Where Have You Been?

Hey there. Sorry I haven't been around much lately but I have been busy for the last few weeks trying to get my classroom ready for my students. The air conditioning is not working too well so it was rough in the heat but somehow I pulled it all together and thought you might like to see some of my projects.

The theme in my room is Pete the Cat so I did a board with shoes that have the names of our students on them. This is not quite finished but you get the idea. The banner looks really nice and brings out the colors in the room.

I have lanterns hanging over each set of tables and Pete is hanging off of them with a label. This is an easy way for children to identify where to go.

I redid the bucket seats that I made last year because they were used each and every day and were pretty filthy by the end of the year. I saw these fabrics in Walmart and could not resist them since they match the room perfectly. Each seat only cost 2.00 to redo and it was a huge improvement. I covered these right on top of the original fabric, using a staple gun! Easy.

My husband was sweet enough to make mini anchor charts for me and I have one on each set of tables for the children to use when needed. They are color coded to match the color of the lantern hanging above it. This makes it easy to keep all materials in the right place. The anchor charts are covered in duct tape as an inexpensive way to change up the color. I cannot wait to try these out.

I did a lot of reading on "discovery bottles" and made a wide variety of them for various concepts. I will do a whole post on this. Most of my bottles have colored rice in them but a few have colored popcorn which is another fun item to use. I think the kids will adore these and they took very little time to put together. Now let's not discuss what my kitchen looked like!  Be sure to hot glue the lid so nothing can spill out... not a step you want to forget!!!

I used Voss plastic (not the glass) bottles because they are sturdy and it is easy to remove the labels. I made a color coded label on top so students could identify them easily. Each bottle has a recording sheet to keep them engaged and they could be used with a partner. I made lots of them because they look so colorful and appealing. 

Our district has been providing PD on growth mindset and I made some things to hang in the room to support the ideas I want to work on this year. IKEA has beautiful frames in a variety of colors which will make these stand out in your classroom. They are just a few dollars. 

I also made some small cards that will trigger conversations at our morning meeting related to growth mindset. I think it is well worth the time to talk about these ideas and build understandings. 

Well that is just a hit of what I have created but part 2 of this post is on it's way shortly. 

How is your room shaping up? I have a tiny room with old furniture so it is nothing glamorous but I am hoping our students will still find it appealing. I cannot paint walls or furniture but we all do the best we can with what we have.

I hope your year is wonderful and you build a community of learners who work well together.