34 Organizational Coaching
Definition
Modeling, teaching, and supporting strategies to aide memory and efficiency in recording, prioritizing, and completing day to day and long-term tasks.
In action
Provide explicit instruction, scaffolding, and intentional supports related to organizational skills rather than relying on incidental teaching.
Support Strategies
- Model organizational skills such as creating and adhering to a schedule by writing an agenda each day and reviewing it as a class
- Colour code and label shared supplies so students know where to find them independently
- Provide frequent feedback on the organization of students’ work, noting where they can add organizational elements such as headings and sub-headings
- Teach students about time management in specific contexts such as assessments, group work, etc.
- Provide students with the tools they need to stay organized independently, such as subject dividers for their binders
- Provide scaffolded instruction on organizational tasks such as recording assignments, taking notes, study tasks, or noting important dates from the course syllabus.
Case Study
Student: Grade 10 student in a history class
Content: Students are asked to take notes during a class discussion on the social, economic, and political context between 1929-45.
Problem: The student takes notes diligently throughout class, though doesn’t use headings to organize them
Solution: The teacher collects students’ notebooks every other week to provide feedback, and suggests that the student separate their notes by date, headings, and sub-headings. The teacher provides the student of an example of what this would look like, as well as with different coloured highlighters so they can distinguish between headings and sub-headings. The teacher checks in the student periodically over the term to gauge progress and provide support as needed.
Additional Resources
- Article on supporting students with organizational skills from Reading Rockets
- Organizational tips for supporting students with exceptionalities in general education classrooms from OTF
- Interactive study skills professional learning module (part 1) from IRIS
- Interactive study skills professional learning module (part 2) from IRIS
