We can always use more supplies! Here's 25 must-have teaching supplies for the elementary classroom to help you stock up on the things you...
Whether it's organization or planning and preparation, there are certain things every teacher needs to make your day-to-day teaching life so much easier!
Whether it's organization or planning and preparation, there are certain things every teacher needs to make your day-to-day teaching life so much easier!
Looking to change up your theme, and want a bright and colorful classroom? Choose one or mix and match your favorite parts from all of these 25 bright...
Feeling like you're always struggling to stay organized? Check out these classroom organization tips and tricks to help you save time and energy to focus...
Feeling like you're always struggling to stay organized? Check out these classroom organization tips and tricks to help you save time and energy to focus...
Don't want to spend all summer in your classroom? Here are 9 things you can do NOW to get ready for back to school, get organized, and begin with a plan!
We can always use more supplies! Here's 25 must-have teaching supplies for the elementary classroom to help you stock up on the things you...
We can always use more supplies! Here's 25 must-have teaching supplies for the elementary classroom to help you stock up on the things you...
Looking to change up your theme, and want a bright and colorful classroom? Choose one or mix and match your favorite parts from all of these 25 bright...
When you get your students organized, you will save time in your classroom for the important things like teaching and learning! Check out these student organization tips for any teaching classroom for time saving!
How to set up and organize a writing center in your pre-k, preschool, or kindergarten classroom. See pictures of my writing center and material suggestions.
These fun morning greeting ideas will make arrival one of your favorite times in the classroom! This post gives ideas for how to use morning greetings.
The one night that is most stressful for me is definitely Meet-the-Teacher Night, but I have learned through the years that it can also be...
Here are several tricks of the trade I learned to simplify and streamline often time-consuming aspects of classroom organization.
Having the right teacher school supplies makes teaching just a little bit easier and more comfortable. Here's a list of things I can't live without.
Organize your small group supplies by using a three drawer storage container.
Use these pictures and ideas to create and use these awesome Classroom Management Anchor Charts. Teach rules and procedures for all classroom supplies.
Are you a teacher that is interested in free teaching resources? Organization, classroom decor, math and literacy activities, you get access to ALL of that.
At the beginning of the year I was getting the above question about a million times a day. I had explained to my students that they always had the option of reading, finishing morning work or practicing their spelling words. Well, those options worked for a while but then the question came back and I knew something needed to change. I took to good ol' Pinterest to get some ideas on brain breaks or activities for fast finishers. After I found a few great things, I used a combination of those ideas and came up with my own system. Introducing the "Sticks Center" Now, when my students are finished and are sitting there with nothing to do, they have the option to read, finish their morning work or "do the sticks." Simple system that works like this. 1. Draw a stick 2. Do what it says Simple right? :) Here is a closer look at the sticks in the can: These are all of their options. The rule I have is they can't look when they draw a stick and whatever they get, they have to do or they go back to their seat and read.("If you're gonna do the sticks, you do 'em right" I say that a lot) If they draw the same stick in a day they don't have to do it twice, they can redraw. Been doing this for about four months and it has been great so far, they enjoy it and are great at completing the activities. Very little work on my part and they don't ask me the dreaded question anymore! Here are short explanations of each stick. Flash Cards: There are two sets of multiplication flashcards (about 20 cards each) they take them back to their seat and go through the cards twice. Word Problems: The students gets to be the teacher and they write me two word problems. I have to solve it by the end of the day. The only rule is, they have to know the answer to the problem! Sometimes I solve it wrong to see if they can catch my mistake... they have no idea and get so proud of themselves when they catch my mistake! Spelling ABC Order: Write that week's spelling words in alphabetical order. Wrap-Ups: Subtraction and multiplication manipulatives. Buy here. Spin Multiplication: Fun interactive multiplication flashcards. Thanks to the teacher who had my room before me! Random Worksheet: This folder is full of random challenging worksheets. They have to draw a random one without looking. There are all kinds of things in there like crosswords, riddles, math challenges, word searches. Book Report: Students get a piece of notebook paper and write a short summary of a book they read recently. Just for Fun Book: I have a tub full of lower-level children's books. I still think those are fun to read so why wouldn't fourth graders? Spelling Story: Students write a story containing all of their spelling words. Rhyming Words: Students pick a word and write as many words that rhyme with it as possible. Write a Short Story: Students write a story no longer that a page about anything they want! Math Challenge Number: I created a worksheet with a different number at the top. They pick one and each worksheet has them adding 15 to the number, subtracting 25, writing the number with words, dividing by 3, and multiplying by 13. Really makes them think! Write Cursive Letters: I don't make my students write in cursive very often but they still need to practice. For this stick they simply have to write their cursive alphabet. Spelling Pictures: Students draw a picture to go along with each spelling word. Spelling 2x Whiteboard: Students grab a whiteboard and write their spelling words two times each. Dictionary Hunt: I love this one! Students use a dictionary to find 3 words they don't know. They write the word, the definition and draw a picture to go with it. Write 20 Verbs: Pretty self explanatory. Write 20 adjectives: Ditto! Alphabet List: Students write their alphabet, then try to come up with a word for each letter. Bonus if they use past vocab or spelling words. Boggle: My kids are OBSESSED with this one right now. I printed out some pre-made boggle lists with 20 letters. They are all trying to beat each other for who can come up with the most words. One of my students has a list of 112 going right now.. she won't quit! I LOVE it! ABC Order Challenge: In one of the trays I have multiple worksheets that have lists of words that start with the same letter and need to be put in alphabetical order. They are tricky and my kiddos like the challenge. Addition Challenge has been replaced with Division Challenge: A large sheet of division problems with remainders. My kids love to do these and see if they can get them all right in one try! This truly has been great for my classroom! It makes my kiddos use their brains all day long, no sitting doing nothing and a lot less getting into trouble in between activities! Try it, you'll like it!
Let's start off with word work materials. If you teach in a primary classroom, you know there are a lot of materials associated with our word work supplies.
Hi friends! I'm finally on summer break and getting ready to move into my sixth classroom/space in seven years of teaching. 😅😅😅 Last year, I was preparing for two big moves, one to a temporary space since construction was taking longer than expected and then another move during Christmas break. During the second move, we moved into our brand new building! A little stressful, but it was nice to go through my things and get rid of some of the stuff I've been holding on to! Before the big move, I needed to get rid of my file cabinet. I've always used my file cabinet for my centers, posters, and other random things....but I've never really liked it. My things always got folded, ripped, and I have a hard time finding what I needed! Since we would no longer have our file cabinets, I needed to change up my storage! Please note, that this blog post may contain affiliate links. That means I can receive a small commission, at no extra cost to you, if you purchase from one of the items linked. Affiliate links allow me to keep blogging and providing more freebies to you! :) You can read more about this at the bottom of my post! These are the EXACT bins that I used! They are from Sterilite and are very good quality! These bins have lasted me many years and through many, many moves! They are kind of an investment, but I think they are totally worth it! I love that I can easily stack and store them. Since these bins can be an investment, I slowly ordered them, a few sets at a time, and began organizing my things. They come in sets of six. If you want something a little less expensive, check out the bins below. These bins are almost the exact size as the ones I used and come in sets of four. They are quite a bit cheaper than the ones I listed above. I found these bins (below) on Amazon. As I organized my things, I made labels so I could keep track of everything. I organized my things by seasonal resources and by skill. Below I will link a free and editable template so you can make your own! These labels will fit the bins shown above from Amazon. After I created and printed my labels, I laminated them. I love my Scotch Laminator! It hears up quickly and is jam-proof! It has also lasted me a few years. I love using this laminator because the lamination pouches always seem to make my labels so much more sturdy than the school's laminator. To attach the labels, I used VELCRO coins. That way, I could easily change out the labels if I needed to. Plus, as a special education teacher, I always have a TON of Velcro! You could also use a hot glue gun! Below is the one that I use for crafts in my classroom and at home. Finally, you can grab the labels FREE! Make sure you read the instructions on page 2 on how to duplicate the pages so you can create as many as you want! I've also included a printer friendly, white background, version too! I hope this post and freebie were helpful! If you use these labels, I would love to see them! Feel free to tag me on Facebook or Instagram! :) Happy organizing! ********************************* Want to come back to this post later? Pin the image below! Glitter and Glue 4 K-2 is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com
Are you finding yourself a bit disorganized in the elementary classroom? Check out these teaching hacks to get you organized!
Classroom organization is an important part of being a successful teacher! Teacher binders, Students binders, Organizational tools and strong classroom systems are all a part of an effective classroom.
I simply typed and taped the label inside of them using colored card stock. Can you tell I love to label everything?!
***This post contains affiliate links. By purchasing an item using these links, I will receive a small commission on your purchase.*** You guys. I may have discovered a classroom organizational game changer! And it only took 11 years of frustration, messy files, and bulky binders! Before I share this new tool, let...
Organizing the Elementary Classroom! It's a well known fact that elementary age classrooms require lots of resources. I'm not talking your average cabinet load. I am talking fill up the entire garage and one bedroom at home amount of materials that make your family question whether you need an intervention.
Feeling like you're always struggling to stay organized? Check out these classroom organization tips and tricks to help you save time and energy to focus...
It's back to school time! Be successful and avoid the first year mistakes with these ideas about classroom management, organization, personal growth, and much more I wish I knew!
I'm teaming up with my good friend Jen over at Sparkling in Second to share three of my favorite first grade teacher tips.
How to organize community school supplies in a stress free way for teachers. Empower your students to take responsibility for classroom supplies with this one easy trick! #organize #classroom #supplies #storage
I just wanted to stop by and give you a quick management tip. Do you have students who are CONSTANTLY losing supplies (our school buys ALL of our students' school supplies)? I sometimes want to ScReAm when they come up to me 10 minutes after they should have STARTED working and ask me if I have any scissors they can borrow because they lost their pair! :) So, I have created the "Borrow Bucket" that my students can use when they've lost something. I used Washi Tape on each of the items (scissors, pencils, erasers, and glue) so that I can identify if the students are trying to "hoard" the borrow bucket items. :) I only put pencils in the borrow bucket because sometime (hahaha), I forget to sharpen the pencils in our regular pencil bin. ;) Click {here} to download!
12 Organization Tips for Teachers No comments Classroom Organization, Just for Teachers, Organization, Stress Management, Teacher Productivity Maybe you've heard me say this before, but an organized classroom is so important. When I say organized, I mean everything has a place and everything is in it's place. I mean that you have developed and created systems and spaces that work for you. I don't mean you work in a classroom void of materials, resources, or decor. This post contains affiliate links for your shopping convenience. I earn a small commission each time someone makes a purchase through one of my links. For more information about my Disclosure Policy, please visit this link. Making sure your classroom is an organized space is crucial to making sure your sanity stays in tact. Not to mention, it will help your students be successful too. Just as many adults feed off the energy of a room, so do kids. If your room isn't organized, you'll feel frazzled and scramble to find what you need. Kids will pick up on this energy too. An organized room creates a calm space in which students can feel relaxed and ready to learn. What follows is a list of my top organizing tips that I use in my classroom. Grab a coffee and let's get to scrolling. #1 - MAKE LISTS I say this often, but I'm crazy serious about the importance of doing this. Making a list creates accountability, helps you prioritize tasks, and allows you be more productive. It takes the guess work out of what needs to get done. Make daily to do lists, weekly to do lists, and even look for opportunities to set long term goals. Revisit these lists often and keep them where you will see them and use them. If you have to dig them out, you won't stick to the lists. Some colorful pens and a pretty notepad or notebook will do the trick. OK, they don't have to be pretty, but if you like pretty things, go for it. Here are a few pretty notepads that might help keep you inspired. #2 - USE A PLANNER Invest in a planner and use it to map out important due dates, meetings, training, and so forth. And, while you're at it, use that planner to schedule some intentional organization time. There are so many different kinds of planners out there. Find one with a layout that works for you. You may want to use a teacher planner to organize your lesson plans, and a personal planner to note important meetings and training. Decide what will work best for you, there isn't a one size fits all solution here. #3 - EVERYTHING HAS A PLACE AND EVERYTHING IN ITS PLACE This saying is everything. Give everything a home and be diligent about putting items back where they belong. It's easier to find things in the future, and you won't have piles of stuff everywhere. And it also saves you time when you go to use that item again in the future. Remember, if it takes less than 2 minutes, just do it. #4 -UNLOAD YOUR TEACHER BAG Teachers are notorious for loading up their bag or backpack with work to take home. That bag goes back and forth day after day. And day after day more things make their way into said bag or backpack After a while, it's anyone's guess as to what's floating around in there. Put that bag front and center and take out any old papers, unnecessary papers, and/or other items that have been put in there and forgotten about. That bag isn't a permanent home for anything. It's a means of transporting items back and forth. Try to keep unnecessary items out of that bag. Don't load it up if you know you aren't going to do your work at home. #5 - PUT YOUR READ ALOUDS AWAY Many teachers display the books they've read to their class. Sometimes, the students are allowed to reread these books in their free time or during independent reading time. Sometimes, the books are placed on white board ledges and shelves so the students can be reminded of the book. Either way, once you notice your display areas are all filled up, put the books away and make room for a new set of books to feature. If you have too many books on display, the kids won't pay attention to them anymore. #6 - TAKE DOWN OLD ANCHOR CHARTS Anchor charts weren't meant to stay up in one place all year. Over time, they lose their effectiveness. Once a week, take stock of what you have on display and take down what is no longer needed. If you think you'll need to pull one back out for future reference, save it if need be, but it's probably going to be more effective to make a new one with your kids if you plan to revisit that topic. If you're worried about forgetting about the layout of a really great chart you made with your class, take a picture of it first. Save all your anchor chart photos to a folder in Google photos or Google Docs so you can refer back to them as needed. #7 - KEEP YOUR DAILY MATERIALS CLOSE BY Designate a space in your classroom where you can store and easily get to the lesson materials you need every day. If you are hunting for the math materials in front of students, chaos might ensue. Be ready and keep these kinds of materials in one place. #8 - GET RID OF STUFF Seriously, you probably have some things you don't need to keep anymore. Excess leads to stress. Try to keep only what you need. You can read more about decluttering your classroom by clicking HERE. Just make sure that as you go through things you ask yourself the following: Is this still relevant? Do I still use it? What value does it bring to me and/or my students? If I went shopping today, would I buy this again? A good place to start this process is by taking stock of any teacher resource books you might still own. Chances are, you've acquired lots of digital files and no longer need many of the books you used to rely on. #9 - ORGANIZE YOUR PAPER FILES Not everyone is 100% digital, myself included. There are some things that I need to save and reuse. To organize this space in your classroom: Go through your files and decide what you need to keep. If you do have a digital version of that item, do you really need to keep a hard copy too? Create categories and label your folders/hanging files. Be sure to decide ahead of time if you're a folder kind of person, or a hanging file kind of person. Color code your folders or files. You can use different colored folders, or you can color code the labels on the folders. Label the front of your drawers so you know what's in there. If the idea of color coding your files speaks to you, like it does me, Amazon has you covered. They have lots of colored file folder options. #10 - ORGANIZE YOUR DIGITAL FILES This can be a daunting task, but once you figure out a system that works for you, it will be so worth it. Since this task is a big one, be sure to break it down into smaller tasks. Here's how I approach this organizational task: Create folders for each subject (categorize your folders). Within that subject break it down by genre or skill (Say you create a Reading folder, within that folder you might have subcategories like "Reading Passages," "Fables," "Citing Text Evidence," and so on. Back up your files onto an external hard drive, Dropbox, or a jump drive in case your system crashes, you move schools, or you need to access your files from another location. Once you organize your digital files, stay on top of it. When saving new documents, be sure to put them in their intended folders from the get go. #11 - LABEL EVERYTHING If you have a storage cabinet filled with special bins and containers, label them. This way you can quickly and easily find what you need. You can scan your shelves quickly and find what you need. Otherwise, you'll be going through too many of those bins one by one, and that's a total time suck. #12 - DON'T DEDICATE PRECIOUS CLASSROOM REAL ESTATE TO SEASONAL DECOR AND BULLETIN BOARD ACCESSORIES Unless you have unlimited storage in your classroom, keep that seasonal stuff somewhere else. You aren't digging into your box of themed decor as often as you are pulling out math materials or art supplies. Store your seasonal items in a more out of reach location like a storage shelf in another location (if provided by your school) or in your garage (just pull out what you need when that season approaches). If you like to switch out your bulletin board border and background every month, more power to you. I keep the same background and border up all year. It saves me a ton of time. However, if I did change these things out, I would l store the items in an out of reach location like my separate storage shelf in our computer lab closet. If you're only using these items on a monthly basis, it isn't worth giving it a designated space in your classroom if you don't have the room to do so. FINAL THOUGHTS These are my go-to organization tips, but remember, organization is a very personal thing. We all have our own style and way of doing things. Our needs and availability of space varies greatly. Find what works for you and stick to it. Do you have a favorite organizational tip? Share it in the comments below. We'd love to hear from you! DON'T FORGET IT, PIN IT! Share It:
Measurement is a concept that can be tricky, so we've compiled a variety of measurement videos that make teaching this skill easy!
Prepare your special education classroom for the first two weeks with tips on organization, assessments, IEP goals, routines, and classroom expectations.
What do teachers buy for their classroom? This blog post focuses on three of the most important purchases you can make for your classroom.
