Setting up the preschool classroom is always a work in progress

There are so many details that go into a preschool classroom. It seems like the list of “to-dos” just gets longer once you get started…

My wonderful new assistant, Mrs. Courtney, and one of my very generous student grandparents, Mrs. T, has pitched in to help me get things ready for preschool and there was an enormous amount of work to do. In our outdoor classroom, we had to start by doing a little power washing and then we started setting up the floor mats and furniture…

In our indoor classroom, we made sure all the floors were cleaned then began the process of setting up the furniture in there too…

I like to start with the furniture so we can see how the space will be best used and since we have a pretty small amount of space to work with, we have to make every part of the classroom counts…

Once the main pieces of furniture are in place, then we can see what furniture needs to be moved a little bit this way or that way so we have good traffic flow and each center will work out well for the children…

Once all the furniture is all set, we can begin the process of bringing in baskets and adding the materials we want to keep on each shelf…

We spent a lot of time making decisions about what we wanted on each shelf and what we wanted in each basket. We often changed our mind along the way as we would think through which items would be better for the beginning of the school year versus which items we will wait and rotate onto the shelves throughout the school year…

In our indoor classroom we are starting the school year off with a block center, writing and art center, reading and puppet area, puzzle and math center, light table area, magnet center, easel, and circletime area…

In our outdoor classroom, we are starting with our water table, sand table, window easel, paint easel, discovery center, and two tables in the center of the room for additional activities we will bring into the classroom each day…

Not only do we have to make sure our classroom furniture and center supplies are all set up but we also have to think through our teacher supplies. We want to be sure everything is accessible and organized in each classroom…

And all the while, I keep stopping places to do a little shopping.  For our outdoor classroom, I found this wonderful shelf from Michaels to hold supplies for the children to use…

Next comes the process of hanging pictures, preparing bulletin boards, labeling things, and all those other finishing touches which I will share more on in my next post.

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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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