Saturday, September 1, 2012

Classroom Pictures!

Well, it's finally time.  Tuesday is our first day of school!  We are starting so much later than all the other tri-state schools because we are reopening two schools.  That meant getting them ready, reconfiguring, and moving over 100 teachers.  It was a ton of work for teachers and support staff, but the end results look pretty darn good!

I will traveling between two schools this year, so I had to get two rooms ready.  Luckily, the awesome stuff I won from CTP went a long way!   I took a TON of pics for you to see...

The pics from S. Primary 
 Here are a few before pictures.

I was little bummed that there's only a chalk board in this room.  I prefer a dry erase board (and of coarse dream of a smart board), but I'll take what I can get!

Check out all those cabinets!  TONS of storage, plus a sink at the far end!  I'll be using the drawers to store student art.

Let the work begin - with a little help ;)

It was hard to tell in the first pics, but the walls were 5 shades of white, cream, dirt, and more.  My friend, Leah, was kind enough to give me some paint.  It's a soft buttery yellow.  Very cheery!  This is my husband and dad hard at work!


I used plastic table covers as my bulletin board backgrounds.  They are bigger than roll paper, so I can cover the entire board (even the gigantic ones above the cabinets).  They are perfect for boards that you don't plan to change often (they do get holes when you use a stapler on them).  The choices of colors also made me happy!  TIPIf you want bigger, but don't care how thin they are, go with the ones from The Dollar Tree, or the ones that are .97 at Walmart.  If you DO care about the thickness, go with the ones from Party City.  They are a bit better quality, but not as big.  

Eye candy!  My awesome stuff from the Dots on Turquoise line at Creative Teaching Press arrived!  It makes a perfect addition to my red and turquoise classroom!

 So here's what it looks like when it's all said and done.  Not the best angle or lighting, so here's a few more...

 I used the bulletin boards around the chalk board to display the Elements of Art.  I've since added a sign that says "Elements of Art" above the board.  I haven't come up with anything for the Space section yet.  So right now it's just an empty space... which IS space, right?! LOL

 I'm using the Dots on Turquoise library pockets to keep track of behavior.  Each class will earn a color strip to eventually make a rainbow.  Once they earn a rainbow, they get a free choice art day!

 Tables are marked with the 10' paper lanterns from The Knot, and 6' Dots on Turquoise circles.  I taped two circles back to back, marking each side, then poked a small hole to add to the lanterns.

 So this is actually TWO gigantic bulletin boards.  I covered them with the plastic table covers and a strip of paper.  (My plan is to put up binder clips using push pins and have this as a student work display board.  The binder clips will allow the work to not get holes when hanging.)  The border is strips of plastic table cover stapled in a wavy pattern.
The poster came from Target.  It came with a bunch of paper paint brushes that I will use for labeling.
The drawers store student work and are marked by teacher on the stars.
My friend Courtney gave me these giant paint brushes... aren't they awesome!?  The add the perfect touch to an empty corner.

 Bringing some of the Dots on Turquoise border to my desk ties it all together! 


Here are few detail pics from M. Primary (I forgot to take before pics and whole classroom pics... Ooops!)  They're in no particular order...
 A R T is velcroed to the board.  Each of my classrooms will use this to earn the rainbow strips mentioned above.  If they are not behaving, a letter comes down.  They can earn them back, but need all 3 letters to earn a strip.  I used more of the 6' Dots on Turquoise circles to make it.

Art Word wall and Rules board.  Words will be added to the board as the year passes and we learn more art vocabulary.
The rules are simple.  1. Show respect (people, supplies, art) 2. Follow Directions 3. Try your best.  I don't like to get complicated with the rules.  I think these cover it all!  Below the rules are the consequences... both good and bad. 

 Both schools have this posted at or on the door.  Students need to sign their name when leaving the classroom and erase it when they return.  This helps me keep track and helps me out in case of an emergency or fire drill.

 M. Primary has a "Meet the Stars bulletin board made with all Dots on Turquoise supplies.  These library pockets will work the same way as S. Primary - with classes earning color strips to make a rainbow.

 I love this quote, and have it in both classrooms.  Love the paisleys too.

 The paper lanterns at M. Primary are the same as at S. Primary.  Love them! 
 I don't have a ton of storage at M. Primary, so I'm using these bookshelves to store student work.  The one on the left has a paisley that the says 1st, and the one on the right says 2nd.  I brought color to this side of the room with the Dots on Turquoise border, paisleys, and my sad attempt at big tissue paper flowers (although they don't look bad from a distance).
The red basket is marked Free Draw.  I'm filling page protectors with paper as make-shift white boards for when students finish early.

 Gotta have my desk decorated too!  All of my "tools" are neatly organized in herb pots that I purchased at Target.  Color matches perfectly!

 I'm using the side of one of my filing cabinets to keep myself organized.  We are on a four day rotation, so keeping track of who I have when is going to be a bit more challenging than I'm used to. Hopefully this will help me out!

 I painted some cheap wood frames that I purchased at Micheal's and added some felt flowers with buttons sewn on to match my red and turquoise decor.  Aren't my kids just too cute!?  My awesome friend of 35 years, Carrie,  took the two pics of my kids.  You should check out her work at carriecompton.com
The plant is fake (my thumb is red, not green) and the "flowers" are cute button blooms that I made with buttons and wire.  The ladybug is a timer.

 I'm using the name tags from the Dots on Turquoise line for the vocab words on the word wall.  I attached them to red card stock and store them in an extra library pocket next to board.


I only have one bulletin board available for Elements of Art at this school.  But it turned out cute!

So what do you think?!  Two schools were a lot of work, and honestly, still a work in progress.  BUT, I think they will both be great learning environments for my little 1st and 2nd grade artists!

Be sure to FOLLOW me, pin me, and share me!  Thanks!!!
~Stacey



Monday, August 13, 2012

I WON

I got the BEST news a couple of weeks ago!  I had entered a contest on Facebook through Creative Teaching Press (CTP)... and WON!!!  Yep, I'm one of those people who seem to never win anything.  But this time I did!  And it was perfect timing too.  Going back to school, and having two classrooms, is not easy on the pocketbook.  And since I'm not "earning" (cough, cough) a paycheck yet, I don't have any wiggle room in my budget for real classroom decorating.  This win was perfect!  Especially since I love CTP products!

Creative Teaching Press gave me $50 to spend on any decor items of my choice.  Well, if you know me, making a decision is not the easiest thing.  Especially when there are so many great options.  I ended up going with my original product love - Dots on Turquoise!  Aren't these bulletin borders just too cute!?  Perfect for a fun and fresh art classroom.



So as part of my decorating plan, I wanted something super cute to hang from the ceiling to mark table numbers.  I ordered these Dots on Turquoise 6" Designer Cutouts...


The plan is write the table numbers on them and hang them from the cute paper lanterns that I ordered from The Knot.  At the time of purchase, they were on sale for .99 each (for the 10" size).

The lanterns arrived yesterday!  I'm loving the colors even more than I thought I would.  I think they'll go perfectly with the Dots on Turquoise items I ordered!


I can't wait until the CTP items arrive...  I'm a lucky girl!  Check out CTP's Facebook Page for lots of ideas and inspiration!

Wednesday, August 8, 2012

I Love A Good Deal!

Every year (even when I wasn't teaching) I look forward to Target having teacher supplies in their Dollar Spot.  I wasn't as impressed this year as I have been in the past.  BUT...  While shopping at Walmart a few weeks ago for my son's school supplies, I stumbled upon a little section with super cute teacher supplies!  I'm usually a Target girl over a Walmart girl, but these were so much cuter and only .88 each!  That's right!  Only .88! 



Here's what I got ~
  • Pack of 7 color headliners.  These are a good size of of 20 X 5 inches!
  • Pack of 7 shapes headliners.  Also 20 X 5 inches
  • Pack of 10 shiny stars.  
  • Two packs of shiny border trim.  10 ft. each.  I think it's a nice size for maybe one small bulletin board.  They had several colors to choose from.  I chose gold and silver.
  • One pack of magnetic hooks.  Perfect for hanging hall passes on the door trim!
So that grand total.... (drum roll, please)....  $5.28! 

Tuesday, August 7, 2012

Just dreaming...

Well, unfortunately, I will not be able to get into either of my classrooms until next Monday at the earliest!  So until then, I'm doing a little dreaming.  You know, dreaming of the perfect classrooms.  And I'm SURE - absolutely POSITIVE - that this rug would be in it!  How perfect!


This little beauty is called "Pencils Down" and can be found at Make Your House A Home !

Friday, August 3, 2012

The Anticipation

    So I'm starting a blog.  What?  Yep.  I'm going to try it.  Bare with me.  I really don't know what I'm doing... But I'm going to give it shot.  So here goes...


   After being laid off for three years, I'm going back to school... as the art teacher.  It's all good timing, really.  I've loved staying home with my kids, but I have to be honest... Being a stay-at-home mom isn't as fun as it sounds when you have no extra money to spend.  I know, I know, there are lots of free things to do with kids, especially in the Cincinnati area.  But with gas prices as high as they've been, it wasn't exactly "free".  So, with my youngest in her last year of preschool, I'm ready to be back in the classroom!
 
   The anticipation of going back to school is REALLY building.  I will be at TWO schools this time around, teaching 1st and 2nd at both.  I even fall asleep thinking about how I'm going to decorate my classroom, what lessons I'm going to start the year with, and what my classrooms might look like.  Yep.  That's right.  I don't even know what my classrooms look like!

  I am SO glad that as I get ready for this school year I have the seeming unlimited resource of Pinterest!  Check out some of my boards!

Classroom Decor and Organization
 http://pinterest.com/staceyallenart/classroom-decor-and-organization/

Here's one example of what you will find on this board.  (Unfortunately, there is no link provided for the original source.)  What a great idea to show value! 



Art Ed Handouts, Forms, and More
 http://pinterest.com/staceyallenart/art-ed-handouts-forms-more/

Artists
http://pinterest.com/staceyallenart/artists/

Classroom jackpot, right?!  I love Pinterest.  Feel free to look around some of my other boards while you're there!