Now that you have your file folder games all printed and assembled, what do you do with them? I will admit I have talked to plenty of people who really don't like file folder games. They're too basic, they only work on matching. File folder games really do have a good purpose for a lot of different skills. They add variety, independence, and structure to tasks. They help with generalization and yes, sometimes just help kids work on complete multiple easier tasks. To be able to provide that variety, you really need a large collection. My collection has gotten quite large and I don't even have all of my copies prepped yet.
As a resource teacher, I have file folders that range from everything from basic skills to behavior to multiplication and division. When I was teaching Early Childhood Special Education, I managed my collection through cardboard magazine holders. I would label them by skill and sort my games that way. This worked out well in that environment because I could grab my ABC or colors box when we were working on those skills and go. I had a teaching friend who used a similar system but color coded her boxes and folders to match to make it easier for her students to put them away themselves. Now that I teach a much broader age group, I had to rethink how I would store and use my file folder games.
When I moved schools this year, my classroom does not have a lot of storage, but did have two large file cabinets. I designated one of them to hold my file folder games. Each drawer has a different broader area like basic skills, literacy, and math. Originally, I tried to use hanging file folders to sort and store my games. This didn't work well because the sizing was off and they ended up just sitting in the bottom of the drawer. Not practical at all!
When this became a hassle and I realized I wasn't using my games as much, I started to look for a new solution. I found these IRIS Large Desktop File Holders on Amazon and they are perfect! They fit great in my file cabinets and hold my games upright so I can see the names and the pieces don't fall out if they come loose. I have two holders right now in each drawer. The front holder keeps games by skill and the second holds seasonal games. I think a third holder would fit if my collection grows to that size (which it probably will).
I organize within each holder by skill and am currently working on labels for each of the skills to use inside the holders. Click on the picture below to head to my TpT store to grab your own set of labels FREE! At the beginning of the day or a work session (depending on how I'm managing my time), I go, find the right category, and grab what I need.
I'm linking up with other Special Education Bloggers today! Make sure to check out all the amazing posts.
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About MeHi! My name is Kelsey & I am a Special Education Teacher in WI. I love what I do & love sharing new ideas & awesome materials. When I'm not teaching, I'm enjoying being a Mommy, cooking, & being outdoors. Archives
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