My Room at The Virtual Vine

My Room

Hmmm ... so you stopped by for a visit, huh? :) Well, as you can see from the dates, I've not kept up with the pictures. And to tell the truth, I'm a little (well, a lot) ashamed now of how cluttered up my classroom looks! I feel like snatching all these pictures off and putting a big "Under Construction" sign up! But, I hope that this will motivate me to get down to school this month and revamp my classroom. I started doing Inclusion/Tutorial a couple of years ago, and since then the clutter has just been getting worse. But I did start working on it at the end of last school year.

Cindy -7/07

Sneak a Peek!

Here's a peek into what I'm doing to declutter, organize and clean up my classroom for the 2007-2008 school year! This is one of my shelves that my husband repainted white for me. I chose white (finally!) as the paint color because I already have a white set of baskets on wheels and I want to add 2 sets of 2 drawers on wheels in white, too. The low drawer sets will give me even more low shelving to use and more storage space.

The tubs in the picture were repainted as well. Those tubs are 9 years old! They were originally cream, burgundy, and dark country blue ... the available colors back then for dishpans. And since I couldn't find any that I liked as well, and they've come out with this new AWESOME Krylon Fusion paint for plastic, my husband just repainted the tubs for me. The paint isn't cheap, it's about $4 a can, but it paints 3 tubs and I LOVE the way they turned out! The colors are Sunshine Yellow, Pepper Red, and Patriotic Blue.

2007 - 2008

Today was the first day of school and for the first time EVER I had my room about 95% ready! Man, did that feel awesome! I felt like that at the end of the day I could go home and not have to spend the night trying to get everything done (after spending all day in meetings). So here are some photos of what I've done this summer to clean and organize my classroom. I'm not done yet! There's still work to be done, but it is ready for class now if need be. (no pressure) I'll fill you in on what I still want to do. ;)

This is my desk. Take a long look ... it might not look like this for long!!!!! :) I'm still looking for a place to stash the crate you see hidden underneath it! ;) The filing cabinets behind it still need some organization.

The kitchen area is another messy area that still needs organization. At the end of last year I had two piles to stuff to deal with, but I got it down to the one pile on the counter top. :)

This is the Reading Work Station. The desk on the left holds the tubs of leveled AR books, a file of jokes, and bookmarks. The display case holds picture books and magazines, while the spinning display rack holds emergent readers. Next to that rack are the class supplies. The built-in bookcase behind holds my thematic binders and resource books and the TV/VCR is on the rolling cart to the left that my husband made for me. It has underneath storage for the VCR tapes. Above you see some of my 60 something unit boxes! :)

This is the Games/Puzzles Work Station. It's mostly puzzles and blocks. To the right you see my sand table my husband build for me. That trash can is one of his next painting projects! ;) Along with painting all the baskets and class supply tubs so they match the tubs he's already painted for me. :)

Some of my math stuff.

More math stuff.

This shelf hold literacy stuff as well as 2 thematic tubs (I'm out of room!!!!). You can also see part of the old Word Wall left up on the bulletin board. It still has to come down.

This is what's left of my calendar area. Very much scaled down from what it was 3 years ago! I'll add more as it's needed. Because I don't have a resource CLASS any more, I didn't need the Morning Meeting area any more. This calendar area is all that I needed last year to teach Saxon Math. I'll use the K student names in the red pocketchart for Name Cheers (I have them whited out for confidentiality).

I just added these two rolling drawer units today. I think I'm going to LOVE them. My mini offices fit perfectly into the top drawer!

Listening Work Station still needs some work, too. A cassette recorder would be nice! :)

This is my reading table. It's been with me the whole 23 years! :) The mobile computer behind the table is just stored in my room. It's really part of an Early Intervention Lab that I oversee and is used for teachers to check out and create resource materials to use with at-risk students. The cubbies behind the table look junky but they're really not. Each cubby contains activities to teach a particular skill ... the left side is math and the right side is language arts. I'm going to look into purchasing red and white polka dot fabric to velcro over the cubbies to give them a more finished look so they won't look so cluttered. The fabric will match the trim on my whiteboard.

This is my personal area. It probably gives me the most pleasure of all the areas in the classroom (but there are some really close seconds!). A lot of the items were given to me by students and I enjoy seeing them and remembering them. :)

Computers Work Station. 1 newish computer, 2 oldish computers, and 1 dinosaur! :) Yep, the dinosaur from the 80s still works and I still like to use it with the kids. They can't mess it up!

These are new pictures of my classroom. Below them, I've left the pictures of how it was set up when I first moved in. I've changed a lot of how it was set up the first two years. I like it much better this way and I seem to have so much more room, even though I haven't gotten rid of anything.

2003 - 2004

This is the view from the doorway looking towards my new Teaching Wall. The Computer Center is right there to the left as you walk in with 2 dinosaur computers from the 80s that we still use, and 2 newer ones from the 90s. I like the dinosaurs for practice because the kids can't mess them up.

In front of that is the Puzzles & Blocks Center. Behind them are the 5 Center Tubs. Behind this divider are two tables. One we use for Math and the other we use for Morning Meeting. Then the wall in front of the Morning Meeting table is the Teaching Wall. The corner to the right of that is my Reading Table. (same place as always)

Closer view.

The Teaching Wall is attached to strips that were built into the classroom. This is where we have Morning Meeting.

This picture is of something that's never made it to the site. This is my built in bookcase for all my teacher resource books. You can see on the top of the shelf paper boxes full of units and the first row of shelves is my units that I've begun putting into binders for easier access.

In front of this shelf, you see my Magnetic Letters Center (on the front of the desk, back of another desk, and the back of the small filing cabinet. On top of the desk facing the camera are tubs with supplies for my students to pick up and take to where ever they're working. Each tub contains crayons, scissors, and glue. Beside those are a can of extra pencils, a cup of hand-held erasers and then small books on a turnstile. Beside that is my Reading Center.

To the left of the shelf, you see our TV/VCR combo.

2001- 2002

This is my new classroom. It's a very nice, large room in a brand new K - 2 building. My classroom is one of 4 in the Kindergarten wing. It has built in cubbies, a large built in
bookcase and cabinets, a walk in storage closet, a sink, a water fountain, adjoining restrooms, and several Internet connections. So come on in and have a look around. :)

This is our kitchen area. It's probably the part I'm most proud of. I LOVE having all these cabinets and counter space. It has a built in sink and water fountain. We added the table, a microwave, a toaster oven, a slow cooker, and a refrigerator. When we have snacks or cooking projects, this is where they're done. I also purchased my own paper cutter and book binder, so they sit on the end of the counter as well (along with the 3-hole punch). This gives them a permanent place to stay where they're always readily accessible. And the table also does double duty as a Center sometimes or a place for work to dry.

Stored on top of the cabinets are part of my units. I store them in copy paper boxes. Each unit/theme is stored in a box (or two or three) and labeled. Everything that goes with that unit is in the box except for reproducibles, etc. They're stored in a binder or file and left where I can easily access them so I can add things as I find them.

This is the west wall of my classroom. The bookcase is mainly storage space for misc. books that aren't part of a unit/theme and aren't being used in the reading center. The tubs are filled with excess books and tapes for the listening center. The green shelf was made for me by my husband and it stores our puzzles on top, and our blocks on the bottom two shelves. The red beanbag is part of the listening center. I bought a big crate that stores the books and tapes that aren't part of a unit. The tape player, book, and headphones sit on the crate.

This is the corner of the west and south wall. This is my reading table. All guided reading instruction takes place here. We call them reading groups, but actually most of the instruction is one-on-one. The children are facing me, with their backs to the class. This serves two purposes: one to better keep their attention, and two, so that I can keep an eye on the rest of the students as well. I purposely keep the wall blank as not to cause a distraction. However, there's all the stuff in the cubbies and on the counter to contend with. :) The little cubbies to the left hold all my construction paper and photocopied materials. The hanging files on the counter contain the individualized and group materials for my students. That's the only way I can keep myself sane! :)

I use SRA Reading Mastery I & II (Direct Instruction) as the backbone of my reading program ... along with lots of other stuff.

This is our Apple Tree. I use it at the beginning of the year for discipline. Each student has an apple with their name on it. They are on the top two rows. On the next 7 rows are larger apples with consequences. If their apple is moved to that row due to infractions, then they receive that consequence. The first two rows are warnings, the next is lose 1/2 recess, then all of recess, then time-out, then parent contact, and last, possible office referral. By second semester, the tree is really not needed for most students. For those students who don't get their apples moved during the week, they get a trip to the Treasure Box on Mon. morning. By the end of the year, I had so many students not getting their apples moved that I started doing "Special Treats" instead of the Treasure Box. The Special Treat might be a cupcake, a Blow Pop, or something extra special.

The tubs on the floor hold our Take-Home Totes. These are activity totes that I made to encourage parents to work with their children at home. They span many different levels and skills. Most totes are brown envelopes with directions that have been laminated. Inside the envelope is an activity. It might be a puzzle, a game, a file folder activity, a book with an activity, etc. There's always either a written activity for the children to complete with the help of their parent, or a response form for the parent to sign.

Each tote is numbered, and I keep a "check out" list on a clipboard for organization purposes. The TA checks the tote back in and makes sure that all pieces are returned.

And this is my desk area. The computer and printer take up most of my desk, so there's not much else that goes on here. We're now required to do all grades, report cards, etc. on the computer. You can see 3 of my 4 filing cabinets that are full of files on every kind of unit/theme/skill preK-2 that you can think of. The TV/VCR sits on a rolling stand, also made by my husband, with locking storage underneath for my video collection. I use headphones with the TV most of the time so that I can use it while others are continuing to work. Occasionally, it's used as incentive for students to complete their work and sometimes I use it for instruction. I've purchased videos to teach sounds, etc. for that purpose. I've also used it with the Letter People videos.

It just so happened that when I'm using my pocketcharts, which is daily, that you can't see my desk from the doorway. Often, this turns into a good place to hide on my planning period or after school! ;) Also, the corner isn't quite so junked up now (this was right after I moved in at the beginning of school). I now use that space between the wall and the storage cabinet to hang my song charts and even more books/tapes. They hang on an extension rod that runs from the wall to the storage cabinet.

This picture is basically the back side of the hub of the classroom. If you were standing in my classroom, the reading table would be to your right and the kitchen area to your left. In the foreground of the picture are the students' desks. I have them all pushed together to form a long "table." So, as I'm teaching a "reading group", there might be students at their seat completing individualized seat work. Their desk area is basically a "Quiet Zone", that's why I have it situationed close to the reading table. They are however, allowed to whisper.

Behind their desks, you see the Reading Center (with the two yellow chairs) and beside that more puzzles. They are housed in some of those nifty stackable and snap-together crates that you can buy at Office Depot. They come in different colors and they coordinate great with my yellow, green, blue, red color scheme.

On top of the crates is our Mailing Center that I put in place in Feb. The Center was made from a wine box that came with the dividers already in place. I just added contact paper to the outside and name labels to each cubby. Beside that, you'll see the Writing Center. That's the place set aside for the students to write their messages that go in the mailbox.

You can't see it very well, but at the end of the Writing Center table, there's a utility box with letters for using in the pocketchart. I'm adding a close up of both the letters and the chart to the Literacy Connections page. So you can see and read more about those there.

Here, you can see one of my pocketchart stands. I use several pocketcharts at once, so I have them back to back on each stand. I hang them using the grommets provided, then I pin the excess material so that it doesn't flop over.

You can't see it, but on the back side of the Reading Center and the puzzles, is a 6 ft. long, 2 1/2 ft. tall shelf painted blue. My husband made me 2 of those. The blue one holds my math materials, and a red one holds my Lang. Arts materials. I used these as a room divider, along with some other shelves to partion off the main hub of the classroom. That hub is in front of the Teaching Wall (white board). There's a round table there where the students sit and work. That's where we start our day off with Morning Meeting.

You can also see the easel to the left. It does all kinds of jobs. The side you can see has a flannelboard. The other side has a magnetic chalk board. It also comes with a very strong magnetic strip of wood with 2 pegs so that it turns into a Big Book easel. I've recently discovered that the moveable strip of wood works very well for holding my short writing chart that we use both for Daily News and for Writing Workshop.

This is a close up of the Reading Center. In the background, you can see children working at the table that's the "hub" of our classroom.

This picture shows my math manipulatives. I love collecting neat things for the kids to use as counters and I sometimes make matching work mats for them to use with them. The chart on the left (on the side of the storage cabinet) shows how I keep up with which student has completed which Center for the week. When they've successfully completed their Center, they get an apple sticker. They complete 5 Centers weekly. (This picture was taken at the end of the school year, so things are, shall we say ... a little askew! :)

In the foreground, you can see the edge of the table. This is the hub of the classroom. Lots and lots and lots of teaching and learning goes on at this table, and in this particular spot in the classroom. After we finish Morning Meeting here, we do some kind of thematic unit activity. I usually leave the children working here while I start pulling reading groups at the reading table. The TA (when I had one) would monitor the children working here, as well as those completing Centers and doing seatwork. The children get to make the decision (most of the time) what activity they're going to work on and where they want to work on it at. As long as they're getting their assignments completed and are actively engaged in learning, I try to leave as many choices open to them as possible.

This picture shows the Center tubs. Each tub contains a Center. Sometimes I have to have alternative activities in the tub for one or more students who need an alternative for the assigned Center. To the left, you can see the letters for the pocketchart, then a tub with File Folder Activties, and in front of that my roll of butcher paper. I ordered this from Lakeshore, I believe, and I love it. You just pull off the length of paper you need and cut! Below the Center tubs are my math materials. The cubby in the shelf to the left holds hanging ziplock bags with my laminated math mats, number charts, etc. Stashed underneath those are slates and white boards along with chalk and old socks for erasers.

This is my easel with my writing chart on it. Below the chart are magnetic letters. Behind the easel to the right, you can see the door beside the kitchen area that leads to the student restrooms. There's a short (very short) hallway between my class and the class next door. On either side of that hallway is a restroom. Girls on the left, guys on the right.

Then in front of that, you can see the yellow baskets where the children put their papers to be checked and the TAs desk. This isn't my TA though ... this was one of the substitute TAs.

In the lower right hand corner of the picture, you can see the red shelf that I spoke about earlier that holds the Lang. Arts materials. You can also see from this picture and previous pictures that although this "hub area" is sectioned off from the rest of the room, there are entrances/exits from it on both sides. But, sometimes I put the pocketcharts in the left hand exit.

This picture shows my Language Arts materials in the red shelf. On top of the shelf are tubs that contain classroom supplies of crayons, glue, and scissors for those students who don't have their own. Beside that you see the clipboard and pencils for Writing the Room, then the painted coffee can with my collection of pointers and glasses (hanging around the rim of the can) for Read the Room. Beside that is a deep basket with Bingo stampers for doing Dot-to-Dot and an extra supply of pencils. In front of that's the collection of cassettes that we use in the blue basket (Frog Street Press and Mr. Al mostly). Then the tub with Lang. Arts File Folder Activities, baby wipes, and my own devised table-top chart stand :) with our month poem on the chart.

This is a close up of the pointers. You can also see the extra dowels that I'd purchased to make new pointers with. My husband cuts them in half for me and I add novelty pencil toppers to match my themes. They just stick right onto the end. I can get two pointers from one dowel. You can see the apple one that I made in the can. The seasonal/thematic ones go in the box with the themes. I want them to be "new" when I pull them out so the kids will enjoy using them, rather than leaving them in the can year round.

This is the "Teaching Wall"! :) I have a magnetic white board that I mainly use for hanging stuff on. Starting in the top left, you'll see my pocketchart calendar (Love it! ... it's so much easier to change now), my "All About Today" calendar that includes everything including the weather; days of the week chart, underneath that our "piggy bank" which we add to daily depending on the date. (Ex. 27th would contain 27 cents) I stuck magnets to the back of coins and that's what we use. We talk about trading in smaller coins for larger coins, etc. Then we have our months of the year chart and then student names. On the right hand side, I have large coin shapes and their value. Above the board the ABCs, below the board 1 - 10. I use the chalk railing for thematic books, and the boxes are magnetically attached for student work. On the other side of that, you see our completed 100th Day of School chart. We colored in a square each day of school until we reached 100. You can't see them, but below the board are the kids' Book Boxes.

This is our Computer Center. We have one Pentium computer and the other two are from the 80s. But, I use them all. I even like the old computers because I can put my students there working on some of the old "practice programs" and not have to worry about them messing something up. The newer computer we have to monitor more. The kids have made it do some things that I couldn't even fix! :)

And to the right side of the Computer Center is the door leading into the hallway.

Well, that's it. Hope you enjoyed the tour! :)

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	6/16/02 last updated 8.12.07 visitors since 11.11.03