Classroom Reveal & Freebies!!

     With school right around the corner, my classroom is officially ready and awaiting students! I am so excited for my students to see my first classroom and start using all of the resources that I've put together. In case you don't remember, here is what my classroom looked like before:



Panoramic View
There wasn't a whole lot of anything in the classroom when I got there, t
he furniture in the middle of the room wasn't mine.

Everything that was in the classroom was pretty much focused in this one corner
because it held all the storage for the room.

     Here is what my classroom looks like now, get ready for a picture overload!



Panoramic View
from the back of the room

     I will start at the back of the classroom and move clockwise around the room:



My Math Area
(The bulletin board at the back of my room)

Close-up View of: Do You Think Like a Mathematician?

These posters outline criteria for mathematical thinking and were

inspired by ones created by Sidney at Teaching is a Gift!

Close-up View of the Bulletin Board: My Life in Math.
The is going to be our 1st project of the year that I am going to do with 
all 3 of my math classes to get them thinking mathematically. 
Rather than fill out a survey telling me about themselves, 
they have to explain themselves using math equations.
This project was inspired by the "Math About Me" project shared by Jennifer at 4mula Fun!

Remember the ugly bookcases that were blocking my bulletin board? 
They are now painted and moved to the back corner of my classroom.
I have room for each of my classes to store their supplies!

The textbooks for each of my classes are hidden from view 
with a black curtain that I had from when I lived in residence while at university! 
I love having clutter hidden away because I feel like it makes 
the room more calming and organized.

The far wall of my classroom. 
I had originally wanted to put up colourful curtains along the length of windows 
but I was informed that it was against our codes so I had to scrap that idea.
I have my desk pushed up almost against the wall to save space in the room.

On the far left you can see the microwave stand that I painted 
bright blue to match the bookcases. 
The frame on the wall behind my desk is the SAME shade of blue 
and I found it at the Dollar Store!

Close-up view of my Bloom's Taxonomy Posters!

I have these up in my room as not only a reminder for myself

but for my students as well. During student teaching I would

reference Bloom's Taxonomy a lot with my students and they would

use it to evaluate their level of mastery. They also used it when

creating their own assessment questions!

These were inspired by the ones created by Jennifer Jones at

Hello Literacy!

My "Organization Headquarters" at the front-left of my room.
The custodians brought this cupboard out of storage for me. 
I painted the doors to match the bookcase and microwave stand 
and added curtains to hide the clutter.
On top, from left to right, I have storage for myself (things to hand out, copy, etc),
 the "Hand-In Box" for students and our "We Missed You" 
station to hold handouts for students who were away.
On the whiteboard, I also have a place to write important notes, homework, etc for each of my classes.

Here is a view of what it looks like behind the curtains!
I have my teacher resources on the far left and supplies for students on the right
(crayons, markers, scissors, calculators, etc)

A close-up of my Hand-In Box, it is hard to see because it is so sunny
but I used binder clips to label each of the drawers so they are easy to
change next semester. I got the idea from this Pin on Pinterest
http://pinterest.com/pin/70087337924300630/.

A close-up of my "Important Info" board that I sectioned off on my
white board. I made each of the labels on Word using clipart from
http://www.openclipart.org/. I plan on using this to display important dates, upcoming
assessments, homework, etc.

The interior wall of my classroom.
If you scroll to the very top of the page, you can see what this area
looked like when it was all covered by giant bookcases!
Now it is all open and ready to display student work :)

At the right-hand edge of my white board I have this shelving unit that I, again,
covered with curtains. Not only does it hold more classroom supplies, but it
helps create a division between the classroom and the work space 
that I have in the far right-hand corner!

Here is a peek of what it looks like without the curtain.
Can you see why I was so eager to cover up all of my storage areas!?
I think it looks so nice when it is covered up and out of sight.

Here is the space I created at the far right of my classroom 

(on the other side of the shelving unit).

I had both the futon and the chair from when my husband and I lived

in residence at university and they fit perfectly in the classroom!

I plan on having this space available for students who need a comfortable place 

to work or read independently. You will notice in the previous pictures that I

have clipboards on top of the shelving unit if students need a hard surface to work

on while in this area.

A close-up view of my "What Makes A Good Blog Post?"

checklist for our blogging station. It is a good run-through of

everything a students blog post should have before it is posted!

 

My Tech Corner
The back right-hand corner of my room (right beside the door).
I had to have both computers here due to the amount of available hook-ups.
The computer with the chair is my students blogging station with blogging points
on the bulletin board beside them. The computer facing the picture is my own.

________________________________________________________

To celebrate Back-To-School and my First Classroom I am making the following files 

available to you for FREE! 

Simply click on the titles to go to the file :)

- Do You Think Like A Mathematician? Criteria for Mathematical Thinking
  Set of 6 Posters
- Bloom's Taxonomy For Teachers & Students
  Set of 6 Posters
- What Makes A Good Blog Post? Blogging in the Classroom Checklist
  Set of 5 Posters
                             ________________________________________________________

A BIG thank you going out to all of the edu-bloggers out there that inspired so many of the elements in my classroom!
Wishing you all a great year :)