How to Organize Your Locker in Middle School (Girls)

Buying Locker Supplies

Get hooks for your locker. If your locker does not have hooks, then purchase plastic hooks that you can stick on the walls. Use these hooks to hang your coat and gym bag.

Buy a locker shelf. A locker shelf is the most important way to get your locker organized. If there is no shelf built into your locker, then make sure to buy a plastic or metal one. If you don’t have a shelf you will end up just shoving all your stuff inside and have trouble finding what you need.

Use a magnetic caddy to keep your supplies organized. Getting a magnetic caddy is a great way to keep your school supplies in your locker organized. Stick your extra pencils, pens, sticky notes, and other small school supplies in the caddy.

Get a magnetic whiteboard and mirror for the inside of the door. Use the white board to keep your classes organized. You can use it to write down the assignments you need to do so you do not forget. You could also make your own if you want to using paper, and a clear plastic bag.

Get a small calendar to tape to the inside of the door. You can get a calendar of something you like and use it to mark important due dates and other events.

Decorate your locker. If your locker looks good, then you will be more likely to want to keep it clean and organized. Make your locker represent your personality and interests so people can see what you like when you open it. Tape wrapping paper or poster board to the inside of your locker to give it a background. Put pictures up in your locker of your friends, family, and pets. You can glue magnets onto small picture frames or just tape the photos. Stick decals on your locker. Make sure they are removable so you can take them off at the end of the year. EXPERT TIP Alicia Oglesby Alicia Oglesby Professional School Counselor Alicia Oglesby is a Professional School Counselor and the Director of School and College Counseling at Bishop McNamara High School outside of Washington DC. With over ten years of experience in counseling, Alicia specializes in academic advising, social-emotional skills, and career counseling. Alicia holds a BS in Psychology from Howard University and a Master’s in Clinical Counseling and Applied Psychology from Chestnut Hill College. She also studied Race and Mental Health at Virginia Tech. Alicia holds Professional School Counseling Certifications in both Washington DC and Pennsylvania. She has created a college counseling program in its entirety and developed five programs focused on application workshops, parent information workshops, essay writing collaborative, peer-reviewed application activities, and financial aid literacy events. Alicia Oglesby Alicia Oglesby Professional School Counselor Make your locker's design efficient and easy to use. Install shelf organizers inside lockers to neatly arrange books by subject, with personal touches like cool stickers and a mirror on the door to give the space some flair. Don’t forget to clear out trash and stray papers regularly so it doesn’t get messy.

Organizing Your School Work

Get a binder for your assignments. Instead of shoving your assignments into your locker, keep them in a binder with dividers organizing which class the assignments are for.

Write down your assignments in a planner. This will help you remember what you need to get done and you will be less likely to lose important assignments in your locker if you know when they are due.

Find a good time everyday to keep things organized. Whether it is at lunch, between class, or after school, find a good time to reorganize. Everyday make sure your assignments are in the correct place and your locker only contains the items that are supposed to be there. This will help prevent your locker from getting messy. Try getting in the habit of removing any loose papers and trash every Friday before the weekend.

Figuring Out What to Put in Your Locker

Put your textbooks upright in the order of your classes. If you have trouble being able to tell which book is for which class, you can label each book with a different colored label and the name of the class and period that you use the book.

Keep extra school supplies in your locker. Keeping extra paper and pencils in your locker will come in handy. Don’t stuff your locker with a ton of supplies, keep most of your supplies at home.

Create a locker emergency kit. Use a makeup bag or a pencil case to put important things you might need at school. There are many things you could put in your emergency kit such as: tampons and pads, hair ties, tissues, bobby pins, deodorant, a hairbrush, chap stick, Advil, perfume, gum, mints, cough drops, hand sanitizer, dry shampoo, makeup, a compact mirror, Tide to-go, band aids, lotion, tape, post it notes, and a travel toothbrush and tooth paste.

Put water and food in your locker. Having snacks such as granola bars and a water bottle in your locker will be useful when you get hungry and thirsty though out the day. Don’t put old opened food in your locker though. This will create mess and may attract bugs.