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Back to School Organization with Avery Products and FREE Binder Covers

Gearing up for back to school is hard work and it can be seriously stressful. Especially when papers are getting thrown your way all day long. I have a ton of forms, lists, procedural instructions, assessment paperwork and other important information that flows into my classroom for weeks! It all starts with staff meetings and professional development before school begins and it lasts throughout the entire school year. This year I vow to manage my classroom organization by taking control over every single important piece of paper. I will know exactly where each important piece of paper is filed for quick easy, and stress-free access at a moment’s notice. You can do the same with a little help from Avery products and some really cute FREE editable binder covers from yours truly.
This was a sponsored blog post. I received products and compensation from Avery. As always, this post reflects my 100% honest opinion. This post also contains affiliate links. I earn a small commission each time someone makes a purchase through one of my links, which helps to support the blog. 
FREE editable binder covers
When Avery contacted me this summer to share classroom organization tips and inspiration using their products, I was thrilled. You already know how obsessed I am with Avery labels. I also use their binders, dividers, and binder pockets for quick access to all my essential school documents. Avery generously sent a boatload of materials my way to get started and I went right to town!
My shipment included several different colors of Avery’s Clear Cover Durable View Binders. I like this binder style because they are durable enough to hold up in my kindergarten classroom. I also adore the bright colors!
FREE editable binder covers

Class Information Binder

Let’s begin with my “Class Information” binder. This binder is like my second bible. I have it with me at school each day and I carry it home every night. It contains all of my student contact information, schedules, parent volunteers, calling tree information, and so much more. Organizing this binder was my first priority.

This binder is essentially separated into two parts: school information and student information. I used Avery’s 11200 Style Edge Insertable Plastic Dividers. I flip through these pages often and I needed something durable that would hold up for a few year’s worth of flipping. I love these dividers because they are made of a lightweight translucent plastic. These will hold up much better than traditional paper dividers. I also love the rounded style of the divider labels and their beautiful bright colors.
Creating the labels for my dividers was easy with Avery Templates. I was able to design my labels with just a few clicks using their free, Mac-friendly online software.
 avery binder organization
The second part of my Class Information binder is dedicated to information about students. I send home a student questionnaire during the first week of school. This form contains parent contact information, allergies information, special family circumstances, and more. I separate this section of my binder by student using Avery’s 11129 Ready Index Durable Table of Contents Dividers. These numbered dividers are AWESOME. Like so many teachers, I assign a number to each of my students. That child’s information is stored below the corresponding numbered divider.
 avery 11129 table of contents dividers

FREE editable binder covers

Be Prepared for Extra Practice

When I notice that one student is struggling with a skill or concept that the rest of the class has mastered, I often assign that child extra practice as a homework assignment. The homework isn’t intended to be punitive and the last thing I want to do is bog down a struggling student with too much work. Often, these extra practice sheets are just a half page long so the student can gain some quick practice, then get back to enjoying childhood.
I keep all of these half sheets of paper organized using one of Avery’s Protect & Store mini binders. It is half the size of a regular binder (only 5.5×8.5″) and is the perfect way to store all of those pre-printed half sheets of paper for easy access to my extra practice pages and keep my classroom organization in check.
 avery mini binder
At my school, proper handwriting formation is a part of the curriculum. If I notice that a child routinely struggles with the same letter, I send home a half sheet of paper with a little extra practice. I go through many of these half sheets in a week, so I have them all prepped and stored in one of my Avery mini-binders. I used Avery’s 16180 Write-On Plastic Dividers to separate the binder by letter for quick access. Now if I see that a child needs to work on a certain letter, I can move the practice page out of my binder and into a child’s folder within a matter of seconds.
teacher tips to stay organized this school year

FREE editable binder covers

Easy Assessment Organization

Assessment is a big part of any teacher’s life. For Kindergarten teachers, assessments are what we do. I have a separate binder completely dedicated to my student assessments. I use a 1.5″ binder, but I usually have a small class (only ten students last year). Most teachers would probably need a 2″ or 3″ binder to hold all of their assessment materials.

In the front of my assessment binder, I once again used Avery’s 11129 Ready Index Durable Table of Contents Dividers to create a section for each student within the binder. The set goes up to 31, but I only use 11 of them since I have 11 students enrolled in my class this year.
avery dividers

Recording sheets for all of my assessments are included behind each students’ tab.

tips to stay organized this school year
The back of my binder contains the materials I use to assess my students. I print all of these materials on cardstock and laminate them so they last through frequent reuse. Avery’s 16179 Durable Write-On Plastic Dividers with Pockets were perfect for this task. The plastic pockets are durable and hold all of my materials. I can quickly pull them out without having to open and close the rings on my binder. Every minute counts when I am running assessments and I love how the convenient pockets make it easy to maintain my classroom organization.
free binder covers16
Are you looking to start your own assessment binder but don’t know where to begin?
Here are a few FREE resources from some of my favorite bloggers:
Mandy’s Dolch Pre-Primer Word Assessment Pack from A Special Kind of Class
Simply Kinder’s Monster Data Book
My assessment sheets are created around my school’s kindergarten report card. If you are looking to revamp your schools’ report card, this FREE report card template from DeeDee Wills is a great place to start.

Quick and Easy Access to School Forms

If your school is anything like mine, you probably have a form for EVERYTHING. I gathered copies of the forms I use most often and organized them into an entire binder dedicated to managing all of them.
FREE editable binder covers

For this classroom organization task, I used Avery’s 81824 Two Pocket Insertable Plastic Dividers. Master copies of each form were placed within the corresponding labeled pocket, and additional copies are stored behind the pocket. I never want to write on my last blank form. By placing master copies in the pockets, I can always be certain that I won’t use my master copy by mistake.

free binder covers17

Get Your Classroom Organized with Free Editable Binder Covers

Now that you have been treated to a little organizational inspiration, I’m sure you are eager to start organizing all of that paperwork in your classroom so you can start the new school year on the right foot. Get organized in style with my FREE Editable Binder Covers. This freebie includes all of the binder covers I used in my own classroom, coordinating spines, and an editable PowerPoint file. This allows you to design matching covers and spines for all of your classroom needs.

FREE binder covers and coordinating spines to get you organized for Back to School
Click the cover image below to download your FREE Binder Covers!
FREE binder covers and coordinating spines to get you organized for Back to School
FREE binder covers and coordinating spines to get you organized for Back to School
Which Avery products are your favorite to use in the classroom?

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Maria Gavin

Maria is a former kindergarten and first grade teacher, with 13 years of teaching experience. Her love and passion for all things early childhood is now fulfilled as a mom to two amazing kids. She loves sharing practical and creative tips and ideas that are perfect for young learners – in the classroom or at home!

Leave a Comment

90 Responses

  1. I love Avery Labels! I seriously cannot express how much my classroom depends on these labels. They take my classroom from basic to fabulous! I love creating and finding new ways to use the labels throughout my classroom as well as now my apartment!

  2. I love Avery labels. I use them all over my classroom. I really liked the dividers with the rounded tabs that you featured near the beginning of your post. I love that you can type them. Very cute and organized. I would expect nothing less. 🙂

  3. I’m definitely a binder girl–I love the bright colors and they help me stay organized! Thanks for providing your binder covers as a freebie!

  4. I too am trying to keep track of every little paper. I spent several weeks this summer organizing my tot purchases in 3 ring binders. I loved the dividers you used and I downloaded your free editable binder covers ( much cuter than the plain paper with sharpie writing!)

  5. I love the clear covered binders! I put pretty scrapbook paper behind my cover that help decorate the binders (and keep my 2 groups of kindies straight!)

  6. I love their address labels for labeling folders and journals. I love the bigger shipping labels for book labels and I use the labels to show how they are getting home the first few days of school.

  7. I am a label queen! I label everything in my classroom and send notes home using sticker labels all the time. It is my top wish list item every year! My firsties are well informed!!!

  8. I’m trying to figure out first-year classroom organization, and this post has given me some great ideas. Especially useful since those forms will start flowing in on Monday!

  9. Maria, We must be related, because I use the same colors you use, in my Speech room and love all of the bright colors. I also love that Avery offers such a variety of colors. (I just bought a few to organize paperwork for an intern I am supervising). I need to set up a few more for my other forms and information. Thank you for the opportunity to win!

  10. I’m trying something different this year. I use to write on all of my kids’ folders and notebooks, but I actually just got back from the store with about 3 different sized Avery labels. The 2 X 4 will be used in the homework folders on the inside (Return to school, Keep at home). The 3 1/3 X 4 will go on the outside of the folders and notebooks (subject … and maybe name). The 1 X 2 5/8 will go on their pencil boxes as name tags. I’m excited to see what the time difference will be! I usually spend a good 1/2 day handwriting all of these and my handwriting is not pretty! LOL

  11. I use avery labels for EVERYTHING for my students! I make a sheet for all of my kids and then label whatever I need to label, poetry notebook, crayon bag, folders, etc. I <3 Avery labels!

  12. Not sure if my comment went through. Our favorite is the dividers. I have a non verbal daughter with Autism and we use them to stick velcro on for her pecs cards for daily living, eating, hygiene and routines. Just about anything really. The bright colors make it easy to find different sections. LOVE them!

  13. Binders! I put all of my files into their binders this summer, SO EXCITED! And I use a ton of their labels (thrilled about my new reader response notebooks this year!).

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Hi, I'm Maria.

I’m a former kindergarten teacher turned work-from-home mom. I still love sharing ideas and resources to make teaching easier, so you can focus on what really matters in the classroom. When I’m not working on the blog, you’ll find me chasing kids around the house with a cold cup of coffee in my hand (some things never change even once you’re out of the classroom!)

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