Tips and Tricks Guest Post!

Hi There!
Come visit me over at Lana's 4 The Love of Teaching!  I'm writing a guest post on these beautiful babies and other affordable (and cheap) organization products for your classroom supplies! :)

Tips and Tricks: Holiday Decorations

Hey There! I hope this post finds you ready to enjoy some 4th of July festivities! Who doesn't love going partially deaf as 24 firetrucks pass you buy s.l.o.w.l.y. with their sirens blaring?? Or the delicious taste of a warm Tootsie Roll you picked off of the curb- YUM!

In all reality I really do like celebrating Independence Day along with any other holiday! Today I wanted to share with you my tips and tricks on organizing my holiday decorations in the classroom.  

So, first off I really really really try to keep my holiday decorations to a minimum.  I mean, who has the space to store all of that?? I also spend so much time and $$$ decorating my room at the beginning of the year, that I don't like to change up too much.  

It is nice to mix things up every once in a while and my kiddos always seem to appreciate the little holiday or seasonal touches I add to our classroom.  

Most of the seasonal decorations that hang in the classroom are projects that my kids have created. I love to see their work hanging proudly on our walls and they love it too! 

One decoration I change out monthly are these cardboard letters found at Joann's or Hobby Lobby.  I've painted them in coordinating colors and have a set for just about every month...

October: EEK

November: GIVE

December/January: SNOW

February: HUG

March: LUCK

April/May: BLOOM

In addition to my cardboard letters I also have a few window decor pieces, window/mirror clings, and one yard of a holiday themed fabric.  Since my classroom has an entire wall of windows (LOVE IT!)  window decor pieces add a big punch to my classroom decor from the inside and the outside of the building.

The window/mirror clings are the perfect size to go on the small section of glass on my classroom door. 

The holiday themed fabric also packs quiet the punch.  I like to use it as a tablecloth in an area that is highly utilized by my students and myself. 

For storage I'm able to fit my fabric and window clings along with any other little dollar store treasures into one gallon sized Ziploc bags.  

I like how I can see everything at a quick glance and how nicely everything is stored.  The Ziploc Bags lay flat on top of one another, the window decorations are also pretty comparable in size. 

Right now I've got all of my decorations fitting into one large tub, but they could easily fit into another smaller sized bin. Hmm...that just might be something I have to do. 

Do you decorate your classroom monthly? How do you store all of your decorations?

Tips and Tricks: Bulletin Borders

Hey there!

So what teacher doesn't love a good trick?  A teammate of mine noticed what I did with my borders and I thought if SHE found it interesting...maybe, just maybe someone else will too.  

If this is not anything new to you, well I'm sorry, you can place your complaints with her ;) 

Here's a snapshot of one of my front bulletin boards.  I use fabric as my background.  I like how it holds up against the harsh florescent lighting in the classroom.  This particular piece has been up for two years and still looks great! 

So, first thing's first.  I loved Melanie's tip from Schoolgirl Style on layering borders.  It's one of those things when I read it and saw a visual of it...I thought, why didn't I ever think of that!? 

*Smack hand to forehead*

I also love the blend of textures and prints/solids when using the bordette and a patterned border.  Not to mention the fact that it's cost effective! 

Any who....although it's hard to see, the sprinkles border on the right has been laminated.  That's right.  Laminated. I learned this trick while completing my student teaching and it saves SO much $$ especially for those of you who swap out your borders throughout the year.  

BUT, it also saves me a lot of time.  Since the border is laminated I just gently lift the entire piece off and remove the staples later. 

My next tip is that I don't ever, ever, EVER cut my borders.  How many times are you searching for borders and find all sorts of little odds and end clippings that were used to patch up holes?   It drove me crazy!!!! 

I decided to stop cutting my borders.  Sure, it means I may need to have a few extra strips of border, but this way I have a pristine set awaiting me for next year. 

Here you can see instead of patching up this spot with half of a border, I laid an entire second piece of border matching up the scalloped edges.  

I hope you found this a tad helpful as you make your plans for your classrooms! 

XOXO