We want students to be comfortable in our classrooms. We want them to feel welcomed and inspired. Classroom decoration can play a role in creating that environment. Below are some simple ways to …
Into the woods ... in the classroom!
Using classroom money can be highly motivating to students and help students practice important math skills. This blog post explains how I got started with classroom money.
Boulders- The large boulder in the video is created by taping shut an empty box. Be sure to think ahead how large you want the rock to be and where you will store it. When making a rock this wonderful, you want to be able to store it for future use. Next, wad together
Surgery Transformation ideas for a first grade classroom including photographs of set up ideas, shopping lists, lesson activities and more!
Inspiration, tips, and sources for creating a nature themed classroom for your middle school or high school students!
Hey everyone! So as I've been prepping for my classroom this summer-- I've absolutely fallen in love with succulents! Not the cacti type-- but the fat, round, and colorful type. As a result every piece of decor I've been making lately has a shiplap and succulent theme! Take a look below: Most of the items pictured above can be found in my TPT store-- you can find them by clicking here. Now on to to the real reason you're here. Paper succulents. I'm not going to lie to you-- it is time consuming. And if you have a cutting machine like a Cricut or Silhouette-- you can save yourself some serious time (plus you can make larger sized plants). So here we go! Here are the supplies you need: Cardstock (I bought 2 packs of green cardstock from Walmart for $5 each), scissors, pencil (if tracing), and hot glue. Each larger succulent took about three 12x12 pieces of cardstock, and the smaller ones took two 8.5x11" pieces. This first succulent was made from a template I found online for free. I didn't really follow their directions-- so you can make them either way. First, I printed the 2 pages onto the color of cardstock I wanted. Next, I cut out the pieces. I laid the largest piece aside as a base. Next, I cut all the other pieces in half (and I also cut an extra piece of the smallest size). Cutting them in half let me make a small slit along the bottom-- where I used a small dot of hot glue to press the flaps together (giving them more of a standing look). You can see my process below... After that I began assembling my succulent: I tried to make sure the petals were overlapping in each layer as I glued the pieces together. The very middle is the hardest to explain because I usually played it by ear-- bending and gluing the smallest pieces (sometimes even trimming them) until I was satisfied. Succulents 2 & 3 were created using my Cricut-- but I was able to trace a template for any lovers of the "trace and cut" method. If you want to make them larger-- you could always set the largest piece down on some paper and trace a larger figure around it. Basically for succulent #2, I used the largest piece as the base and bent all the other pieces upward at the petals. Then you glue and stack, glue and stack-- and make sure the petals alternate (so you should see the previous layer in between). Here is my finished result with my original: The last succulent is my personal favorite! Also the easiest (in my opinion). It's the same process as above: Cut out shapes, bend the petals, and stack and glue the layers. Here is my original and the new one side by side: Hope that helped inspire you in your paper succulent making quest! If you have any questions or suggestions please leave them in the comments below-- and I will try my hardest answer them ASAP. Hope you have a blessed day!
I love a pretty classroom. Although I realize that classroom decor is not the most important aspect of teaching, having a pretty classroom makes a nice
Do you have helpers in your classroom? Many teachers have asked over the years about how classroom helpers work in our classes. Here are the top three questions: "Why do you have classroom helpers?" "How do you organize our helpers?" "Can you help me get mine started?" Here are our answers: 1. It helps build a community. 2. The children take on a responsibility/leadership role. 3. Helps the classroom run smoothly. 4. Reduces the teacher's workload. 5. Children LOVE taking responsibility for our room! Each Monday the children look forward to their new jobs! We rotate the jobs because more that one child usually enjoys a job. We like to give every child an opportunity to try each job. Sometimes they find they really enjoy a job that they thought they wouldn't like. Every classroom has a different plan for changing helpers and you have to find what works for you! *Alison loves to change her helpers Friday before she leaves for the day. It is just part of her routine and she feels great about getting it done early! *I love to change mine with the kids on Monday morning as part of my "Monday Morning Routine." It helps us ease back into our week! *Another friend of mine changes her helpers every two weeks because one was too fast. Once the helpers are assigned and posted on our "Helpers" chart the week starts. I never forget who has a job because the chart is there to refer to and the kids know their jobs and take pride in having them. My answer is "YES!" We have several helpers to match what you might need in your room. They are also editable and you can change the job titles & add your students names. You can even add your own cards to match on the "blank" card pages. Once you choose the theme/style that matches your classroom, putting it together is easy peasy! Here is the set I used last year: I backed my cards after I printed them with yellow cardstock to match my color scheme. There are so many ways to display your helpers, here are a few of the ideas we have used: We have attached them on ribbons and used clothespins for the names. We have placed them in a pocket chart and just tucked the children name card next to the job. We have placed them on a magnetic surface, too! These are just some of the jobs in the pack! Best thing, they are EDITABLE! You decide what the names of the jobs are. Here is our selection in a variety of themes: (You can click on any picture below to see it in our store.) Don't see what you need? Contact us at [email protected] to get your request on our list of projects now! Have other ideas for jobs, we would LOVE to hear them. Please comment below or send us an email. Happy Teaching!
So, are you itching for winter break to get here or what?!? I am drowning here, people! Between report cards, conferences (for my students and my own kids!), shopping, baking, parties, wrapping... DROWNING!Don't get me
Find everything you need for creating a superhero classroom including DIY projects & more. Superhero Classroom Decor Ideas for Transformation
We have been back in school for a month now and my classroom reveal is long overdue! The truth is, it’s still not quite how I want it, but I’m not sure when it will be though and……
Get inspired by the best classroom themes that you'll want to try this year. Plus, ideas for decor, organization and more to fit your theme!
Spending the first week of school teaching classroom expectations and procedures is essential for a successful year. Glue is a tricky school supply for many little learners and there definitely needs to be instruction dedicated to teaching learners how to use this tool.Glue BottlesWhen learners are not taught how to use their glue correctly things
There are three kinds of teacher-decorators: those who were born for Pinterest, those who can’t, and all the ones in between (such as the broke, the tired, and the I-have-no-time-to-decorate). However, making a classroom appeal to middle and high school students doesn’t HAVE to involve serious crafting or expensive, time-intensive projects. Check out these tips from me and Bonnie from Presto Plans as you prepare your classroom for the fall (or at any time of year that you want to give it a boost!) You might also like Sara's more recent blog post, Inside My Farmhouse Classroom Makeover. 1. Have a color scheme (if you can) Sara: My principal gave each teacher the paint for one accent wall, so that shade of turquoise inspired the rest of my blue decor: milk crates, bulletin board borders, etc. It helped unify the room to make it look pulled-together instead of random. I've also learned about the importance of contrast. Even a full-blown rainbow color palette can look clean and cohesive (instead of cluttered) if you pair it with black or white to balance it out. Bonnie: If you are looking for inspiration for colors that look great together, check out this Pinterest board. There are lots of combinations that will help you choose colors when you are shopping for classroom materials. 2. Stick to a few favorite fonts Sara: Just like businesses create a brand, you are creating a classroom “look” or persona that you will be known for... or, at least a mood you will create. (Friendly? Professional? Fun? Minimalist?) Try to pick a few fonts that most of your labels, signs, and other wall-hangings will consistently use. For example, I used the Google font Crushed to make and laminate labels for my whiteboard (see below), along with mint-colored painter's tape. 3. Make your classroom library a focal point Bonnie: Your class library should draw students in and works well as the focal point for any English classroom. Here are a few things you can do to make your library stand out: Give bookshelves a makeover by rolling them a new coat of paint and/or taking the shelves out and attaching wallpaper or scrapbook paper to the back. Put a few floating shelves on the walls near your library area where you can feature particular novels recommended by students. Add comfortable, flexible seating near a library to make it more welcoming. These items can be more expensive, so shop around online or scour garage sales until you find seating that may work. Use old books as decorations! When a book is unusable, find a way to repurpose it. One easy way to do this is to cut out the pages and write a reading-inspired quote in black permanent marker on top of the page. Frame the page and put it on your bookshelf! Sara: If your classroom library is small, nonexistent, or needs some attention, check out this blog post for more ideas about how to strengthen it. 4. Display student work Bonnie: Use student work as decor by making a framed gallery wall. All you have to do is pick up some inexpensive 8x10 frames (check your dollar store) and arrange them on your wall. When you get a piece of exceptional student work, add it into the frame! If you don’t want the hassle of buying and hanging frames, order a pack of mixed color picture mats and use them to frame student work on a bulletin board. Sara: Another way to get student work on display (while also practicing literary analysis!) is to have them complete this Quote Illustration and Analysis assignment; students use Canva (or any tool you wish) to make an inspirational or literary quote come to life. The results are stunning! 5. Use author-inspired decor Bonnie: Find ways to incorporate the authors you will be studying into your classroom decor. You can do this by featuring fun facts or by sharing quotes by the author. For example, I use an interactive Shakespeare Hashtag of the Week bulletin display that exposes students to one quote from a Shakespeare play each week. If you don’t want to make your own, you might even consider assigning an author to each student and having them develop a bulletin display with a biography, fun facts, and quotes that you can swap out weekly. Sara: Don't forget to interject moments of literary ALLUSION or author-inspired inside jokes as well, like my favorite light switch art... 6. Make your posters work together Sara: On at least one bulletin board or section of wall space, add some symmetry or consistency by hanging posters in a similar style (color, font, or other), or by displaying images that have a common theme. For example, check out these posters of stylized quotes to get some English class wisdom on your walls. Bonnie: If you are looking for some ideas of common themes you could use for posters, try some of these ideas that could work in any English classroom: funny grammar quotes or fails, literary terms or genres, author quotes, famous lines from literature, idiomatic expressions, or jokes using puns! To read more about my favorite bulletin board ideas for middle and high ELA, check out this blog post. "English is Weird" poster set 7. Make displays that are EASY to update Sara: Two of my favorite bulletin board spaces were ones that took VERY little effort in updating, so I didn't have the self-imposed pressure to redo the whole thing multiple times per year. For example, my Word Nerd Challenge is quick to update on a Monday morning because all I have to do is add this week's word to the list. (I made each word tile a magnet that can go on my whiteboard!) I also made low-prep Quote of the Week flipbooks of reading and writing quotes, which students often asked to flip FOR me. I used Command hooks and spiral binding to hang it on a cabinet. Do you have additional ideas? Tell us in the comments!
One of the most time-consuming things teachers deal with is student absences! I no longer worry about this because my students completely take care of it!
Use these two Boggle templates again and again just by changing the letters. There are two versions, one for the document camera and one for students to use individually. Have fun! Download Boggle Template Rachel Lynette You Might Also Like:Sea of Knowledge’s Free Sight Word Tab ReadersValentines Place ValueSet of 10-Frame Demonstration CardsAnimal Graphic Organizers
Amazing classroom decoration ideas including how to add a class fireplace, a beautiful teacher space, a classroom fridge and more!
Looking to turn your classroom into a farmhouse masterpiece? Checkout the 8 farmhouse essentials that every farmhouse classroom needs!
Looking for classroom decor ideas? Try some of these meaningful approaches to freshen up your middle or high school classroom.
I've never been able to find a job board that worked for me. The cute ones are too much work for me to un-stick and move and re-stick on t...
Next week marks the start of National Library Week!
This year, I decided to make some modifications to my classroom decor, and I am thrilled to share this reveal with you all.
These teachers are the boss of their cement classroom walls, and with some hot glue and tape and sticktoitiveness, you can rule your walls, too.
I have a super quick project that you are sure to find useful in your classroom. It is an Indoor Recess Cart, customized to your own students' interests. Not only is this cart easy to put together and compact in size, it also allows you to put to use items that you probably already have on hand. The main reason I created an Indoor Recess Cart was for sub days. I've always had a variety of activities students could choose on the days that we couldn't make it outside. However, I had them tucked here and there in the classroom, way too much explaining to leave for a sub. Once I consolidated the activity choices on the Indoor Recess Cart, it was much easier to leave for a substitute. To create an Indoor Recess Cart, you will need a utility cart. Once you have your cart and assemble it, you will print your labels. I printed mine on cardstock and laminated them for durability. Finally, I glued the labels on the cart. Click on the link below for a FREE set of labels for your Indoor Recess Cart. After your cart is put together and labeled, next comes the fun part...filling it. I recommend not over stuffing the cart. It will be too difficult for students see what activities are available and too difficult for them to cleanup appropriately. You should discuss with your students the expectation for the Indoor Recess Cart. That way students are responsible for it and it doesn't become one more thing that you have to manage. Below are some ideas for an Indoor Recess Cart. Ideas for an Indoor Recess Cart include: 1. a utility cart 2. a variety of simple games, like Memory, Sneaky, Snacky Squirrel Game!, Connect 4, and Hi Ho! Cherry-O 3. jigsaw puzzles (I like to put mine in baggies and store in one shoebox size tote.) 4. fun art supplies and drawing journals (Spiral notebooks I give students at the beginning of the year, that only come out on indoor recess days.) 5. dominoes 6. building toys, like Legos and Brain Flakes After you loaded up your cart, you're finished! You have a fabulous Indoor Recess Cart that your students will really enjoy. As the year progresses, trade out some of the activities, so that students will continue to be interested in the choices. Thank you so much for stopping by! Stay well. School Is a Happy Place is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associated Program, an affiliate program that allows this site to earn advertising fees. Please know that all of the recommendations on this site are authentic and come from personal experience.
Use these four great classroom time savers to help you stay on track with your schedule, teach more efficiently, and save your sanity.
Ikea inspiration for your classroom! Check out these affordable, flexible, and fun ideas from the international retailer!
Have a chatty class? Do your talkative students get louder and louder during small groups until it feels like chaos? Do they talk when you'r...
