I receive a lot of questions from new elementary teachers looking for classroom calendar ideas. They ask about what to include in their calendar area, what resources they should scoop up, what to consider when selecting a location in their classroom for their calendar time, and much more. It can
As the person running the classroom, you will need an organized space to do your work and easy access to the tools you need for tasks like grading papers, planning lessons, communicating with parents, etc. Not only is it important that you model good organization to your students, but it
The small group instruction area is where the magic happens. It is in those guided groups and 1:1 student lessons that those “lightbulb moments” happen. It is there that you will constantly be reminded of the reasons you love your job. You need to set up for success by designing
After you have your class meeting area, a small-group instruction area, your classroom library, any technology requiring outlets, and your teacher workspace in place, you can begin to determine where you will have your students sit. Typically, an elementary classroom comes furnished with all desks, all tables, or a combination
It doesn’t matter if you are a first year teacher wondering how to set up your classroom for the first day of school or a veteran teacher looking to be more systematic with how you set up your room, this post includes tips and ideas that you’ll find helpful including
In education there will always be trends and Pinterest certainly fuels that. The latest obsession with teachers everywhere is “flexible seating in the classroom”. But, is an alternative seating classroom best for every student or teacher? Flexible seating success completely depends on a few things. First, it depends on how
Before I share some pocket chart ideas that you can implement in your classroom, let’s go back in time. Several years ago I wrote a post about behavior management. As soon as I clicked submit, I started getting tons of emails asking about the black pocket chart that was in
Especially during the colder months, student backpacks, lunchboxes, coats, snow pants, gloves/mittens, hats, scarves, and winter boots are stuffed into the small space (lockers, cubbies, hooks, coat closets, etc.) you designated for their personal items. This space is an ideal location for germs, lice, and bedbugs. Yuck! Read below to
Because you are a classroom teacher, you know setting aside an area for student mail and parent communication is essential. You have lots of options on how to create this space. I know because I’ve tried them all. There are pros and cons to each. In this post, I’ll recommend
One of our goals as teachers is to help our students discover their love of writing. An effective tool to help us achieve this is a writing center. When creating a writing center, you want to designate a space that will allow you to make the tools needed for the
There are tons of commercially-made birthday charts out there. Typically, there is space for the teacher to write in the students’ names and record the blessed day on which they entered into the world. I’ve used them in the past, but wanted a classroom birthday display with more meaning to the children
Before I share tons of student work display ideas, let me tell you… I once loved creating bulletin boards. And by loved I mean LOVED. I would plan them in my head and tweak them until the reality matched the vision. At the risk of being institutionalized, I admit that
