How To Work Around Paper and Copy Limits: Guest Post from Tom DeRosa

Teachers are used to working with limited resources, but few issues impact your daily instruction as much as limits on paper, the number of copies you can make, or both. In my career, I’ve dealt with all three. There were schools with strict copy quotas per teacher or department, overworked machines that broke down weekly, too few copiers for a large campus, or no direct access to copy machines at all.

At my first school, we had a part-time “copy person” who was the only one authorized to make copies. If you needed copies, you had to get them to her several days in advance at a minimum. On the other side of this issue is paper, which is subject to similar restrictions. Plus, if you have a printer in your classroom, paper seems to become even more scarce.

 As a teacher who always created a lot of custom materials and didn’t rely on textbooks, this was a source of endless frustration, as I’m sure it is for many others. Out of necessity, I developed a series of simple teacher hacks based around three principles: Learn how to use all of the copy machine’s features. Use The Three R’s. Make copies without a copier.

Learn How to Use All of the Copier’s Features

There’s a basic set of features almost every copier has that will limit your paper use and the number of copies you’ll make.

 Double-sided printing.

First, there’s no reason to ever print anything single-sided. Technophobic teachers don’t bother to figure out how to do this, which doubles the amount of paper used. Remember, you don’t need a two-sided original to make a two-sided copy either.

 Multiple pages per sheet.

Even if you use only the two pages per sheet conversion, you’ve just cut your paper use AND copies in half. Combine it with #1, and you can turn an eight page original into only 2 pages and 4 copies.

 Resizing.

 Sometimes fitting things onto a smaller number of pages is just a matter of scaling something down, which the copier can do for you. While you may use an extra copy or two to get the size you need, if you cut a page or two from your print job, the paper you save for your job adds up quickly. Sometimes you can actually fit a little more than the multiple pages per sheet function if you resize yourself. A regular 8.5″ by 11″ page reduced to 60-70% will often easily fit on half a page. Find the right number by noting what percent the copier uses when it does multiple pages per sheet for you, and increase the percentage a bit.

Scanning and emailing.

Newer copiers actually let you scan any document and email it yourself as a PDF. If this is available, you can eliminate the need for printing tons of extra copies for absent-minded students, or even yourself. Scan it, then print it on demand later.

The Three R’s

Reduce.

The easiest way to reduce copies is to print only a “class set” (enough copies for your largest class) to be reused throughout the day. If students work in pairs or groups, your class set will shrink even more. Generally, the larger the original document, the more you should lean towards the class set, even for tests. Remember, anything your students can write can be written on their own paper, including their

work if you require that. Once you remove spaces for answers from your handouts, whatever the subject may be, you’ve probably eliminated several pages from your original.

 If you have a printer in your classroom, whether school issued or your own, procuring ink can be an expensive and difficult task as well. Reduce the amount you use by printing in a low-ink mode (sometimes called draft, economy or fast mode), printing only specific pages, or utilizing a program like Green Print to eliminate anything you don’t want to print (like ads and menus from websites, for example).

Finally, ask yourself this question whenever you feel the urge to copy: “Do I really need to copy this?” If it’s a very short assignment, for example a handful of open-ended questions, is it really a big deal to put it on the overhead or board and have students copy it (or just answer it)? You don’t want your class to be known among students as the one where “all we do is get handouts”.

Reuse.

Reuse every single-sided paper that crosses your desk. You’ll likely get tons of these from school officials, but you’ll also have a surprising amount left over from things you print after you’re done with them. I kept a special box for these near my desk, because it has tons of uses: scratch paper for students (and me), printing non-official documents on my classroom printer, and as a canvas for cutting and pasting together the originals I would later copy for class. It’s amazing how much paper you go through for stuff you only need temporarily.

Obviously if you’re making class sets, you’ll be reusing copies throughout the day, but remember that you could save your class sets and reuse them in subsequent years or semesters to save even more.

Recycle.

Okay, so you won’t reduce the number of copies you make or paper you use by recycling, but you’ll send the message to your students that you’re trying to cut paper waste. Hopefully, they’ll do their best to follow your example.

Make Copies Without a Copy Machine

Your own classroom printer.

I’m a big proponent of having your own printer in the classroom, preferably a multifunction one that also scans and copies. They’re very affordable, and in a school with limitations and problem copy machines, it will make your life a lot easier. You can make single copies very quickly or print on demand from your computer. This saves you from emergency runs to the copier and doesn’t make a dent in your copy quota. If your school copier doesn’t have the scanning capabilities described above, this is your way of avoiding the copier altogether.

Have a home printer.

If having one in your classroom isn’t an option, you should absolutely have a multifunction printer at home. You can get a lot of prep done that might normally require a copier, if only to make one or two copies to create your originals. You can even print out class sets (using the low-ink setting of course) when time or access to the copier at school is an issue.

Scanning.

Finally, the ability to scan documents is completely necessary if you’re serious about cutting down both paper use and the number of copies you need to make.

Tom DeRosa lives and teaches in McAllen, Texas. The owner and author of TeachForever.Com, he has also written several pillar articles of note. Included are 52 Teachers – 52 Lessons, The Golden Girls’ Guide to Telling Great Stories (fantastic), and Why We Need to Change the Way We Teach Math.

Photo Credit: Teach Forever

Generate less trash in the cafeteria and learn new skills for a new ‘greener’ lifestyle

Walk into any school cafeteria after lunch and observe the bins and bins of trash the students create with little thought. With a little work and education, your school staff (or parent organization) can tackle this and generate less trash, as well as teach the students a valuable skill. Before making the changes, make sure the district or community has the facilities to support the changes. Bring in the right people from the community to make sure the effort made to collect things for recycling is rewarded with pick up! 1. Educate the students and change language they use. The first week of school, expectations need to be set up, they need to walk through and have changes explained and understand why they

Eight Simple Ways to Reduce Plastic in the Classroom

OK. We all know about the plastic bag dilemma. Additionally,  most of us are trying to use at least a few cleaning and personal care products that are less toxic. The recycling gig is also familiar to many. But when I recently read about the Pacific garbage patch (North Pacific gyre) on Beth Terry’s web site, Fake Plastic Fish, I found myself completely overwhelmed.

This thing is enormous, people. I’ve seen a fair bit in my lifetime. And I can honestly say it takes quite a bit to shock me, let alone bring me to my knees. When I started researching this phenomenon and saw just how enormous it was, I had to sit down and physically get control of my emotions. I felt physically ill. How can one person feel like what they do makes a difference? And yet, how can anyone sit and do nothing? Beth has done such an amazing job of providing inspiration and information to us. While I’m not sure I can get to her level overnight, she has made me think about what more I can do with my purchasing decisions. Schools generate an enormous amount of trash. When it comes to your classroom, how much of your room’s waste is plastic? Here are a few simple strategies to get you started. I’ll post more information and product reviews as I come across the resources. In the meantime, here we go:

1.Use a refillable tape dispenser.

This alone eliminates the casings the regular rolls come in. Yes, you still have the tape itself, but it’s a start that makes a significant waste reduction.

2.Create your classroom supplies list carefully.

Whether you hand your list out at the end of the year, or have it available for pickup in August, your list has the power to make a huge impact. Consider recommending refillable pens for intermediate grades, stainless steel pencil sharpeners and refillable stainless steel water bottles.

3.Buy your supplies in bulk, particularly things like liquid and powdered tempera, hand sanitizer, lotion, etc.

It’s difficult to find plastic free packaging on some of these things, but by purchasing in bulk you’ll have fewer containers to dispose of.

4.Be more conscious of the teacher supplies you purchase and use.

Your students look to you as a a strong example. Consider a non plastic lunch tote, or wire bins for supply storage.

5.Chalk.

Rather than go for the plastic packaged markers and white board for every single lesson, get back to basics with a blackboard and chalk. Bonus? It’s cheap.

6.Rubber stamps.

I think stickers are fun too, but some of them are enormous and not exactly made of paper. A fun stamp with colorful ink will still reinforce quality work in a way the kiddos can get excited about. They also make stamps to fit in the small squares on reinforcement charts.

7.Composition books.

When asking students to bring in several journals for various subjects, request that they skip the ones with plastic covers and go with the old fashioned paperboard bound composition books.

8.An eco bag fund raiser.

This’ll get the ball rolling, and now is a great time to do it . . . BEFORE everyone buys their kids plastic versions. The folks over at EcoBags.Com gave me the link to their Earth friendly fund raising program. I’ll be reviewing the product individually in the next few weeks right here on Lesson Mag. (So stay tuned.)

Got another classroom plastic reduction tip? Share your information in the comment section below. This post was written in support of the Green Moms carnival, which will be hosted on April 14th, 2009 over at Fake Plastic Fish. For other going green in the classroom information, check out our cloth bulletin board post, eco trash bag article and this post on affordable classroom transition strategies.

Photo Credit: Tourist on Earth

Eco Trash Bags for Classroom and School

Trying to fight the plastic bag dilemma? Still need to get your classroom trash to the curb? I recently came across a product that is as helpful for schools as it is for office and home. Read on.

The Perf Go Green company has tackled the issue of biodegradable trash bags in a way that won’t produce harmful gases during the breakdown. Made of recycled plastic, these bags are super sturdy and contain an additive that allows the products to break down into non toxic biomass within two years. No toxic fumes or byproducts are left behind. How cool is that?

The bags are bright green and are available in standard 13 gallon kitchen,  larger 30 gallon yard size (which is what we actually prefer for our kitchen trash), commercial trash bags for whole school use, and paint drop cloths for larger student projects. I’ve reviewed the product in depth over on my Wise Bread blog, but wanted to bring them to your attention here in the education arena.  They are available at various retail stores and at Amazon.

Because these bags are so affordable, they should be an easy sell to your school board, administration, PTO or steering committee. This product seems to be custom made for making a distance on a grand scale via use in institutions and municipalities. They also have food storage and cash register bags scheduled to come out some time in 2009.  If you’ve been looking for an alternative to toxic trash bags in the classroom, Perf Go Green may be just what you’re looking for.

Photo Credit: Amazon.Com

Want a Green Bulletin Board? Consider Cloth!

Cloth Bulletin Board

I don’t have to tell you how much paper consumption goes in to our yearly bulletin boards. I also don’t have to tell you just how tedious it is to get them ready and keep them rolling every year. Looking to save paper and a little bit of your precious time? Read on.

Cloth is a colorful, creative and eco friendly way to go when it comes to selecting a bulletin background. Bonus? You can reuse it year after year. Simply select a solid background color a bit larger than the cork surface of your board. Press or lightly steam the fabric, and staple tautly and smoothly to the bulletin. Using a sharp Exacto knife, trim the cloth to the edges of the board frame. If you’re super confident in your measuring skills, consider having it custom cut at the fabric store and skipping the aggravation of trimming altogether. You can do this with many different fabrics, including a dark colored cotton to ground the room, burlap for texture, or felt for additional use as an old fashioned flannel board. In addition to being the green way to go, cloth backgrounds have some other perks as well. A few of note?

• It’s fade resistant.
• Staple and tack holes disappear.
• If a substitute teacher does tape something to it, you won’t have tear marks staring you in the face and begging to be recovered.

 

Need some ideas for trim? Rope or braiding works great for an ocean or nautical theme, or visit a bulk discount fabric store for other trims such as flat, non fringed ethnic trims that are a bit wider, or thin belt fabric.

Got another idea for a great fabric bulletin board? Share it with us!

Photo Credit: Yaronimus Maximus

Green Teaching: Page Protectors to the Rescue

Wanting to do your ecological part in the classroom and needing to conserve supplies at the same time? Then maybe it’s time to give some serious consideration to repurposing the standard paper sheet protector.

Traditionally used for keeping black-line masters in good condition, portfolio assessment or corporate presentations, these little gems can help you save money, preparation time and yes, paper. Following are some ways to use them effectively in today’s classroom.

Read-aloud play preservation.

Big on readers’ theater in your program? Print them out, along with companion glossaries, and place the individual collated copies into color coordinated three-hole report covers. You know, the kind you can get at ten for a buck during the back to school sales? Not only can these be used year after year, but the covers will look great for performances in the park or your basic blue jean classroom theater production at open house night.

Streamlined activity sheet use.

Needing to limit photocopies and still really wanting to work in some vocabulary puzzles and small group math quizzes? Print out enough copies for your desired size of activity group (I prefer four-six students) and place each one in a plastic sheet protector. Use water based overhead markers or traditional grease pencils for students to work with. Correct together during group time and erase for the next group. Green. Cheap. Easy. Extra bonus? I dare say more than a few parents will thank you for limiting the nightly paper storm.

Center activities.

Got some printouts with answer keys for things like spelling word search puzzles, math facts, and science questions? Print out two-three sets of each and slide them back to back into sheet protectors. One side will show the blank activity page for students to work on, and the other will have the answers. Using the same strategy mentioned above of grease pencils and overhead markers, let children work together or independently on the sheets. They can correct their own work and practice skills throughout the week to get ready for quizzes and tests.

Organizing classroom communication.

Having a small three ring binder with a sheet protector for each student gives you a place to house all of those paper scrap notes from parents, notes from the nurse, etc. You never know when you are going to be called on to document a pattern or confirm your side of a miscommunication with a parent or administrator. If you end up not needing the info, just get rid of the file items at the end of the year. If you do need it however, you’ll have your proverbial ducks in a row.

Activity sheet protection for outdoor nature activities.

If you have a younger group who may find it challenging to constantly copy directions off the board, print out simple, easy to follow directions for the activity and put them in sheet protectors. Let them work individually, with a buddy or in a group to complete the activity without the page ending up in shreds. First grade educators, are you with me? With this strategy you get to have a successful day along with your students. This also works for maps when traveling or doing rainy day hikes with older PE students. It’s also one of my husband’s favorite travel tips for when we are on the road.

Instant Individual White Boards.

Love this idea! Wish I’d thought of it myself years ago. But I have to come clean. I actually found it when researching this post. Just use this link and scroll down until you see the activity titled “instant white boards”. Basically, in order for each student to have their own “white board”, you need enough smooth finish sheet protectors for each learner to have one, an equal number of sheets of 8 x 11 inch card stock, and erasable markers. To erase the kids can either use tissues, or their own recycled foot portion of an old athletic sock. I would think it might also be helpful to tape off the top open slot with horizontally placed scotch tape to keep it sealed. These are great for sentence dictation, math problems on the fly, daily language correction activities and more. To keep classroom management concerns at bay, consider collecting them after each group use, or having each student keep theirs in a 3-ring resource binder where such things are stored for quick hassle free classroom access.

Organizational support for those home and school binders.

While I never used these during my classroom years, I know of several colleagues who managed them effectively. Having a few included in each one for loose notes and routinely swapped communication documents can save you loads of follow up stress.

So that’s it, readers. My best efforts at using page protectors to streamline your classroom management and paper consumption issues. That being said, I know there are loads of talented educators out there with slamming ideas as well. Feel free to contribute any additional suggestions you might have in the comments section so we can all benefit from your expertise.

Flickr Photo Credit: TXD

Going Green in the Classroom: Affordable Ways to Make it Happen

As with life on the home front, finding ways to go green in the classroom without breaking your annual consumables budget can require a fair amount of ingenuity. Following are a few ideas to make it happen without breaking the bank.

Laminated reinforcement charts.

Teachers from pre-school through high school use these little beauties and they cost money every year. However, they don’t have to cost nearly as much if you can find a way to get by with one. Simply attach one to the inside of your classroom door or on the wall section of your choice. Laminate directly to the surface with smooth – surface clear contact paper. Use a grease pencil or erasable marker to check off the boxes by each student’s name when necessary. When the chart is full, erase and start over. Cheap and simple. Wa. Hoo. No stickers, no quarterly replacement cost, and the last time I checked, literally cheaper than dirt. High school teachers and educators of intermediate level grades with more than one class of students each year will find this an even bigger money saver. Picture one to two rows of wall laminated charts to keep you streamlined and on top of things all year long.

Egg carton scissor stand.

For an inexpensive and eco-friendly place to store your class set of student scissors, consider a pair of recycled cardboard egg cartons. Simply push each pair of children’s scissors (tips down) through an individual section of a carton. The individual sizes of safety scissors for the smaller grades will be easily supported by the depth of the cartons. I tried this when all of my metal scissor holders kept rusting during a multi-year teaching stint in Micronesia. It worked like a charm!

The tried and true construction paper scrap box.

It may be an age old classic, but the value of this classroom classic bears repeating. If you like to do puppet shows, collages, paper mosaics, file folder book jackets for student stories, or any other type of classroom project requiring small pieces of colored paper, these scrap collections come in super handy. A real teacher budget saver that helps save the environment as well.

Get back to the garden.

Consider using the natural world as a break from the traditional learning environment. Sketching buddy portraits outdoors, story time under the tree, exploring soil erosion with an outdoor science activity, etc. Learners of all ages can find inspiration in nature, and if it saves some classroom electricity in the meantime, isn’t that a good thing?

Explore eco friendly consumable products that come with coupons.

Think dish soap for washing up after student art projects, chlorine free tissues and paper towels, and for the older grades emergency tampons and pads for girls caught unaware for their first menstrual cycle.

Consider the incidentals.

By this I mean the things that easily integrate into your current classroom routine. For example, are you planning a field trip that could easily include another class from the same grade level? Why send the bus twice? Other ideas would be printing on both sides of the paper for student handouts, turning off the lights when not in the classroom, and switching from stickers to rubber stamp reinforcement.

This concludes what I hope will be just one of many posts on going green in the classroom. Got a super idea on the subject? I hope you’ll share.

Flickr Photo Credit: Woodley Wonder Works