Are you frustrated when your students forget to turn in written assignments or they forget to write their names on their papers? I was always so annoyed when I started grading a stack of papers at home and discovered that I was missing work from several students. It was equally annoying to find papers in the stack that were not identified with a name. I’m sure you can relate!
But then I got smart and devised a simple organizational system that actually worked! I created several “paper drops,” which are nothing more than laminated brown envelopes with a student checklist attached to the front.
When I needed to collect written work, I labeled one of the checklists with the assignment title and placed the paper drop at the front of the room. I asked my students to drop their completed assignment into the envelope. At the end of the class period, I pulled out the papers and checked off the names of those who had turned in their work. It was easy to see whose work was missing, and I could also identify the owners of papers with no names right on the spot. When all work was accounted for, I placed the papers right back into the envelope so I could keep them together for grading later.
This organizational system worked so well that I wanted to share it with others. If you’d like to try it with your students, download the Paper Drop System system packet to learn more about how it works. I included a collection of ready-to-use Paper Drop printables and a blank checklist, too! Paper problem solved!
