Welcome to my classroom! It's a space that is meant to be comfortable, flexible, and inviting. I hope you enjoy the tour!
Welcome to my classroom! I figured it was about time I gave you all a formal tour of the space that is our home away from home. My goal for my classroom is to make it feel homy and warm and a place that ANYONE would want to be (not just tiny humans!). If you have any questions about the space that we call our home away from home send me a message!
This is our classroom library! The shelf is KALLAX from IKEA and the bins are actually meant to be dish pans that I bought at Big Lots. The students decided on the labels and created the genre labels for each bin. Student centered is important to any classroom. Making sure that your student's have ownership in the space that they are in for 6 1/2 hours a day is key!
Next to our library is our word work board. This board houses my students word work (phonics) lists that they are working on. Our phonics lessons are personalized for each student or groups of students on a like level. This method provides children to work at their pace and me as their teacher to be able to scaffold and differentiate for all.
Moving around our room we have our class meeting area (affectionately referred to as the ABC carpet) our stage (which is extra storage-bonus points!) and where we store many of our literacy centers. The shelf and green bins are also from IKEA and they are the TROFAST self and bins. These bins are one of the best investments that I have made for our classroom. We also have a set that we use for our math centers as well!
Writing Center! This is our writing area where my student's create all things books, pictures, stories, jokes, and anything that is related to improving and adding to their writing skills. The table is actually a coffee table from IKEA and the baskets underneath hold different types of paper (construction/blank white/lined). If you are looking for a way to track your students writing goals you can check out the chart that we use here!
One of my FAVORITE spots in our class is our Maker Space. It is an area where students can explore and create all while using their imagination. We use this space daily and its integrated into A LOT of our content. STEM is such a growing job field that preparing my students for a potential career in this field is important. Plus the literacy and math skills you can integrate into STEM activities are plentiful. The bins I purchased at Target and added labels to the front. Materials in your Maker Space do not have to be expensive. One of the most used bins in our classroom is the miscellaneous bin! I throw literally anything and everything recyclable into this bin and the kids LOVE IT. The other most popular bin is Tubes. This is simply toilet paper and paper towel rolls that I save from my own house as well as parents of students in my classroom send in. Cheap and the kids love them!
More books! You can never have enough books in your classroom. These shelves hole our weekly/monthly read aloud by theme. The shelves were made out of gutters that I purchased at Lowes for about $6.00. I cut them in half and drilled hole on the back for the magnetic hooks to go through in order to hang it on this magnetic heater in our room.
Another cozy spot in our class is this bistro table that I purchased from Michaels at the end of summer. Look for deals for your classroom at the end of seasons as the clearance sales are great! This table was around $10 and the chairs were $8 each at IKEA. The mat underneath I had from my own boys and we didn't need anymore. Repurposing things from your own house is great for your classroom as well.
Math talk! This is our math games area as well as where we keep white boards, cardboard, and our math fact wall (fact fluency).
Our couch is a hot spot to sit and work as well. Student's cozy up and read a book or grab a clipboard and complete work there. It's also a great spot for students who may be playing a game as two people sit on the floor while two sit on the couch and use the table as the game surface!
What would a classroom tour be without seeing where some of the reading magic happens (as well as my teacher area!). This is our reading table where I pull guided reading groups as well as small groups for other content areas. The Hokki stools are great to keep little bodies moving!
That is the tour of our space! If you have any questions about anything please send me a message, I would love to chat!