CLASSROOM TOUR 2015-16 SCHOOL YEAR

We are heading into the fourth week of school and I finally had a moment to write my classroom reveal post for this year. If you read my reveal post from last year, you will recognize most of what you are about to see.

Last year, I switched schools and put a bundle of time into decorating and had a precious class that cared for everything so carefully, which saved me a ton of time this August. That meant I was able to focus all my classroom decor brain power on details, making my room feel even more like home. Without further ado, here is a peek inside my second grade classroom. 

TEACHER CABINET

This is my go-to storage spot for anything related to our current units of study. I also have bins that store examples of projects for each month. I am not a fan of file cabinets (I only have one for my student portfolios) so I use little drawers and magazine files that force me to stay organized and rid my life of excess paper. All of this is kept behind closed doors to reduce clutter and excess visual noise for my students. 

WHAT'S IN YOUR DRAWERS?

Each drawer on the upper shelf contains items I want to keep handy for current units of study or lessons for next week. This eliminates piles and clutter around the room. When I am lesson planning each week, I quickly check my drawers and am reminded of the resources I wanted to use for the coming week. 

The lower drawers contain anything that needs to be graded, filed or copied. I love the "Grade" drawer because it minimizes paper clutter and keeps my mind clear throughout the day. As soon as the drawer gets full, I sit down and grade. The stack of papers never becomes an unmanageable mountain because the drawer is fairly small. 

Here's a closer look at my monthly project bins found on the top shelf.

These customizable labels are available in my Teacher's Pay Teacher's store.

These round weekly labels are also included in the same Classroom Organization Labels resource.

MATH AND WORD WORK STATION

This is a new feature in my classroom and takes the place of the teacher desk I had in the corner last year (that desk lasted all of two weeks). To create this station, I set three pieces of Ikea furniture in the corner. One white Kallax Shelf and two Trofast Frames with green storage boxes. My amazingly handy brother designed a surface to cover the gaps that resulted from the corner arrangement and added backing to the Kallax Shelf so our math supplies wouldn't fall behind the shelf.  This is where we store our math binders and various manipulatives for word work and math. 

If you are interested in downloading the daily place value activities my students complete each morning in their math binder, click here. 

These clear photo storage boxes from The Container Store are perfect for creating place value block kits that your students can easily keep organized. Our math tower has any supplies students may need to build models for our Write To Explain Task Cards or play our Math In Motion Hands-On Math Games. 

Our word work tower stores all our supplies for Wacky Word Work practice completed during Daily Five. 

MINI LESSON ZONE 

Our mini lesson zone is a bit cozier this year thanks to my amazing mom who sewed a cushion for our white Kallax Shelf (turned into a bench). My students now call the bench our couch...love them! I am also thrilled to have a full-functioning easel for the first time ever in my teaching career. I keep our anchor charts for reading and Daily Five on the easel and now host our math lessons on the large white board. 

Here's a closer look at our gorgeous bench. Thanks Mom!

Our Container Store storage cubbies for our Math In Motion Hands-On Math Game Cards.

Our Daily Five I Charts (coming to my TPT Store soon).

Super handy storage bins to keep Responsive Classroom and Daily Five supplies close at hand.  

SMALL GROUP AREA

My small group area is pretty much the same as last year with a few minor tweaks. When I took this photo I thought the balance ball was going to be the best idea ever for my teacher chair. Now, it's at my house because I realized you can't sit on a balance ball while wearing a dress. Live and learn. 

To the right of our small group table is my guided reading tower from The Container Store. I added this through the middle of last year. It is the perfect size, made of super durable metal, and has five compartments - one for each day of the week. The only thing I have left to add are these teal dry erase Wall Pops to help students with personal space. Added bonus: they won't have to bring their whiteboards to the back table during math...time saver!

This guided reading tower is also a perfect little spot to store any reading tools we are currently using and a mini timer so my reading aide can keep track of time during each round of Daily Five. 

 SINK AREA

Nothing much to say here...this is our sink. I added a mirror this year because kids were constantly asking to use mine to check if something was in their teeth or monitor the progress of the countless facial injuries the seem to incur. 

CLASSROOM LIBRARY  

Still my absolute favorite corner of the classroom. Our ever-growing library is stocked to the brim this year thanks to the generous Scholastic Reading Club points system. All of our books are labeled with full-color sticker labels that perfectly match the image on each book bin (for picture books) or shelf (for chapter books). 

All of my bins are from Really Good Stuff labeled with my Classroom Library Labeling Kit (also available in white). I took several other photos of my library so you can get a closer look but this is a crazy long blog post, so I will blog about the library in more detail later this week. 

FRONT OF THE ROOM

At the front of the room are our quiet chimes, our inspiring Dream Big letters and the daily schedule. I like to keep things clean and simple so my "teacher desk" doubles as our projector station. My fingers are crossed that this is the year my school installs ceiling-mounted projectors so I can move our doc cam to the corner and this table can be eliminated. 

In the meantime, the laminated green paper helps me position documents in the right spot so I don't constantly have to look behind me to double-check that my students are seeing what I want them to. 

GROUP STATIONS

For the fifth year in a row, these sturdy white Kallax Shelves are working perfectly for storage of book bins, group supplies, tidy up tools, and work in progress folders. These stations minimize desk clutter like a boss and help students stay super organized. 

This year, I added duct tape to our book boxes (Ikea Flyt Magazine Files) to increase durability. Second graders are really hard on these compared to third graders. 

Here's a peek inside our group supply bins. I load them up with as many color options as possible to support focus on creating quality products with quality supplies. Our tidy up tool is a super fun fuzzy duster from The Container Store. The kids are obsessed with cleaning when you give them a Fuzzy Wuzzy. 

Can't wait to post updates throughout the school year so you can see how amazing our room looks now that the kids have added their beautiful artwork and writing to our walls. For frequent updates, be sure to follow me on Instagram @CoreInspiration. For a monthly peek inside my classroom, follow me on BlogLovin'. 

CLASSROOM TOUR 2014-15 SCHOOL YEAR 

It’s Day 2 of Blog Hoppin’s Back To School Week 2014. I had a great time sharing a bit about myself in yesterday’s WHO post. If you missed that, you can check it out {HERE}.

Today is all about WHERE I teach my kiddos each day.  Keep in mind, I am teaching a new grade level in a new district this year, which means a fresh start with classroom decorating. This also means my classroom is not as complete as I would like it to be for the first day of school tomorrow. 

I know it is definitely a well-stocked, well-organized learning environment that is ready for the kiddos to walk in and begin their second grade journey. I also know there are a few things missing because they are on back order and it is making my inner OCD shine through hard core. 

With that said, I will give you a quick overview and hold off until early September (when the rest of my classroom library bins arrive) to give you a detailed overview like I did with my previous classroom {HERE}. 

Classroom Library

I’ll get the incomplete area over with first. :) The classroom library is my favorite corner of the room, as always. It was so hard to leave my old classroom library {featured in Scholastic Instructor Magazine} behind. It was definitely my pride and joy. 

I am starting to overcome my separation anxiety and this classroom library already my new fave. I will give some deets on how I’ve organized it tomorrow. 

You can grab my Classroom Library Labeling Kit here. 

Resource Cabinet and Teacher Desk

I am obsessed with my resource cabinet because it is organized to a T and has room for growth. To start the year, I am using the same drawer labels as last year because they really kept me organized (more on that tomorrow). I remember thinking I needed more drawers at the end of the year but now I’ve forgotten why. I’m hoping once I get back into my weekly routine, this summer brain of mine will hit the road. 

A teacher desk is something I haven’t had in years but they delivered this >BRAND NEW< desk along with all my other >BRAND NEW< furniture and I felt way too guilty to say I didn’t want it. Now that everything is set up and I have it tucked in the corner where it doesn’t take away from student workspace, I’m pretty stoked about having a germ-free work space to call my own.

Mini-Lesson Zone

This carpet area will be our designated area where the kids can bring their whiteboards or journals and participate in mini lessons during Daily 5 and Math Daily 3.  When mini lessons aren’t in progress, this is a great space where kids can sprawl out during independent and collaborative work sessions. 

Student Supply Nook

These drawers house all our extra school supplies and in-progress projects that are too large to store in our Work In Progress folders.

Small Group Work Area

I will probably have to add a small cart of shelf somewhere in this area to store supplies for group work. For now, I have them stashed in my resource cabinet at the front of the room.

Collaboration Station

This student workspace was a big hit in my previous classroom so I didn’t change a thing here. The kids love to stand up and spread out on the bright white work surface or set up camp under the table during Reader’s Workshop. 

Student Desks

Although students spend the majority of their time up and around the room, their desks are configured in groups to encourage collaboration during work sessions. Each group has its own station where their shared supplies, Work In Progress folders and book bins are stored to minimize desk clutter. 

If you are interested in a detailed explanation of the contents found in each area, be sure to subscribe so you are the first to know about my latest posts. 

Swing by tomorrow for Day 3 of Back To School Week 2014 when I will tell you WHY some of my classroom organization tricks work like a charm. 

CLASSROOM TOUR 2013-14 SCHOOL YEAR

Setting up this year took quite a bit of work, but every moment was well worth it! Here is a quick before and after comparison to show the total transformation!

One of the focal points of my classroom is our library. It is ready to use on the first day of school. Even though the kiddos aren't perfectly trained on how to keep the library organized, I let them check out books immediately. I value easy access to books far more than a  perfectly-organized library. How can I resist letting them get their hands on a book when they are chomping at the bit?! 

Since we spend a great deal of time in the library for read alouds, class meetings and classbuilding activities; it is also the home of the "Wow Work Wall". No, I do not have 8 students...I have 26. The frames reserved for work that blows our minds. There are times when I have my students vote on which eight projects or papers should be featured on the "Wow Work Wall". At other times, I make the selections. This serves as a great motivator for students to take their time and put care into producing high-quality work. 

Opposite the library is our Conference Corner where I work with small groups during math and hold my reading and writing conferences during workshop time. This table also doubles as my "desk". I decided to move out the traditional desk because I wanted to maximize student work space. Making every surface accessible to the kiddos makes project work time more comfortable and productive. On the first day during the room tour, they are instructed not to step behind the Conference Corner table into my "top secret teacher territory". This arrangement works quite nicely for all of us.

As you travel to the right of the Conference Corner, you will find our classroom's activity hub...AKA the Utility Counter. This counter is a frequented by dirty hands, thirsty mouths, serves as a staging area for science experiments and art projects and catches the tears of those who need to visit the R.E.S.P.E.C.T. binder. It is quite the popular hangout. :)

Attached to the Utility Counter is the Art Supply Cabinet...pretty self explanatory. Everything in this cabinet is labeled to a T (get your own set here). Labeling is a life saver when you are on the other side of the room with paint, glue, tissue paper and cotton balls stuck to your fingers and you forgot to take out the ribbon. The kiddos are always honored when they have the responsibility of finding that always-forgotten supply...this cabinet makes it easy! 

Another favorite nook in our classroom is the Recess Report Station where the motto is a Dr. Seuss nugget of wisdom, "Be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind". It is always tricky to give students the opportunity to "vent" about playground problems when you want to jump right into your next lesson. This station solves that problem! The kiddos who feel upset about a recess incident simply stop by and tell our class owl what happened by writing about it. They then stick their note in the white lantern, leave their worries behind and get to work. I then check any notes at my earliest convenience and problem solve as needed.

To the right hand side of the whiteboard, we have our student work wall, additional supply storage and the oh-so-important pencil pots. Another quote by literary genius Dr. Seuss, "Why fit in when you were born to stand out" frames the work that fits that quote exactly. This is where students hang projects of their choice. This wall becomes a collage of each students' special something that makes them stand out. It often takes the kiddos a little more time than necessary to get an "Oh so sharp!" pencil because they get caught up in admiring their peers' work..a sacrifice I am willing to make. :)

Wrapping around back towards to library, another student work table known as the Collaboration Station invites students who like a scenic view while working. This is a great spot for those who need more than the usual amount of elbow room. Some of my more adventurous collaborators prefer sitting under the table and using our emergency fort bin as their work surface...whatever floats your boat! :)

I have saved my favorite feature for last! My desks are organized in small groups (we talk and move around a lot in my class so this set up is my preference). Each group has their own Supply Station which houses everything they need to stay focused, efficient and organized. Each station includes a group supply box (I loathe supplies in the desks because they lead to clutter and disorganization); a Tidy Up Tools bin (feather duster, hand sanitizer and  antibacterial wipes to keep the group area in tip-top shape); a Work In Progress Folders bin (no I do not let the kiddos put any work in progress in their desk...yes I am OCD); Personal Book Boxes (no I do not allow library books in desks because it leads to library book death); and finally an extra bin for any small projects we are currently working on that need a place to stay. Oh how I love these stations!

Hope you enjoyed taking a peek at my home away from home! Feel free to leave your comments and questions below. 

Cheers!

Laura Santos