Bullet Journal for Teachers

Have you been bitten by the bullet journal bug?

Let me tell you, I have. And I have found that the bullet journal system is great for teachers.

If you haven’t heard about bullet journal before, take a look at this video from the bullet journal founder Ryder Carroll. He calls bullet journal “the analog system for the digital age” which is really a perfect description because, to my mind, bullet journal is the perfect complement to digital organization tools (don’t make me give up my iPhone calendar!) I use them both and they help me in different ways.

Here’s the difference.

My iPhone is great for …

jotting appointments down quickly on the spot
keeping my contacts organized
making sure I don’t forget appointments and meetings
satisfying my love for shiny new technology

My bullet journal is great for …

giving me an overview of my month / week / day
making me slow down and think about my tasks
keeping track of longterm goals
keeping all of my to-do lists in one place
integrating my family-, school-, personal-, blog- lives
making me practice my handwriting
satisfying my love for pretty notebooks, paper, pens and pencils

What I love most about the bullet journal system is that it is incredibly adaptable and I can make my calendar and to-do lists look exactly like I want them to. I can go crazy with beautiful handwriting and creative doodles, or I can keep it simple. I can journal, write down memories, list books I want to read, keep track of financial goals, create a cleaning schedule and make a list of big house projects.

Bullet Journal for Teachers

There are so many possibilities and the best part is that it is all in one place. If you want some ideas of what all of this might look like, fall down the rabbit hole that is my planning and journaling Pinterest board.

It took me some time to figure out how to make my bullet journal work best for me. So here are my best bullet journal for teachers tips.

Begin a new journal at the beginning of the school year.

My old journal wasn’t quite full, but there is something really special about starting with a fresh book at the beginning of the year. As August is winding down, I’m using up those pages for everything – doodles, gin rummy scoresheets, menu planning, grocery lists – everything.

Have an academic year calendar on your first page.

Remember that big picture overview that the bullet journal is so helpful with? This is an essential part of it. As I wrote out all of those dates, I started thinking about all of the things that will be happening then – what block I’ll be in, what festival will be coming up – writing all of this out by hand forces me to slow down and think about it all.

Put all of your monthly spreads at the beginning of the journal.

Most bullet journalers create a monthly spread in the book along the way, wherever it happens to fall. This didn’t work for me because I often need to look and make note of things that will happen months into the future. I also use both a monthly calendar and a list of the days to keep track of things. The calendar is good for things that spread over a number of days (like my block schedule or vacations), the list is good for appointments, birthdays, etc. Putting a tab on the current month is a good way to make it easy to check.

Make a weekly spread every Sunday.

The weekly spread is really the heart of my bullet journal. This is where I get really organized for the week ahead and get a feel for how it’s going to go. Here’s where I’d notice that I’ve got a faculty meeting that ends at 4, my daughter has a doctor’s appointment at 4:30 and my son’s weekly Magic game are all happening on Thursday. (Pizza for dinner!) It’s also the part of my journal that integrates all of the different parts of my life. I have sections for family, school, blog and other.

I consult my monthly spread when creating that weekly spread, so everything gets transferred over.

Every morning make a daily list.

I use my daily areas mostly for tracking my to-dos. I can’t tell you how productive this has made me! I don’t sort, organize or color-code those tasks, I just write them down and check them off when they’re done. While I was on vacation I took a break from those dailies and I honestly felt lost without them. I just knew I was forgetting all kinds of things!

My favorite bullet journal supplies.

Want more bullet journal inspiration? Here are some of my favorite sites.
* Tiny Ray of Sunshine
* Boho Berry
* The Lazy Genius Collective
* Bullet Journal Joy

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