Simple ideas for classroom set-up

I am still in the process of getting my classroom set up for the new school year and will be sharing some of my classroom set up and arrangements with you as soon as I can get my act together. In the meantime, I thought I would share some ideas that worked very well for me last year….

Pizza Box Drying Rack

I spent a good part of last school year trying to find placed to leave all of our artwork out to dry until finally I sat down and made my own drying rack! The pizza box drying rack is simply a set of pizza boxes taped together with packing tape.  It is light weight so I can move it anywhere I need it to be and each box is wide enough to store most of our papers.  A real life saver!

File Folder Puzzle Rack

The file folder puzzle rack is simply a metal desk-top file folder organizer that I converted into a puzzle rack. The file folder organizer is pretty heavy so I usually kept it on a wide shelf or on the floor. The children did a terrific job keeping all the puzzle put away in our puzzle rack…

Gutter Book Shelves

 I started out the school year with a regular child-sized bookshelf on my floor but because my classroom has such limited amount of floor space, I decided to add these pieces of gutter to my wall as a book display shelf instead. I went to Home Depot to get the light-weight plastic gutter and had the guy at Home Depot cut it the length I wanted.  The children used the gutter as car ramps for a few weeks but over a long weekend, I put the gutter on the wall to hold all of our books. You can see more about the Gutter Bookshelves here!

Metal Grease Pan Magnetic Board

The white magnetic board you see in the photo below actually started off being a silver metal grease pan which you can purchase at Walmart.  I purchased mine from a local auto supply store and then painted it white on one side and red on the other side. I moved the magnetic board around my classroom depending on the activity we were doing.  When I didn’t have the magnetic board leaning against a wall or set flat on a table, I attached it with Industrial Strength Velcro to the back of a bookshelf which you can see below in the center photo…

A fun year of making new things for my classroom! I look forward to coming up with some new ideas for classroom set-up this school year too!

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Deborah J Stewart

Deborah J Stewart

Every time I think I know everything I need to know about teaching young children, God says, "Hold on a minute!" and gives me a new challenge.

Let me tell ya...

With each new challenge that you overcome, you will find yourself better equipped and more passionate about teaching young children.

God didn't call wimps to lead, teach, or care for His children. Nope, he has high expectations, so get ready. You will have to give your very best but after teaching for over 30 years, I can tell you that it is a wonderful and rewarding journey.

Whenever your calling feels hard, just remember, 'He who began a good work in you (and in the children you serve) will be faithful to complete it.'

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