The Changes Begin

I went to the school this morning to start on my classroom. I didn’t expect to get a lot done but thought I might as well start. I grabbed my laundry hamper and took it to the laundry area by the gym, but discovered some laundry in the washer unfinished due to the frequent power outages we’ve had, so I dealt with that load and left my hamper. When I returned to the classroom I went on a hunt for my speakers and got my itunes going to keep me motivated. With my music playing I began moving in 16 desks, yikes, I don’t like desks. I like tables and floor, but those are only options along with desks in grade 1 at our school, not in lieu of desks. Then one of the janitors showed up and he asked the three summer students to help me move my things back into the classroom. They were very willing and in less than an hour we had everything in the room.

shiny floor and open space

more shiny floor and open space, book racks and science shelves

my desk area, it won't be empty for long

fridge, stove, snack table - where are they?

We started by moving the filing cabinet and desk into the corner, since they were the heaviest and needed to be put in the corner. Then we put shelves behind the desk and put in the fridge and stove.

desk area, desk is hidden by the brown shelf on the left

fridge, stove and snack/guided reading table

Where do I go from here, everything is bunched in the middle and piled on top of the desks and shelves. I need to think about the different work I will have for the students and how best to set it up for their use.

yikes, lots of stuff, can't even see the shiny floor, science shelves are way back in the corner

I decided to set up the other guided reading table and my paint drying rack and cart with some of my art supplies. I may switch  the two guided reading tables, I will have to walk around when everything else is in place and see how the traffic flow works.

guided reading table and paint drying rack

The shelf on the left will have art supplies that the children will have access to at all times. There will be more supplies on another shelf nearby that they will have ready access to as well. I will have some blank booklets for them on these shelves and some painting supplies, as well as paper, glue, markers, crayons, pencil crayons and a variety of collage materials.

the infamous desks

For now I have the desks in four rows of four, luckily I got desks that are all the same size. I can use different sized chairs if necessary to adjust for different sized students. With that done, I switched the laundry and went home to think more about the classroom and get ready for another day of organizing.