I've spent many years attempting to create my version of the perfect plan book. It is much more difficult than I ever anticipated. Three-ring binders just don't work well for me. I usually end up damaging the rings and losing papers. It gets to the point that I just quit using it. There has been a recent trend on TPT and TN of teachers creating their own teacher binder/planner/notebook pages. I have looked at so many of them and most do not suit the needs of a middle school science teacher. I'm sure other middle school science teachers have the same concerns. So I was thrilled to learn of the ARC System made by Staples. The notebooks are held together by a set of plastic discs instead of the typical three rings, or spiral binding. Now this isn't the only system that utilizes discs. Martha Stewart has her own line as well as other brands/stores. There just happens to be a Staples store in my hometown. With this system, I feel like I can completely customize my very own notebook. I have already started putting my notebook/planner together and I am pleased with what I've started. Will there be changes? Yes! The beauty of this system is that changes are allowed and are simple to do. This will definitely be a year-long project for me as I am constantly finding new material to add. I've created some pages myself while other resources have come from the amazing teacher authors from TPT and TB. Take a look at some of the pictures I have of the hole-puncher and notebook.
The "System" begins with the hole puncher...
Cost: $44
The Notebook...
This notebook costs around $10. There are several styles and sizes from which to choose and those prices will vary.
These are the pages that come in the ARC notebook. Refill packs are available or you can create your own. Just use the hole-puncher and place the pages around the discs.
This is an example of how you can set up calendar pages. I downloaded these for free from Marshall In The Middle on TPT.
Password Pages - I know it isn't safe to write down your passwords. But when you are forced to change your passwords every 60 days or so, and you can't reuse the password it becomes a task attempting to remember them all.
These are pages I created for note-taking during content areas meetings. At my school we have official content meeting once per week.
Weekly planning pages - I like to use these to have a quick glance at my week. Planning three weeks in advance becomes easier this way.
Parent Contact Logs - Just a quick log for documenting all those contacts.
NC Essential Standards for 8th Grade Science - A great way to have all your standards in one area.
File Folders - ARC does have dividers available to purchase. I decided to punch holes in some cute file folders I purchased for $1 at Wal-Mart.
This is it for now. I'll update the blog as I add more. I have soooo many ideas and can't wait to put it all together.
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