Hi friends!
Over the years I've been asked to share how I organize my classroom countless times so I've decided to do a big blog post about it! I hope this is helpful!
1. Cubby Organization/Guided Materials
2. Organizing Read Alouds
I store these on the shelf above the cubby area and pull the bin I need for that day's read aloud or to switch out books at the end of the week for our bookshelf/reading centre.
3. Organizing Shelves That Are Accessible to the Kids
My biggest advice here is to GET CLEAR BINS WITH LIDS! It is so much easier to find what you need when you can just see through the bins and being able to stack them lets you make the most of the space you have. It also saves me time because I don't feel the need to label clear bins since you can easily see what is inside them without labels. Win win.
My favourite clear bins for this size (seen above) are the Tuff Store 5.85L Plastic Clear Stackable Storage Utility Tote Box with Lid from Home Depot. At $2 a piece it's relatively affordable and the perfect depth for standard built in shelves! (However, always start with 1 bin or measure your space and make sure it fits in the space you need it for before buying a bunch!)
I also organize manipulatives I have less of in similar clear 2L containers with lids. They are on the right below:
The ones I used to use were from Dollarama and were 3 for $2 at the time. I haven't seen those in a while but this is the same size: Type A Clarity Transparent Storage Box with Lid 2L from Canadian Tire.
We do communal supplies so I just put each item in bins and I set out specific bins at centres that need them (or just the number of glue sticks needed at that table) so the students can come grab what they need from this area!
Top Row: Pencils and Erasers
Middle Row: Crayons (We have been sorting crayons this way for years and we found the kids are more mindful when choosing colours when they are not mixed together and presented in a bin and it also reinforces sorting skills, but if a bin works for you group, go with the bin!)
Bottom Row: Glue Sticks
Not shown but in the next shelf over: Bins with scissors and bins with markers
Pencils trays and shallow bins the glue sticks are in were both from Dollarama. The crayons are just in clear plastic cups!
We very rarely do whole group activities at table tops that require these materials so this set up works well for us!
The only thing I would do differently is to label the shelves with what items goes there next time I set up a classroom, as sometimes I felt kids forgot where each item should go (mostly just at the beginning of the year).
Here are the labels I made up with this in mind! Click on the image below if you would like to grab these for you classroom for FREE :)
4. Organizing Your Cabinets
Unlike manipulatives and art supplies, I find centres hard to tell from just glancing at the bin so I do label them!
I like these clear bins from Home Depot (Tuff Store 19.4L Plastic Clear Stackable Storage Utility Tote Box & Snap on Lid) because they are relatively economical for the size and they fit well in my cabinets at school. Tip: Always think about where you will be storing the items and make sure they will fit in those spaces before purchasing a bunch!
Here's what I have in my bins:
- Alphabet/CVC/HFWs
- Inquiry & Themes: Vehicles, Dinosaurs, Hibernation, Migration, Butterflies. Space
- Sensory Tools & Filler
- Math Tubs x 2
- Christmas
- Digraphs/VCe
- 2 more math tubs
- Small World Supplies
- Writing Utensils
- Art Supplies: Stickers, Paint, Stamps, Ink Pads, Bingo Dabbers
After a few years I didn't have enough space to store all of my personal items at school (plus I was always taking everything home at the end of the year since I was in LTOs (contracts) most of my career) so I started storing holidays stuff in large storage bins and just bringing them to school for that week/month and take it back home. I have some space in my basement so I just store it there when not in use! While they are at school I just tuck it behind my desk or under my guided table.
5. Organizing Paper Copies
6. Organizing Digital Files
I keep as much as I can digital on my laptop. What works for me is to start by making a folder with the school name and the year (e.g. Chris Hadfield 17/18) and then I keep things organized in there by month. So below I have September to December folders in the 2017 folder and January to June folders in the 2018 folder.
7. Organizing Daily Supplies for Myself
I put things I use daily right on my desk (as seen above) and anything I use while teaching in the buckets in my easel.
The carousel I use to organize my writing utensils is the Storage Desktop Carousel by Simply Tidy from Micheals. They are very deep, so I put some coffee beans at the bottom so some of my less filled sections can stand up more easily!
I unfortunately don't have a more recent picture but I also love my teacher toolbox for organizing small things! I keep it in one of my shelves behind my teacher desk.
I left this at my last school and never went back to get it when I resigned (like many of my other things). They don't make this particular hardware organizer anymore but I'm getting a new one soon (it's on it's way as I type this!) so when I get it and label it I'll update the picture and share details here!
8. Other (FAQ's Not Answered in the Post)
You may be wondering where's my dramatic play stuff? Or toys? Well I don't really own too many! I first see what the classroom I've been given already has and then if there is anything that I/the kids really loved in my previous classroom I ask the principal if there is any money I can be given to purchase them (I don't ask for too much at once, it is more likely for them to say yes if you're not asking for a lot at once I find!)
Then if I need something else, I go around and ask other Kindergarten teachers (or Grade 1 teachers) if they own it and I can borrow it! I've always worked in teams that are willing to share so I've never really had a problem with this. I've even sent out emails to the whole staff if I was having trouble finding something and didn't want to purchase with my own money!
Any toys I do have I just store them in or above cabinets when not in use!
Do you pull materials for the day in the morning/day before or pull for the full week? And how do you store those you'll be using daily/weekly?
I kind of do both, I pull what I can for the next week on Friday after school and put them in a bin and then every day after school I double check that everything I need for the next day is set-up or in the bin.
Are all manipulatives in one bin? Or do you keep them with the activities that use them?
No, I keep manipulatives seperate and organize by manipulatives (e.g. snap cubes in one bin, counting bears in one bin) UNLESS I only use the material for that one particular centre. Then I put them with the centre/activity. Seasonal/holiday manipulatives go in their respective bins! But again, I'm going to sound like a broken record but our brains work so differently when it comes to organization so put things where YOU will remember best!
If something is Christmas themed & also patterning (for example) which bin do you sort them into?
This is answered in the question above, but I would put it in the Christmas bin because I would only use it during that time of the year!
9. An Ending Note
I love to organize and I do truly believe that the time and money spent is worth it when you think about the time you are saving looking for things when everything is organized.
BUT
Don't feel like it has to be/look perfect from the beginning.
I say this because organizing can be expensive and I know I did not have the money for all these special containers and bins when I set up my first classroom. I did my best and still spent money on bins but I got what was cheapest and fit where I needed to.
Nowadays I find that social media makes it seem like all these new teachers have these beautiful coordinated classrooms. But it really isn't realistic and we shouldn't feel like we need to spend so much money! I've accumulated what I've shown in this post over 7+ years and even still probably spent too much money (but organization is my jam and it makes me happy).
Anyhow I wanted to leave you with this post about my first classroom I set up: http://www.apinchofkinder.com/2014/08/classroom-reveal-2014.html
It's not perfect. Not everything is coordinated. I used what I could scrounge up from other teachers in the building who were willing to give me stuff. But I made it through the year and the kids never once said anything about mismatched bins or cubbies that were labeled with a sticker label!
I hope this post was helpful!
Yukari
