Bullet Journals as Together Tools!

Nov 26, 2016

I’ve been watching with curiosity as the Bullet Journal trend explodes across my Instagram feed (seriously, try #bujo). I’m wondering how these “analog systems for the digital age” translate to a school environment.

Thankfully, I bumped into two dedicated Bullet Journalers, Karen and Amanda, during my recent travels. Amanda is a school leader opening a new high school in Houston, and Karen is an NYC elementary school teacher with 24 years of classroom experience.

Let’s open these up and look inside. We will start with Amanda’s Bullet Journal!

Amanda’s Weekly Worksheet

Amanda’s Later List

Amanda with her Bullet Journal

Bullet Journaling supports Amanda’s success – and her sanity:

“I have found it incredibly effective in tracking my To-Do’s through days, weeks and months. Actions, if not completed, are always moved to a different time; they never get lost. I also find the art of Bullet Journaling very calming!”

 

And here’s Karen’s Bullet Journal:

Karen’s Later List

Karen’s Weekly Worksheet

Each week is a two-page spread with a weekly snapshot on the left.  Karen’s headings are:

  • BS: before school
  • L: Lunch
  • Prep
  • AS: after school
  • PM: evening

 

 

Karen’s Daily Plan

Karen points out that you don’t have to spend a ton of money to get into Bullet Journaling. “I used a regular graph paper composition book, had a wire binding put on it, decorated it with scrapbook paper, and covered it with strips of packing tape.”

Amanda and Karen both report that while Bullet Journaling does take time, it’s no more than a regular Meeting with Myself. Amanda describes her process like this: “I review and move my actions, check in with my Priority Plan and Later List, and then build my Weekly Worksheet. I’m creating pages by hand, but I like that. I have a creator’s soul and this allows for some art and creativity to be meshed with the very technical task of time management.”

Both Amanda and Karen work in schools with very strong digital cultures. I applaud their choice of tools that work for themselves as individuals, while still using digital calendars to collaborate with peers.