Busy, Busy, Busy

As the title says, I have been busy!  I have been in my classroom getting set up for the new year.  I got rid of a HONKING HUGE desk, and I got a much smaller desk.  (Mental note: take pictures tomorrow to post.) I pushed my desk against a wall, so during my prep (hehehehe) I can look outside while posting grades or reflecting on my lesson plans.  Right now my student desks are in rows, but when my student list is finalized, I will put the desks into groups of three or four depending on the total number of kids I have in my biggest class.

I have my bulletin boards ready. I have five! Two stay the same all year. I leave the information board up all year and change the sports schedules and lunch menus.  I also leave my notes board up all year. It's where I tack all those memos that are important.

The other two boards in my classroom change monthly.  One is for character education.  It changes to match the word of the month and the kids get to add articles, quotes, pictures, and cartoons that capture the spirit of that word.  The other board is inspirational. Right now it says: DREAM BIG! with a poster under it with the quote by William Blake: What is now proved was once only imagined.

The board outside my room changes with the quarterly theme. We add to it each quarter, but it stays the same all quarter. The first quarter we are going to read Ender's Game, so the board is a picture of the cover, symbols for the four teams, and a few teaser quotes. All quarter we are going to read and write about space travel, the use of video games in the military, aliens, and other space related topics.  Our vocabulary and grammar lessons will also be tied into space travel. The kids will be able to add their stories, poems, and project ideas to that board.

(Another mental note: take pictures to post!)

Make-Over 2013-14

Well, I am working on updating my class decor. As my principal was gracious and painted all our rooms, I have an opportunity to update everything. I found out that my floors have not yet been waxed...so my thought was A-HA!! I can paint those ugly hand-me-down file cabinets. :)  lol  I figured that even if I did a horrible job. at least they would all be ugly the same. 

Well, I looked at Pinterest. I watched lots of Youtubes, and thought YAHOO! Spray paint! Let me tell you, spray paint is very ...... hmmmmmm ..... difficult to work with, especially if you've never worked with it before.  Carpal tunnel in one hand doesn't come close to an even coat. I finished two, other than the hardware.

Soooo......

Before: 

After:

Not too shabby. :)