Classroom Design 2016

It's a new year and a new classroom layout. We had to make some adjustments for more students so we had to utilize our space well. If you don't know about our classroom, we are a co-teaching kindergarten classroom that advocates the Reggio inspired environment. We do inquiry learning investigations as well as our regular daily instruction.

Here are photos of our classroom design for this year.
Our whole group area... the students will add their own representations to the alphabet and number line as we learn them.

 Our calendar

 Student check in for morning attendance

 The parents will write a wish for their child this year and we will weave it in the wire.

 Our desk area with lazy Susan's on the tables

 Our reading area... this year it is a smaller space but students will be able to pull out the bean bags to relax and read on the carpet.

 Our loose parts area also doubles as a small group table.

 Right now we have beads, rocks and gems for thr students to practice making their own masterpieces.

 Our math area

 One shelf has number blocks and gems for counting...

 This shelf has basic manipulatives.

 Our writing area

 Right now we have our writing and drawing tools...

 And we have stamps, letters and line tracing.

 Our art area...

 Students can also use chalk...

 They will start with watercolors in this area.

 Our clay play area doubles as an intervention table as well...

 Right now students will use play-dough with tools and letter/number cookie cutters.

 Our sensory table...

 We have not yet filled it but will probably start with noodles and letters.

 This is another intervention area but we will also work on projects here.

 We will also meet here in small groups.

 Our building area...

 Students like to build on the floor and the train table...

 Right now we have different types of blocks and sticks.

 Our home living area...

 Right now it is set up as a house...

 I love our new kitchen set.

 Our science area...

 This is our light table...

 We will find nature items to put in these baskets...

 Students will be able to explore at these tables.

I can't wait until students start using our centers... but for right now we are still learning the routine!

Summer Time Crafting

Summer time is my favorite time work on some pieces for our classroom.  We love to go to yard sales and find unique items... sometimes I find the coolest things in my garage that I didn't even know were there!  Here are a few things I have recently worked on and I know I will create some other things before school starts.

• Math Area Numbers:

         My step-dad helped cut up logs.  Then I painted the numbers and used puffy paint to outline them.  These will be great as our kinders start learning about numbers.  They can count out loose parts to match the log, put them in order, use them as a reference, count the dots in all... I'm sure they will come up with their own ideas!

• Electrical Spool Seats:

        My dad works with an electrician who gave him several old wire spools.  We used some of them last year during our bakery and art investigations to display the students' work pieces but I had extras at home.  I have wanted to make little stools out of them for a long time but I didn't want to spend extra money on foam for the seats.  Today I was trying to think about what I could stuff the seats with... and then it hit me!  I spray painted the bottom parts of the spools with black paint.  Then I used black and white fabric from old shirts for the cloth... and for the inside/cushy part... old plastic grocery bags!  I had tons of them in my pantry so I used them to cover the top of the spools and then used a staple gun to hold the fabric down.  These seats will be great at one of our coffee tables.

• Chalkboard Writing Area Table

       Someone gave us an old coffee table that was just sitting in my garage.  Today I used chalkboard paint to paint the top part of the table and then sanded down the legs so they were a natural wood.  I love the way it turned out.  It will be great for the kids to sit at in our writing area.. maybe even with the black and white stools!

• Home Living Kitchen Set

     I have wanted a wooden kitchen set for our kids to use for years... but they are so expensive!  After some pinterest searching, I realized I could make my own.  I bought a sturdy wooden hutch a few years back for $5 at a yard sale.  It has just been sitting around my house.  My step-dad used a saw to cut a hole for a sink (metal bowl) and a faucet that someone was throwing away.  I used tree cookies to paint wooden burners to represent the stove.  It has two shelves... one will have the curtain and we are still working to make an oven door with wood and plastic... pictures of the finished product to come later...

Summer is such a great time to work on crafts for the classroom... just look around for what you have laying around your house!

Donors Choose Project

Hello everyone...We have a new donors choose project up. This one is for a classroom area rug.   In our classroom we do most of our instruction as a community on the carpet before students go off and practice on their own.  Every year Ms. West and I purchase new rugs but they just don't last. It is also difficult to find one large enough for our whole class! I found this one and thought it was so beautiful with the neutral colors and it had the subtle alphabet... plus it has 48 squares on it! How perfect for the kids to sit on.  Unfortunately we can not afford to do this on our own.  Here is a picture! If you would like to donate please click the link! Donations can remain completely anonymous.
https://www.donorschoose.org/project/an-area-for-learning/2038432/?rf=link-siteshare-2016-06-teacher-teacher_2830135&challengeid=20555911

Donors Choose is an amazing organization! We have gotten 2 projects funded through their site and amazing donors! It is the people who support education and the students that make our job just a bit easier! Thank you donors!

Caterpillars and Butterflies

It seems like a right of passage that kindergarteners learn about caterpillars and butterflies... so we did. I don't have as many pictures and didn't capture every step of this process due to the fact that we were simultaneously finishing our art investigation and preparing for kindergarten recognition... but I captured a few pictures of our mini investigation.

For this mini investigation we did a large writing piece. Students made books to share facts about caterpillars and butterflies. For our research on this small scale investigation... students would learn about one thing (example... what caterpillars can look like or how butterflies protect themselves) and then share what they had learned. By the time we were finished researching, students had a 5-6 page book about what they had learned.

We also observed caterpillars going through the life cycle. Ms. West ordered the caterpillars with plenty of time to spare but of course they didn't arrive! After much battling with the company... they finally came a few weeks before school let out. Miraculously enough they did emerge from their chrysalis just in time to be released the last week of school.  It was pretty cool because the students actually got to see one coming out of the chrysalis!

Here are just a few center pictures that we were able to get!

Students represented caterpillars and butterflies with art work. We were even able to make a collection for the art museum.

Students used clay to make models.

Students used loose parts to practice symmetry.

 Students worked in our math area with pattern blocks...

 And made caterpillar patterns.

Students enjoyed reading non-fiction texts.

They also loved our sensory table filled with dirt, shovels and insects!

 It was a quick study and we missed a lot of photo opps I'm sure... but the kids had a good time and learned a lot. We sent the books they wrote home... but if I can get my hands on one I will post it!