops into the office with a question/request. I put the notes in my schedule-notebook that comes with me wherever I go in the building.

5. Dropbox: Since I'm only supposed to work 20 hours per week at school (Hahahaha!!), I will no doubt end up doing quite a bit at home to keep up. I am saving any document that I make in my drop box so that I can easily access it from school.

Things I'm still trying to get organized: (feel free to add your suggestions!)
1. College and Scholarship Information
2. Testing Information
3. Craft supplies (crayons, markers, beads, etc)