a classroom update.

i haven't posted about my classroom in awhile, and figured it was time for an update. things have changed a LOT since the beginning of the year! as we spent more and more time in the room, changes needed to be made to accommodate our daily activities and schedule. the room is still a work in progress, but it's gotten to a point where i'm finally pretty happy with it.
when you first walk into our room, you'll see the door that we decorated this winter. we studied japan and learned about the end of year celebrations and traditions that the japanese people participate in. right outside of the room are the kids lockers.

look straight ahead and you'll see my desk. i really, really don't like having my back face the class, but it has to be positioned like this. i honestly don't spend more than 10 minutes sitting in it a day, but i keep my computer opened to our email program all day. the kids sitting near my desk can peek at my emails and it's totally bugging me. as you can see, i like things pretty organized. on my desk, i keep cirriculum materials, PSSA prep books, and lesson plans. the multi-colored bins to the left of my desk hold papers and materials for the week. each bin is for a certain day. i copy everything a week in advance so they're ready to go! the white bin on my desk holds markers, scissors, clips, tape, and a stapler. this crate goes back and forth from my desk to the carpet and the kids LOVE carrying it over for me. it's one of their favorite rewards, weirdly enough.

turn around and you'll see one of the student work boards. we recently read about johnny appleseed. they summarized what they read and created a kid-friendly biography about him.

right next to the door is my small group area. this is where kids drop off their homework folders in the morning, math centers are stored, small groups meet, and unfinished work is sorted.

this is one of the most important recent additions to my room. because i have about 40 different students (with 15+ leaving the room 45 minutes a day to receive special education services), they miss a decent amount of work. anything that is unfinished goes into their sleeve on the chart. i also put homework that was not completed in here, as well as materials for kids that were absent. it's working really well so far!

and here's a view from the front. you can see the green "VIP" chair - this is another classroom reward that i use. if you're doing a good job in your seat, you can go sit in this chair.

we spend lots of time on the carpet. the kids get pretty antsy sitting in their seats for more than 20 minutes at a time, so we're always going back and forth. i made the benches in the back out of MDF, plastic crates, foam, and fabric. there's not much storage space in the classroom, so we put tissues, pencils, baby wipes, and paper inside.

and here's where we do our work! we write everything down on chart paper. any time we learn a new concept, do examples, or practice an old skill, we make a poster. i then hang the posters around the room for kids to use as they do their work (you can see them on the windows). i also photograph all of the posters and put them on our classroom website.

i hope you've liked these pictures! i really like sharing this kind of stuff - i know it's not fashion related, but it's a huge part of my life and i spend lots of time working on it all.