Spring Cleaning!

When the sun begins to shine and the snow melts away, you know it's time for some spring cleaning.  That means classrooms too!  Here are some things you can do to organize your space. Your kids will thank you for it.

My desk:

This is one of my personal favourite creations!  I took an old gift soap holder, painted in black and added some teaching decals and stickers.  A mug and a tin can are inserted to catch all my desk top tools.  This could easily be done with a basket or loaf pan.  

Math manipulatives:

I love these bins.  I bought them for under $2.00.  Each bin has a set of pattern blocks in them. That way when it comes to math work stations, the bins come out easily and are returned to their shelf.

Student's Books:

Students have their own magazine files for their independent reading selections. Our classes only have tables.  That means no storage.  So, I invested in some good quality magazine files at the beginning of the year.  So far, things are nice and neat.

Bulletin Board Letters:

My bulletin board letters (too many to mention) have been stored in envelopes.  The envelopes are then placed in a shoe box.  I used to store them according to themes and patterns.  That became chaotic.  This system is much easier and quicker!