Wednesday, January 4, 2012

My Classroom "Before" Pictures



Target #1: My Teacher Desk Area
This is the view behind my desk.  I'm not sure I if I need to keep everything here.  I really don't like all the materials up top.  I have the high interest school library books, award baskets (yes, two) and beanie babies up there.  The beanies are part of a reward system.

This is the complete view of my desk and the materials behind it.  Kind of blah, isn't it? 

The top of my desk.  This is about the average amount of clutter for me.  Soooo.... I'm thinking of switching my round small group table and teacher desk.

This is the round table.  Can I put this in my desk area and my desk here?  Here's a Pinterest pic of what I envision the round table to look like if I swapped it for my desk.



I would dress up the sides of the desk with writing center posters and turn it into the writing center for the students.

Here's what I need to do with all the office supplies to make this happen:

For daily lesson plans and materials:

For the miscellaneous office supplies (pens, pencils, rubber bands), I have a large magnetic chalkboard in that area and a desire to do some crafts:


Whew!  I can tell this is going to take some time!  I hope I'm not biting off more than I can chew.  I'm trying to stay realistic.


16 comments:

  1. You have a great blog. Thanks for sharing.
    Dawn
    http://www.literacymathideas.blogspot.com/

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  2. Awww. That is very sweet of you to say. I love your blog, too!

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  3. Your desk area is similar to mine! Hopefully we'll organize our areas and make them look nice.
    Rambling About Reading

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  4. I loved your vision of where you are going...especially the repurposed cereal boxes! I had the same debate about desk/reading table. Although I have a desk now, I usually sit at the reading table to work anyways. I think it's a great idea to use the desk as a writing center too!

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  5. Cute ideas! I like your vision of using the small group table as your desk. Much more room to work and that's where I typically sit anyway. Glad to see you on this Linky Party! :)

    Jamie at 2nd Grade Stuff

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  6. Not too bad it only looks like your desk and shelf need some work, but it seems like you have a plan.

    Ms. M
    Ms.M's Blog
    A Teacher's Plan

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  7. Cute blog! I'm partial to my student areas with the tables, and my desk...but I love the ideas you have for those! Love the ideas! I attempted the cereal boxes for each student this year but ran out of room to store them in one place, and they were too small for the papers that I had to keep in them.

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  8. Thanks for all the inspiring comments! I'm not entirely sure about ditching the desk or using cereal boxes as magazine holders. I like to scrapbook with my little sister, so we'll see if it's just a hobby thing or if it's practical :)

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  9. I think your room looks really good! At least you can see what color the top of your desk is :)
    You have some awesome ideas and I can't wait to see your progress. I found you through the linky and I'm your newest follower!

    Bonnie
    Living a Wonderful Life

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  10. I love how you've already got some great plans to get rid of your 'clutter'. Can't wait to see what you do!

    Kylie
    Down Under Teacher

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  11. I love your blog title. I think you have great plans for your room. I can't wait to see what you do.

    JJ

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  12. I love the Pinterest picture you posted! That table looks awesome. I also like your lesson plan baskets! It looks like you are well on your way to being organized!!

    Marvelous Multiagers!

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  13. I guess we are off on the right foot at least taking up the challenge, right? I love your idea for the round table.

    Elizabeth

    Fun in Room 4B

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  14. Hi! I am your newest follower! I just wanted to say that I think your room looks pretty nice and doesn't need that much work. I absolutely LOVE your round table "seats" or at least that's what I think they are...are they crates filled with your things and then padded?? If so, GENIUS!! How did you do it??!!

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  15. Welcome, Vanessa! I got the idea for the crate seats from Pinterest. The crates are topped with plywood, foam, and fabric. You have to cut each piece of plywood carefully because each crate is slightly differently shaped. I used spray glue to attach the foam and stapled the fabric to the underside of the plywood. Here's a link for a tutorial: http://adayinthelifeofmisskranz.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2011-08-10T01%3A25%3A00-05%3A00&max-results=7
    You need to scroll pretty far down on the page. Hope this helps!

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  16. I love all the Pinterest ideas. I LOVE the little crates!
    Beth Ann
    Taming My Flock of Firsties
    bakteach16@gmail.com

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