Classroom Tour 2018-19

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Words)

Whew....to say I am EXHAUSTED is an understatement! I've been working in my classroom since the beginning of August, and believe it or not, I still have some last minute things to take care of! They are not going to get done before the first day of school, but I've just come to terms with it this year. It's mostly labeling and cleaning out of a few more things, but hey-everyone needs to draw the line SOMEWHERE!

My goal for my classroom this year was to streamline and simplify. I spent about three days cleaning out EVERY. SINGLE. CABINET. AND. DRAWER in my room and it felt so good!!! I decided I am no longer going to hang on to things I haven't used the past ten years. I have thrown out and donated literally carloads full of stuff these past few weeks. I was able to give most of my materials to fellow teachers at my school which made me feel even BETTER about purging it all! I still have my monthly themed boxes I keep above my cabinets to clean out, but I figure I can do that month by month instead of driving myself crazy trying to get it all done now.

I've been fortunate enough to be at my same school for the past 7 years and in my same classroom for the past 6, however, I always seem to spend weeks getting my room ready for back to school! The past few years I've been making changes to certain things like seating and storage, and now I'm REALLY anticipating next year I'll be ready in about three days. Who am I kidding, I'm sure I'll be burning the midnight oil yet again.

Usually our custodians will not move my big bookshelf and the shelves that make up my classroom library. This year EVERYTHING was moved! Part of me was in major panic mode, but on the plus side, it really was allowing me to start with a blank, yet messy, slate.

Here are some pictures of what my room looked like at the start of August.

I started by taking pretty much everything off the walls, boards, and bulletin boards. I really wanted a blank slate to start with to help me better visualize what I could do different this year.

I always tell people I do most of my "Room Decor" shopping at places like Hobby Lobby, Target, and Michaels. I really love having my room feel cozy instead of an Elementary School Classroom, if that makes sense! Of course, everything in my classroom is designed WITH my students in mind and is 100% kid friendly. I'm just not one to be into doing "themes" like Dr. Seuss, birds, or frogs! Not to say that isn't appropriate for children, it's just not really my thing. I totally get and respect if that's what other people are into, I've just found myself spending too much time and money on themes I got tired of in a year or two. I spend almost 10 hours a day within these four walls, so it needs to be a calming environment for both the children and myself included.

So, here's what I came up with this year...

Whew. Now do you see the reason for my exhaustion? I really am happy with how the changes I've made turned out. Like I said, it's not 100% finished yet, which is kinda making my eyes twitch, but I plan on getting those last little things finished within the first week of school!

I was able to host, along with several other teachers at my school, a Q&A session for new teachers to our county. One thing I said over and over was my classroom did NOT look like this my first year teaching. I was still trying to figure out TEACHING! I know as teachers we want everything to be perfect right away, but that's just not a reality.

Tip #1: Focus on one area of your classroom for this year. Make that wha you want, and then add to it the next year, and so on.

Tip #2: Use materials that won't go out of "style" or can be changed with different themes if you choose to do them! Choose things like solids and basic colors that can pair and go with anything you might want to change later down the road.

Tip #3: Spend money on the important things that will make a big difference! To me this includes bulletin board fabric, furniture/ storage pieces, and organization.

I've decided to really try to be organized and change out bins and containers that just weren't working anymore. One thing I am sooooo excited for is to not having to look at this hot mess anymore this year!

These are the original files I made when I FIRST started teaching! It seriously gave me anxiety to even open my filing cabinet. Something had to be done and it had to be done promptly!

I started reorganizing this mess waaaaay back in January. However, we missed a whole mess of days for snow, so all of our Teacher Workdays were taken away and used as student makeup days. Therefore, my reorganization project was just going to have to wait. I worked on it little by little towards the end of the year and again in August. I still have all my math files to go through, BUT now that I have everything set up and ready to go, it will be breeze (and give me motivation to get it done!).

New and Improved Organization Files!

Isn't it glorious!? Like seriously....so much less stressful when it comes to lesson planning and putting materials away!

I used the larger plastic storage containers from Michaels and the Thin Project Cases from Michaels as well. Only problem was when I bought allll the containers Michaels carried online AND in my local store. Instead of driving around to 20 different stores to get the rest of the containers I needed, trusty Amazon saved the day! I was able to get 10 containers for around $20. (However, as of right now Amazon has them listed as 10 for $45-eek.) I'll keep all of my "teacher books" in my filing cabinet divided into categories. I'll share a picture of that once I get it finished ~~hopefully~~ this week!

I made labels for each skill using sticker paper and placed them on the outside tab, which is what I did to label my Fairy Tale Unit as well!

I have all of my reading, math, science, and social studies materials in the thin cases, and my units (such as Wizard of Oz, Camping, Fables, Penguins, Literature Units, etc. .) in the large scrapbook cases. Using the thin cases also helped me to only keep the materials I actually USE instead of everything under the sun. Purge, baby, PURGE!!

I keep all of my task cards in the Craft Keeper containers from Michaels, but make sure you buy them when they're on sale!! I'd never pay $40 for a storage container!

Have I spent ~~a ton a bunch too much~~ some money on the storage containers? Yes. However, it will honestly save me TIME and MONEY in the long run and when you're a teacher you need as much of it as you can get!

Then, there's our Classroom LIBRARY!

Our classroom library is always one of the FIRST things I set up in my classroom. This is such an important space to my students and me. We spend so much time in here reading together as a class in whole group reading, during our afternoon chapter book read aloud, and also for Daily 5 centers. I could go on for DAYYYYYYS about our library, so I'll do another post about that later!

I purchased everything you see here at Hobby Lobby. I hung everything in my classroom using these hooks from Amazon. They pound into drywall and even CINDERBLOCK!!! They are uuuuuh-mazing! Get them- TRUST ME! They were around $8 for a pack of 48 and none of your "stuff" will be on the floor when you come back from Christmas break! Command hooks run about that price for 2 large hooks and they really don't work like they promise (at lease not for my painted cinderblock walls). These hooks are probably my favorite purchase this year-sad isn't it? My husband made fun of me for about three days for that statement. #DontHate

These buckets hold my post its, pens, and markers needed for my whole group instruction. I used a Mighty Hook for this guy because it was already in the wall from last year. :P I'll sit on the end of our bench seat during instruction, so I had to put it up high so my head wasn't hitting it every day, even though I'm sure that would hold my students' attention....

I love everything about this sign. I knew it had to go in our library because it's always my students' favorite spot in our classroom every year! I love the colors represented, too!

Tip #4: When you're shopping for your classroom, look for pieces you love and build your color scheme around that!

This will hold our chapter book read aloud as well as our picture book for the day (I always use a picture book to teach my whole group lesson). A wonderful friend of mine adds a photo of the cover of their book of the day to a clothesline. I'm really wanting to incorporate that somehow this year-I think my kids would LOVE seeing all the books we've read together. I added a piece of scrapbook paper to the front just to spruce it up a bit!

This is where I'll keep our monthly/ weekly themed books. The children are permitted to read them, they just aren't able to put them in their own personal book boxes. They can read these books as a fast finish activity or at the end of the day.

Of course we have to have our READING BUDDIES! Looks like these guys were shown some love at Back to School Night...

My labor of love this year! I have wanted a bench seat in my classroom since FOREVER!!! I really needed additional storage for the books I didn't want my students to use/ have in their book boxes, so this year was the perfect time to add this bench to our library!

Let me remind you what this space looked like in the past...

Not bad, but I love the additional storage and how bright this space turned out!

I added fabric to the wall and shiplap border from Schoolgirl Style to frame it out (a bit hard to see in the picture). I made the bench using a board from Lowes, padding from Michaels, and covered it with the same fabric as I put on the wall (to cover up the awful splotches on the wall) from Hobby Lobby.

Before...After...Grade level bunting found here for grades 1-5!

Yes, that is quadruple border. I did this bulletin board about 4 different times this summer! I couldn't seem to get it right!

The students' book boxes are underneath, while my books will be housed in the black bins in the bookcase to the left. My students will be using ice cube bins this year for their book boxes. I got them from Walmart for less than $2/piece! I spent so much money on primary colored boxes from Really Good Stuff, but they weren't working with my streamline color scheme anymore. Luckily I was able to sell them (even if it was for a fraction of what I paid for them), at least they weren't going to waste!

My black book bins were purchased from the Target Dollar Spot ONLINE!! Woot-woot, how ~~dangerous~~ awesome is that?!! I'm really pleased with these bins! I was surprised at how deep and sturdy they were for the price. I just need to make labels for those too.... :/ The black bins will hold the books I do not want housed with the same books in our classroom library. These are the books I will read to the students throughout the school year, as well as some of my unit and seasonal books.

This tree has been sitting in my storage space for two years and has never been used. I purchased it at TJ Maxx as a Christmas decoration. It's supposed to light up, but was missing the plug so I got it for less than $10 if I can remember right. My husband and I took our first trip to the Biltmore a few years ago and while we were there, he bought me the most beautiful Wizard of Oz ornaments made from pages of the actual novel! I tried to find a space for them in my office at home, but wasn't having much luck. I put two and two together and it made for the perfect display in our classroom library! The poster was a gift from a parent a few years ago when we had our Wizard of Oz day celebration. How sweet was that?! It was framed and everything!

Love these so much <3

My sister brought me this rickety old ladder when she came to visit me a while back. With a little spray paint and some cleaning, I used it to house my whole group materials last year by hanging some buckets from Target.

I still wanted to incorporate this ladder, soooooo I had my sweetie pie husband chop off the bottom half for me. I hung it on the wall using mighty hooks and zip ties. I used rings from Staples to hang the magazines from each rung. I love how it turned out! *In the past to hang our magazines, I've used tension rods, command hooks, and shower clip rings. It worked great, too!

I purchased ALLLLLL new bins for my classroom library books from the Container Store. If you haven't been to that place, oh boy are you missing out! OCD overload and I loved it! I used some regular sized shoe boxes for our chapter books and leveled readers, and the tall shoe boxes for our picture books. In the past I've used the baskets from Really Good Stuff, but I love these clear ones so much better! They are super sturdy and can hold a TON of books! *I'll post about how I level my books in my library post soon. I ordered them in bulk, which helped to save some money. I also bought them during one of their "POP! Sales," which saved me an extra 15%!

Gallery Wall- this is another favorite spot of mine in our classroom!

Before...

After!

I got most of these frames at the Dollar Store and the prints and other pictures from Hobby Lobby. I've always used Command Hooks on this wall, since I didn't know such magical hooks existed as I discussed above. By the end of the year every year, I think there has been one or two pictures left hanging. NOT THIS YEAR! Every ONE of these bad boys will stay in place. Way too excited about that. Also, can you believe that tapestry came from Walmart?! I was there yesterday morning picking up some last minute school supplies and saw it out of the corner of my eye. It's so cute and was less than $15.

This are my students' "Supply Boxes." I looooove this piece of furniture. I was lucky enough to get it through a Donor's Choose project I did a few years ago (came from Amazon). Since my students don't have desks, they needed a place to store their belongings. This is where they keep extra pencils, dry erase markers, glue, crayons, etc. I don't do community supplies in my classroom, so these bins are just the thing for housing their extra supplies.

One of my students made this for me about 8 years ago-I love it so much and I think of her each time I look at it. <3

Box Tops Box made from a Cascade container-Free Label found here in my TPT store.

A friend of mine's daughter drew this for me when she was 10 years old! She wants to be an illustrator for Disney some day and I'm 99.9% sure we'll be seeing her name at the end of movie credits for the one day.

I've had this Turn in Pocket Chart for going on 11 years now and it's in amazing condition! This is where my students turn in their completed work for me to check each day. I highly suggest snagging one of these for your classroom if you don't have one already. Takes up minimal space and provides time saving organization (everything is already in order for collecting, grading, and redistributing).

Vinyl spot markers I place on the floor for my student job spots. You can use a paper label, too! Classroom Management MUST!

Classroom Behavior Chart-I change these out seasonally to keep my students motivated! I use it in conjunction with Class Dojo. You can read more about my classroom rewards here.

Classroom jobs can be found here.Free heading label HERE!

I used the Write on-Wipe off plastic sleeves from Target to house my fast finish activities. I change these out every so often to keep my students' interests in checking out what's going on over there!

Our Writing Center Before...

After!

I really became obsessed with Schoolgirl Style's shiplap border!! I think I went through 8 pack this year! I may or MAY NOT be kidding about that...

I had only anticipated doing one area of shiplap to section off our writing center, but I loved it so much I HAD to do the rest of this wall and I do not regret it one bit!

Punctuation People set found HERE!

These drawers will hold all of our Work on Writing supplies. You guessed it, labels need to be made for these too... UGH-I'll be up to my ears in labels next week!

These purple stools are called, "Wobble T Stools," and they are to be turned upside down (curved side will now be on the carpet square), and students use their belly muscles to balance. Some of them just sit on the rounded part, which seems to work well for them, too!

Succulent Writing Reminders set found HERE!

Work with Words center bins. I love storing each activity in it's own bin. Makes for incredibly easy storage and clean up. The bins are from Walmart and I switch the activities out every few weeks to keep my students' interested. My students have a MUST DO for Work on Writing, Work with Words, and Seat Work. Their Work with Words Must Do is always something from my Solve and Sort pack. It cuts down on having to explain a new activity every week (time and sanity saver).

You can find the Language and Math Bundle here!

I love our iPad Storage! This unit was purchased from Amazon a few Prime Day's ago and was designed for paper organization I believe. This would also be a great piece for student mailboxes. It works great for housing our classroom iPads.

iPad Wallpapers found here

I've added a vinyl, "STOP," to the floor tile where students start the line to collect their iPad.

Crayon Toolbox-yet another time saver! These are available for students to use in the event of a classroom activity where they need a certain color crayon, but can't seem to find one. Once they use a crayon from here they must return it.

Crayon Toolbox labels can be found here!

Front Whiteboard Before...

...After!

This is where our weekly anchor charts and I Can statements will be displayed.

Anchor Chart Set found HERE.

Anchor Chart bunting found HERE.

Second Grade, "I Can..." Statements found HERE.

Old chairs......made New!

My parents were redoing their basement a few years ago and were getting rid of these awesome chairs. They were too nice to NOT have them as a part of my classroom! My sweet dad drove them 500 miles to their new home <3. This year I decided to slipcover them with slipcovers from Target. My kids have LOOOOVED reading in this chairs and honestly I don't blame them. ;)

Pillow from Walmart (online).

Noise Level Cards found here!

Smiley and Frowny Points from Whole Brain Teaching! My favorite classroom management tool ever!! When students are doing something positive as a class-they receive a Smiley Point and shout, "Oh Yeah!" as you record the tally. Once they reach 5 tallies, they get to do a Just Dance via Youtube as a class brain break. If they are doing something they shouldn't, they receive a frowny point and shout, "Awww, MAN!" as you record the tally. Once they receive five, it results in a 5 minute loss of recess or free time. I change this out throughout the year with other Emoji icons.

"What Do I Do?!" Cards can be found here!

Sanity saver for you and your students. I put magnets on the back of these cards and keep them in this cute magnetic storage pocket from my local teacher store.

Brag Tag Display board. I talk all things Brag Tags HERE.

^^^^^ Last year's display above ^^^^^

Math Center Baskets. I'm not crazy about keeping them on the floor, but it will do for now. Baskets are from Target.

Calendar Hub before...

After!

...and yes, I mitered all of my corners of my borders of every bulletin board.

Schedule cards found here!

Calendar can be found HERE

*I'm obsessed with it! :D :D D I used push pins from Target to give it some dimension.

Specials Cards coming soon!

Fabric is from Hobby Lobby (also obsessed). I snagged the Pom Pom string in the summer time from Hobby Lobby, too on clearance for $17. Seriously, how cute is that?!

This bucket holds some pointers the students can use if they need assistance with the Smartboard. Sometimes they can't reach or their finger won't register, so using these pointers helps eliminate the Smartboard Finger Stress!

Love this Walt Disney quote-describes me perfectly! #NeverGrowUp

Front of my "Smartboard Desk." Blah...

After!

A little stitch tape and hot glue makes everything better.

Student "Smart Snack," containers are from The Container Store.

Storage for weekly/ daily plans and future planning materials. Cart is from Michaels. I used vinyl to make the labels and Magnolia Sky font (one of my favorites!)

I need a lot of STUFF to get through the day apparently...:P One of them is an essential oil diffuser.

This "mat" is my guide for the document camera. Also makes for a beautiful wallpaper if you forget to turn off the document camera-HA! I used a sheet of scrapbook paper and hot glued some cute clothespins to my table to hold it steady. Also makes it easy to change out for seasonal paper, too!

My supply HUB.

Science/ Social Studies magazines, copy basket, weekly/ daily homework, labels, and everything else under the sun is stored here!

Ahhh...the beauty. <3 :P

Student computers.

Storage box for usernames and passwords. I used 2 containers and purchased them from Hobby Lobby.

Student Mailboxes. I've had these stackable shelves since I started teaching! Cheaper alternative to the Sterlite storage containers.

Stackable baskets from the Container Store. Blush color-in love!

Weekly Work Folder set found HERE

Unfinished work area. I add plastic envelopes for students to keep all of their unfinished work pieces in. I purchased these metals frames from Amazon a few years ago.

I don't allow my students to keep their water bottles on their tables, simply for space reasons, but we do keep them out on the counter instead and they can get a drink whenever they need to. I hated seeing water rings on the counter top every day! This weekend's job will be to make coasters out of felt, which you can find at any craft store for fairly inexpensive. Students will get one each day as needed to help prevent the water ring and leaky water bottle MESS!

My sweetie's from last year with our favorite Mystery Readers. <3 Plant is from TJ Maxx.

This is our PBIS Matrix we are required to have displayed in our classrooms. I framed it out using wood-themed border from my teacher store (I cannot remember the brand of border though!). Such an easy way to make boring posters stand out.

Yup...you guessed it. I used those magic hooks to hang my Brag Tag board on the wall!

Turn one hook upside down...

...hang the other on the wall...

PRESTO!

No more resting on the counter top-

Add some border and you have a beautiful display for your Brag Tags!

Friday Notebooks-reaaaallllly going to try to implement these again this year. Students write a note to their families about things they've learned in school this week, their favorite memory, what they'd like to do differently next week, etc. Parents respond with a note back to their child over the weekend. I've done this a few years ago and the students and families really enjoyed it. It's not a requirement for parents to write a note back, but if they do, I allow my little ones to add a sparkly sticker to the front of their notebook.

FREEBIE Friday Notebook Label found here

Another storage HUB. This is where I keep task cards, PEP documents, phonics binders, extra Daily Five charts, etc.

White shelf was purchased from the Container Store and white baskets from Big Lots.

Frames are from the Dollar Store and hung with magic hooks :)

Tip #5: Add a tray under your pencil sharpener to keep your pencil shavings that escape in one spot. Much easier to clean and empty.

LOOOVE this cozy reading spot. <3

I hate seeing the backs of bookcases so I cover them with poster paper!

CAFE board.

Couldn't wait to use my POM POMs again!

I use cute little clothespins from Michaels to display the strategy cards for each of my reading groups, since not all of my students are working on the same strategies at the same time. Using clothespins makes for an easy and time saving way to swap out strategy cards.

Once again...hated seeing the backs of student bookcases.

I used poster board from Hobby Lobby that was about $1.99/ piece and two pieces of shiplap border from Schoolgirl Style.

Then...

Now!Tip #6: Use duct tape to mark off where something should be kept in your classroom. I've done this for our Bungee Chairs and it really helps with keeping everything in the right place in our classroom.

And of course, we have our Desk Fairy Door.

I use a cloth hamper from Amazon to hold our Yoga seats for flexible seating. These cushions can be used anytime during independent work for students to sit on around the classroom. I'm hiding it behind one of our arm chairs this year!

So there's a little glimpse into our classroom! I can't wait to get my last little bits of odds and ends finished up. Starting out the year without anything on your To Do list makes for a smooth year ahead. Your head is clear so you can focus on all the things you need to do once school starts, which is about 5,001 things!

I hope you all have an amazing school year! Always remember, "They may not remember what you've taught, but they will ALWAYS remember how you made them feel."

Thank you for visiting! Have a great week!