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Organize Your Life

Getting your school supplies, schedule, and personal space in order is easier than you think. And the payoff? Massive.

September 2024
Rachel Morris

POP QUIZ

1

Close your eyes and picture your bedroom. Do you know where your favorite shirt is? 

If you answered D: Don’t stress! Some people naturally create systems to keep track of their stuff. But for many people, organization is a skill they need to learn, just like riding a bike. Even if you’re a little (or more than a little) disorganized right now, you can learn techniques to keep your stuff where you want it, your schedule under control, and your life running smoothly. 


Being organized can help you get homework done on time, ace upcoming tests, and never show up late to practice again. It will also reduce a lot of the stress in your life and free up time for relaxing and having fun. Use the tips and tricks on these pages to up your organization game.
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1. Post your schedule everywhere

Stay on top of where you need to be during each period by printing out multiple copies of your class schedule. Then put a copy of your schedule in as many spots as possible. For example: 

  • In the protective front sleeve of each of your class binders
  • On the inside of your locker (a magnet works great!)
  • Attached to the zipper on the pocket of your backpack (get it laminated first)
  • Near your desk or study space at home 
  • As the photo on the lock screen of your phone

2. Give everything a home

You know that feeling when you can’t find your calculator for a math quiz? Or when your soccer cleats are playing hide-and-seek and you’re already late for the game? Here’s a quick fix: Give your stuff a home where it lives when you’re not using it.

You might keep your calculator in a math pouch along with your ruler, compass, and other geometry supplies. Or stash your cleats in a bin with all of your soccer gear. Now you’ll always find them when you need them.

Important note: This system only works if you return your stuff to its home when you’re done with it. At the end of that math quiz, put your calculator back in its pouch.

3. Get colorful

“The brain loves to organize around color,” says Anna Levy-Warren, the founder of a company that teaches teens organizational skills. Try coming up with a color for each subject (say, green for science). Use the same color-coding for your notebooks and binders (bio notes in a green notebook; bio homework in a green folder). This way, when you’re at your locker, you can look for the color green to quickly grab the supplies for that class.

4. Lean on labels

Even the most organized mind can forget what goes where, which is why labels are great. They’re like a personalized map of your school supplies, showing you exactly where everything belongs. 

Use a label maker or a strip of masking tape and a marker to add labels to, well, everything!

  • Locker organizer: Label the different shelves of your locker (“textbooks,” “notebooks + folders,” “personal stuff”) so that you can quickly drop off supplies between classes.
  • Homework helper: Label one section of your homework folder “completed assignments” and the other section “tonight’s homework” to keep track of what you need to work on.
  • Dresser makeover: Label your dresser drawers (“socks,” “T-shirts,” “pants”) to make putting away your laundry less of a chore. 

WHAT'S IN A NAME?

When it comes to labeling your digital files—a lot! Naming your files with the right amount of info will make them easy to find later. The key: Think about what you’d search for. So if you write an essay on To Kill a Mockingbird, for example, save it as “To Kill a Mockingbird essay,” instead of something too vague (“essay #3”) or too specific (“Significance of Boo Radley’s gifts essay”). The same goes for the subject line of important emails to teachers. You’ll have better luck finding your email later if the subject line is “question about the To Kill a Mockingbird essay” than if it’s something vague like “hi,” or “quick question for you.”

5. Use the “keep, stash, trash” system

Avoid paper pileups in your backpack or on your desk by organizing your work according to what you need now, what you’ll need later, and what you can get rid of.

  • Keep: This is the schoolwork that you’re currently using in class. Put it in your backpack so that it’s ready for class.
  • Stash: This is for schoolwork you will need later (to study for your final exam, perhaps). Keep these papers and notebooks in a box by your desk so that they don’t get lost or accidentally thrown away.
  • Trash: Toss out (or recycle) any schoolwork that you no longer need, like homework assignments from classes you won’t take again. 

6. Chunk out your planner

The next time you get an assignment like an essay, break it into parts based on what you have to do and how long you’ll need.

Monday: 5-6 p.m.
Outline the essay.

Tuesday: Study Hall
Write essay intro.

Wednesday: 4-5:30 p.m.
Finish the essay

Thursday: 5-5:15 p.m.
Spellcheck and make final tweaks.

Friday: 9:00 a.m.
English essay due!

7. Do p.m. prep work

Gearing up for the school day the night before instead of rushing to get ready in the morning makes life much less stressful. Each evening, prepare what you’ll need the next day. That way, you’ll be able to roll out of bed and move through your morning on autopilot. 

  • Lay out what you plan to wear.
  • Prep your breakfast, along with lunch or snacks if you bring them from home. (Keep these things in the fridge if they need to stay cold).
  • Put your backpack and any sports equipment or musical instruments by the front door.

QUIZ

1

True or false? There’s just one way to be organized.

False! Different systems work for different people. Choose the tips and techniques that help you stay on top of your schedule and responsibilities.
2

True or false? It’s possible to be too organized.

True! You can set yourself up for failure by creating too many complicated organization systems (for example, five different folders for each of your classes). If your systems require so much work you dread using them, or if they’re so complicated that you don’t use them at all, take it down a notch (try just one folder for each class). Experiment to find what works best for you!
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A System for Your Systems

It would be nice if once you organized your life, it stayed that way forever. Unfortunately, organization doesn’t work like that. To keep your systems in order, check them once a week. Use this checklist to make sure everything is working as it should:

Make sure all your supplies are where they should be.

Clear out any clutter that accumulated in your backpack through the week.

Review your schedule for the upcoming week and check that you don’t have any conflicts (for example, a movie date with a friend at the same time as your sister’s b-day party!).

Go through your homework assignments and upcoming quizzes and tests and double-check that you scheduled enough time to complete or study for each one.

Make note of any tasks you need to do in advance, like washing a shirt on Wednesday so it’s clean for Friday’s concert. 

Life Skills
Academic Success, Goal Setting

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