A Teacher Planner From a Forgetful Teacher

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When it comes to life, I am the most forgetful person! I forget eeeeeverything. I write things down and forget to look at what I wrote. I’ve tried sooooo many different calendars and diaries, but nothing worked for me. After forgetting (for the fourth time!) that I was supposed to be presenting at the staff meeting, I decided that I needed to be more proactive about this problem. That’s when I created my own Teacher Planner (keep reading, I have a FREE copy to give to you at the end of this post!).

You see, for me, planners always have all those extra pages that I just never use. The page for notes? Not for me. The page for student contact details? Nope, our amazing admin team just print off a new one whenever the details change. I don’t know a single teacher who has time to be updating their handwritten details every time a student moves house!

Anyway, the Teacher Planner that I created was made specifically for me. Then I added a few extra pages that I know other teachers might like (remember that student contact details page I didn’t like?? That’s in there!). And, because I’m an old-school pen and paper kind of gal, this planner is totally printable. I only print the pages that I use, and then I place it all into a binder to keep it together. Easy peasy, instant Teacher Binder.

So what did I include in my 58-page ultimate-absolutely-perfect-for-me-binder?

Well, here’s the list of what’s included:

• Cover Page
• Inspirational Quote
• Yearly Overview (spread across two pages, two different options depending on what month you return to school)
• Monthly Planner (spread across two pages)
• Weekly Planner (spread across two pages)
• Daily Planer (one day per page)
• Curriculum Tracker
• Assessment Data Record Form
• Student Checklist
• Contact Details
• Parent Communication Log
• Anecdotal Notes Record
• Small Group Notes
• Guided Reading Notes
• Guided Math Notes
• Weekly Schedule
• Transport
• Birthdays
• Student Medical Needs
• Logins and Passwords
• Student Logins and Passwords
• Professional Development Log
• Parent Volunteers
• Back Cover Page

Still not convinced this Teacher Planner will work for you?

That’s totally fine! Remember how many different planners I tried before this one?! Keep reading to see how I actually use this planner to PLAN my lessons (and keep structure to my life!).

Yearly Overview
I use this double-page spread to record significant dates. I also use this to plan out the curriculum across the year. I’ll pencil in when I need to be teaching fractions, number sense, measurement, and everything else that teachers teach. And I do use pencil for this, because I know it will change throughout the year.

Monthly Planner
This is where I focus my yearly overview. So, if I’m teaching measurement for two weeks in May, I’ll break that concept down even further and identify what I’m teaching on each day. For example, during the first week I’ll focus on informal measurement, and in the second week I’ll focus on formal measurement. Then, on each day, I’ll jot down some key points that I need to cover.

Weekly Planner
I use this one a little differently. This is my reminders for the week. This is where I note any extra things that I need to be doing for each lesson – chase up books to support the lesson, make copies of pages for students, find those lost dice, etc. You might choose to use this section for your lesson planning too, that’s totally up to you. I prefer to use the Daily Planner because I can fit more detail into it. But, if you’re happy to ‘wing it’ a bit more than me, feel free to use this section for your planning!

Daily Planner
This is where I get much more detailed. I write my actual lesson plans on these pages. I record the steps we take throughout the lesson, make note of

Reflections
I’m gonna confess, I don’t often remember to use this one! When I do remember, I record my review of the lesson – what worked, what didn’t, what do I need to change for next time, etc.

Curriculum Tracker
This is a great page, and I use it so much with my planning. At the beginning of each month, I make a note of which curriculum areas I need to teach. I actually write the curriculum codes onto this page. Then I can fill in the dates and tick the box to show that I have introduced, reviewed, and assessed each one. There’s also room for notes at the bottom where I make note of any students who were absent that day and need a catch up lesson!

Assessment Data
I record pre- and post- assessment data here. Add your students names to the list and you’re ready to go!

Student Checklist
I use this to keep track of EVERYTHING! Homework, permission forms, assessments, and so on. Anything whole class that requires me to be aware of individual students is recorded here.

Contact Details
I personally don’t use this page but I’ve included it just in case you want it! Jot down all of the important contact details for your students so that you can quickly contact anyone you need to.

Parent Communication Log
This is a must-have page for anyone as forgetful as me! I record all communication I have with specific parents. It also helps me to remember who I need to follow up, and why.

Anecdotal Notes
For when you’re roaming the classroom offering support, you can also be observing and assessing using this page!

Small Group Notes, Guided Reading Notes & Guided Math Notes
I use these pages to keep track of all of the different groups – who is in them, what they’re working on, what the next step in their learning is, etc.

Weekly Schedule
This is handy to record your class schedule, the things that don’t change from week to week.

Transport
Not sure where your students are going once that final bell rings? Record it all on this page! There’s room to record how your students come to school, and how they go home. Simply write each name in the box next to the relevant mode of transport.

Birthdays
So this one is pretty self-explanatory, right?! Use it to record the dates of everyone’s birthday.

Student Medical Needs
I have a lot of students who need medications throughout the school day. While my school has a formal medication form that we have to sign after administering all medications, I also keep this form handy as it has all of the relevant information in one place

Logins and Passwords/Student Logins and Passwords
One page for you, and one for your students! Keep track of everyone’s log in details – no more “I can’t remember my password”.

Professional Development Log
I’m not sure about you, but I have to provide proof of my professional development.

Parent Volunteers
I am so incredibly blessed to have an abundance of parent helpers, all ready and willing to support our learning program. I keep track of them all, and their general availability, on this form.

This Teacher Planner has been a total game-changer for me, I feel so much more organized with my planning, and I’m not forgetting those important jobs. Now I’m out of excuses for this gulp presentation at the staff meeting!

Now, if you remember at the the beginning of this post, I did promise you a free copy of this amazing Teacher Planner. To claim your free copy, you just need to sign up to receive my email newsletter (which you can do in the box below!)

Once you’ve downloaded your FREE copy of this Teacher Planner, simply print it double sided, hole punch down the side, and pop the pages into a folder.

Is there anything you’d like to see added to this amazing Teacher Planner? Drop a comment below to let me know!