I am at a new school and grade-level this year. I just got a copy of the supply list that was sent home to parents and the first thing on the list is a 3 ring binder, 1 inch. Does anyone use 3 ring binders in their 3rd grade class? Do you send them back and forth between home and school or keep them in the classroom? How do you set it up? Looking for ideas!
We have a binder to keep everything organized. I LOVE it. It goes back and forth daily with the students. In the front pocket, they store any papers sent home from the school or notes to/from home. First thing in the rings is a binder pouch for storing bags of flashcards...we always have them studying a bag of flashcards related to science and social studies units, and math facts when we hit multiplication. We are semi-departmentalized with 2 teachers, so we use 5 tab dividers. This is what they contain: --Behavior & Progress: This tab is where they record their color from the behavior chart. The second sheet is for recording test grades from both classes. The sheet holds an entire six weeks worth of grades but it is signed weekly by the parent. --Miss X's Homework: my weekly homework packet --Miss X's Class Work: anything we are working on in class and do not finish, plus a Daily Writing Sheet my school requires all grade levels to do. --Miss Y's Homework: other teacher's weekly homework packet --Miss Y's Classwork: same as other class work section, but for different subjects Behind all of THAT, is a binder pocket (not a sheet protector, but a poly folder thingie that has 3 ring holes) that holds all graded/returned work from both of us teachers that students take home to parents. Students lose way less papers (and flashcards) and are more likely to do their homework since we started using the binders a few years ago.
I used binders when I taught third grade! I had them set up like this with dividers: - zipper pouch for pencils, erasers, and flashcards - daily behavior sheet and behavior expectations - weekly homework calendar - teacher contact info - list of spelling homework options - reading log - list of reading response homework options Anything that stayed in there permanently was in a sheet protector. Things that were taken in and out daily were not. It takes some time to train the students to punch holes in paper correctly and open/close the binder rings, but it was well worth it!
I've considered using them with my 3rd graders. I'm interested in using them as stated above, but I'm also planning on storing all "graded papers" for a quarter in a (separate) binder for each student. At the end of the quarter, I can remove the papers and staple them together for storage. I like the idea of this, because the kids can file their own graded papers each week.
Check with your teammates and see why it was put onto the list. They my have a use for it already and expect you to be consistent. Congrats on the new job. Welcome to 3rd!!!
Our supply lists are at least 8 years old and in need of major overhauls. On our third grade list, the parents are asked to provide colored binder dividers with pockets, but there is no binder on the list!
