• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Shop
  • Home
  • Blog
  • About
  • Amazon Favorites
  • My Account
  • Log Out

A Dab of Glue Will Do

Little Learners, Big Ideas

  • Literacy
  • Math
  • Science
  • Seasonal
  • Teacher Ideas
  • Membership
Home
  • SHOP
  • Blog
    • Literacy
    • Math
    • Science
    • Seasonal
    • Teacher Ideas
  • Membership
  • Amazon Favorites
  • About

PSPKK12

How to Organize Language Arts Materials

I'd love it if you shared!

466 shares
  • Facebook3
  • Twitter
  • Reddit

Let’s be real…when you are teaching language arts (especially with the littles) you have what seems like at least a million posters, word cards, worksheets, centers etc.

All of these things can quickly take over your classroom and make an absolute disaster of a mess. All this will do is drive you mad and make finding things for the following school year a next to impossible chore. Because of this, I wanted to come up with a way to organize language arts materials. This was definitely a process and evolved each year I taught, but by the end of my second year I had an organization game plan that helped keep me sane and prepared for the current school year and school years to follow.

It is nothing fancy by any means, but it worked wonders and I cannot recommend it enough.

A collection of language arts materials to organize

Simple Tips for How to Organize Your Language Arts Materials

I kept almost all of my language arts materials for each week of instruction in a labeled, large ziploc bag. I labeled the bag with the week number the material was being taught by using labels, but you can easily use a Sharpie. Here is a picture of my week 30 ELA bag.

This is what I found to work best for me to organize language arts materials and I hope that you can take something from it to help you better organize your materials.
You may also like: Literacy Stations
This is what I found to work best for me to organize language arts materials and I hope that you can take something from it to help you better organize your materials.

The contents of the bag are based simply on my schedule and what we did every single day.

Yours will look different than mine, but at least you can get an idea of how I organized it.

I kept the following things inside each week’s bag:

  • sight words
  • word families
  • morning work
  • sight word worksheets for mini-lessons
  • vocabulary words.

I used binder clips and plastic baggies to keep the sight word and word family cards organized and together.

This is what I found to work best for me to organize language arts materials and I hope that you can take something from it to help you better organize your materials.
You may also like: How to Display Student Work

For the school year I kept track of which sight words, word families, etc. were being taught on a word document and which week they were taught. This allowed me to know exactly what was in each bag at all times and which week it was taught, making it incredibly easy if I ever needed to find anything for the current school year or if anything changed the following year .

Here is an example of what my planner looked like.

This is what I found to work best for me to organize language arts materials and I hope that you can take something from it to help you better organize your materials.
You may also like: Behavior Punch Cards

Every Friday after school, I would grab the bag for the next week and get everything laid out and/or hung up. I would also get the materials from the previous week and place back in their bag. It took me minutes to prepare, which was so nice since I was typically exhausted from a busy week, but also wanted to be prepared for the week to come.

It does take some work to organize your language arts materials this way, but once you are done, it is great and completely worth the up front effort. I hope that you found this helpful and will be able to use some of the ideas for your own classroom.

Filed Under: Favorite Teacher Tools, Teacher Ideas Tagged With: Teacher Tools

You May Also Enjoy These Posts

12 pictures of science teaching tools

Reader Interactions

28 Comments

  1. Céline

    June 27, 2018 at 1:49 am

    Great tip ! Thanks !

    Reply to this comment
    • Jennifer

      August 14, 2018 at 3:11 pm

      You’re welcome!

      Reply to this comment
  2. Ashley

    June 18, 2019 at 8:39 am

    Thank you for sharing! I’ve struggled with finding a good organizational system for my K class. Have you shared your yearly planner? I’d love to see it and get some ideas with the themes and books you use in your classroom.
    Thanks again! Kindly, Ashley

    Reply to this comment
    • Jennifer Hamilton

      July 6, 2019 at 9:50 pm

      Hi there Ashley, I have not shared a yearly planner! That’s a great idea, something to think about. Thank you so much for your kind words, I hope this organization idea helps you out. It’s tough keeping all of our materiels organized.

      Reply to this comment
      • LeQuita

        January 2, 2021 at 10:09 am

        I would love to see a yearly planner, I always seem to have trouble organizing my weekly plans and I love how you did yours

        Reply to this comment
  3. Samantha

    February 29, 2020 at 7:05 am

    Are those regular gallon ziploc bags? I have tried using them to organize my centers and papers but they’re just a tad too tall to fit in the bag and the bag close to keep everything secure. Just curious if there’s something else out there I’m missing! Thank you for this post- organization is my passion but also my biggest struggle, especially at school!!

    Reply to this comment
  4. Julie

    June 7, 2020 at 5:51 am

    This was so helpful. Thank you so much. Your planner sample gave me a much better perspective as to how to cover each subject and how to get it all written in an organized way.

    Reply to this comment
  5. Lindsay

    July 19, 2020 at 7:22 pm

    I love this resource for how you organize your centers! Do you have a post or downloadable reference guide for all of your resources, table of contents, or how your organize all of your downloadable materials? If so, I would LOVE to see how!!! I’m a visual person & still enjoy having an actual paper copy ?. I appreciate ALL of your resources ?

    Reply to this comment
  6. Viki Thibodeau

    April 24, 2022 at 3:07 pm

    I’d must check with you here. Which isn’t something I usually do! I take pleasure in studying a submit that can make people think. Also, thanks for permitting me to remark!

    Reply to this comment

Trackbacks

  1. Classroom Organization Tips: Our Big Growing List! says:
    July 14, 2017 at 9:58 am

    […] Organize Language Arts materials. -Organizing all your student’s lessons for Language Arts doesn’t have to be a […]

    Reply to this comment
  2. How to Display Student Work - A Dab of Glue Will Do says:
    August 4, 2017 at 7:46 am

    […] you are done with the displays you can store the materials for next year or give the displays to your kids at the end of the school […]

    Reply to this comment
  3. Groundhog Day CVC Puzzles - A Dab of Glue Will Do says:
    January 27, 2019 at 11:34 pm

    […] and laminate it so you can use the center for future classes. Here’s how I like to keep my Language Arts materials organized throughout the […]

    Reply to this comment
  4. Valentine's Day Initial Sound Match-Up - A Dab of Glue Will Do says:
    February 12, 2019 at 1:51 am

    […] can see how I keep my Language Arts materials organized throughout the […]

    Reply to this comment
  5. St. Patrick's Day CVC Puzzles - A Dab of Glue Will Do says:
    March 11, 2019 at 2:39 pm

    […] on cardstock and laminate it so you can use it year after year. Here’s how I like to keep my Language Arts materials organized throughout the […]

    Reply to this comment
  6. Flowers Editable Sight Word Activity - says:
    April 5, 2019 at 4:29 am

    […] them before cutting them so you can easily use the flower activity for years to come. I keep my Language Arts materials organized like this throughout the […]

    Reply to this comment
  7. Flowers Ending Sound Match-Up Makes Learning Fun says:
    May 24, 2019 at 4:01 am

    […] can take a look at how I keep my Language Arts materials organized throughout the […]

    Reply to this comment
  8. Christmas Ending Sound Match-Up - A Dab of Glue Will Do says:
    August 31, 2019 at 7:18 am

    […] is how I like to keep my Language Arts materials organized throughout the […]

    Reply to this comment
  9. Snowman Ending Sound Match-Up - A Dab of Glue Will Do says:
    August 31, 2019 at 12:22 pm

    […] is how I like to keep my Language Arts materials organized throughout the […]

    Reply to this comment
  10. Snowman Middle Sound Match-Up - A Dab of Glue Will Do says:
    August 31, 2019 at 12:24 pm

    […] keep my Language Arts materials organized this way throughout the […]

    Reply to this comment
  11. Apple Alphabet Puzzles Freebie - A Dab of Glue Will Do says:
    March 11, 2020 at 11:42 am

    […] how I organize my language arts centers so I can easily find them and use them […]

    Reply to this comment
  12. Kite Addition Freebie - says:
    July 3, 2020 at 9:39 am

    […] on cardstock and laminate it so you can use it year after year. Here’s how I like to keep my Language Arts materials organized throughout the year and it will work for math centers […]

    Reply to this comment
  13. Christmas Match-Ups Bundle - says:
    October 16, 2020 at 5:02 pm

    […] how I organize my language arts and math centers so all the little pieces stay […]

    Reply to this comment
  14. Christmas Blends Match-Up - A Dab of Glue Will Do says:
    November 29, 2020 at 11:56 am

    […] how I keep my Language Arts materials organized throughout the […]

    Reply to this comment
  15. Snowman Rhyming Puzzles - A Dab of Glue Will Do says:
    January 17, 2021 at 8:27 am

    […] and laminate it so you can use the center year after year. Here are my tips for keeping my Language Arts materials organized throughout the […]

    Reply to this comment
  16. Snowman Editable Sight Word Activity - A Dab of Glue Will Do says:
    May 20, 2021 at 12:05 pm

    […] before cutting them so you can easily use it again year after year. This is how I keep my Language Arts materials organized throughout the […]

    Reply to this comment
  17. Snowman Blends Match-Up - A Dab of Glue Will Do says:
    May 20, 2021 at 1:20 pm

    […] a look at how I keep my Language Arts materials organized throughout the […]

    Reply to this comment
  18. Thanksgiving Pick and Color Printable - A Dab of Glue Will do says:
    November 10, 2021 at 3:07 pm

    […] how I organize my language arts centers so I can easily find them and use them […]

    Reply to this comment
  19. Watermelon Rhyming Freebie - says:
    February 24, 2022 at 9:15 pm

    […] on cardstock and laminate it so you can use it year after year. Here’s how I like to keep my Language Arts materials organized throughout the […]

    Reply to this comment

Leave a Comment Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

Grade Level Key

  • PS PreSchool
  • PK Pre-K
  • K Kindergarten
  • 1 First Grade
  • 2 Second Grade

Hello Friends!

I’m Jennifer…. I taught Kindergarten and 1st grade. At a Dab of Glue Will Do, we help busy teachers and their little learners by creating awesome classroom resources which makes teachers’ lives easier and encourages kids to love learning.

Meet the Team

Join the Club!

When you join the Dollar Teachers Club, you get access to all of the printable AND digital products we’ve ever made, all of our freebies, exclusive monthly resources made just for you, and lots more, all in ONE place. Save some money, some stress, and lots of time, and join the Dollar Teachers Club today!

Learn More

Do you like freebies?

A rhyming freebie just for you...

Words That Rhyme Sort

Download!

Words That Rhyme Sort

CAT and HAT? NET and BED?
Rhyming can be tricky! Grab this Words that Rhyme Sort freebie to help your students listen for rhyming pairs.

Sign up for one of these FREE email courses for more helpful tips!

Small Groups Email Course

Get Started

Small Groups Email Course

Digital Learning Email Course

Get Started

Digital Learning Email Course

Name Building Email Course

Get Started

Name Building Email Course

Differentiation Email Course

Get Started

Differentiation Email Course

Join us over on Facebook for conversation, tips, and teaching ideas for your little learners!

Join the Facebook Group

Must-Read Posts from the Blog

A black piece of construction paper with a ball of foil and a grey painted moon on the paper.
The letter L made out of salt on a paper with green liquid in a dropper being dropped on
3 cups on a table in the dark with glowing liquid inside

Copyright © 2023 A Dab of Glue Will Do •  All rights reserved  •  Privacy  •  Site Design by Emily White Designs

466 shares
  • 3