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Before I share my classroom with you, I just have to show you the before pictures because it is AMAZING how you can transform a room!
Before I share my classroom with you, I just have to show you the before pictures because it is AMAZING how you can transform a room!
This is what would soon become the front of my classroom and my classroom library. (P.S. I have a HUGE wall of gorgeous windows that bring in so much light and make my classroom so happy!)
Okay ... so here's what my classroom looks like NOW ...
This is where I include our daily schedule. Our schedule changes SO much each day that it's really important for students to know where they're going and at what time. I made the cute schedule cards, which can be found in my Classroom Jobs Resource here. I also include all of our homework on the board and spend the last 5 minutes of the day going over the homework information with my students (we also use Google Calendar and Google Classroom, so there is really no excuse for not knowing what was for homework!).
Another look at my back whiteboard. You will also notice that I include a "Week at a Glance" section of my whiteboard. This is where I post a general overview of our day together. I want students to be able to see, in advance, when tests or quizzes are each week and get an idea of what we will be doing together throughout the week. I also enjoy having this as a teacher because it keeps me on schedule!
The very front of my classroom. I purchased the AR Reading Chart from Teacher Tools and Time Savers here and the darling alphabet from The Lady Bug's Teacher Files TpT store, which can be found here. I laminated them so they would last longer. The "Welcome" sign is from the Target Dollar Spot, and the little white table at the front with wheels is also from IKEA (can you tell I love IKEA?).
This is the view of the side of my classroom where I have these great cork boards to use for mini-bulletin boards. I'm thinking I'm going to add some sort of Growth Mindset activity to these mini-boards. I also have an older version of a "Word Wall," and I got this idea from Teaching in Room 6 here. I'll be adding our Greek & Latin Root Words to our word wall throughout the year :) The rainbow colors just make my heart so happy! (You can also see my desk in the far corner of the picture).
I just have to say that I LOVE my desk area! When I "moved in" to this classroom, the teacher desk that was here was so cute, but was kind of falling apart, and I kind of needed a new one. After searching Craigslist, I found this awesome IKEA desk for $50!! I just love that it is white (I have an affinity for decorating with white, if you've ever seen my house, you know - white EVERYWHERE!). Mostly everything in this picture is either from IKEA or the Target Dollar Spot :)
This is my back wall, and I'll walk you through each section. The left-hand side bulletin board has my classroom calendar, my classroom jobs (which you can download here), my hall and bathroom passes, and where we will put our weekly Root Words from Stephanie over at Teaching in Room 6. Then I have my favorite "We Believe Statements" from The Brown Bag Teacher across the top bulletin board, which will be the backbone of my classroom expectations. The red folders and "Homework Hot Spot" is just that - our homework turn in area. You can read more about this idea and how I pass back papers in this blog post. The rest of the board includes all of our classroom information and is the hub of organization in my classroom (pictures below explain in more detail).
This is the end of our back wall whiteboard, and I include any important announcements, the date (so students don't ask me a million times what the date is), our 6 school "virtues" (which I love), as well as a daily quote that I take out of the 365 Days of Wonder: Mr. Browne's Precepts book. Every morning during Religion (I teach at a Catholic school), we will open our class with a discussion of the quote of the day and how we can relate it to our own lives :)
The front corner of my classroom where I have my classroom library. I am lucky enough that I have a massive classroom with enough space to create this great reading area. My great-aunt (who was also a teacher for years!) was re-designing her home and gave me these two couches for my classroom! The carpet is from IKEA and can be found in the children's section of the store.
The shelves that I'm using for my classroom library are from IKEA and can be found here. The "READ" letters I found at Target, but I think they may also have them at Michael's. I was also given the papasan chair from my brother who no longer had space for it (don't let people get rid of their furniture if you can use it in your classroom!).
Alright, let's talk about each of my bulletin boards. This is my Calendar Math bulletin board that I will be using daily with my students. I love the ruler border that I found at the Target Dollar Spot (I literally bought all of the borders when I was there!).
I think this is such a cute bulletin board! I even used the same one with my 7th and 8th graders, and they didn't think it was too childish either. I still have to hang the string up across the board, which I will use clothespins to hang student work up on :)
Here's another close-up of our classroom jobs, root words, and calendar bulletin board. I'm excited to see how my root words of the week is going to go!
And finally, the entrance to our classroom. I LOVE this idea from Molly at Lessons with Laughter. It just sets such a positive note for our entire year and each day that students walk by this for that matter :) The customized pencil is from Tallahassee Sunday on Esty.
As you can tell, I'm really excited to be teaching 5th Grade and am hoping for an incredible year! If you have any questions about anything in this post, please email me at ebacademiccamps @ gmail . com :)
Looking for more Back to School Ideas? Check out these great resources!
Here's to a GREAT year!
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Your classroom looks amazing! I read your previous post about personal student trash bins, so I had to grab some a few months back at Target. Love them! I'm also an #IkeaAddict, so I need to go get that carpet... And maybe a few-- or a lot-- of other things!
ReplyDeleteThank you so much, Lyndsey! Hope the trash cans work out well for you this year! :) And thank goodness for Ikea and Target!
Deletelove your word wall paper-is it a pack of Astrobrights or something else?
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