The First Day is Near!

I'm so excited for the school year to start, yet so nervous! I have been attempting to setup and organize my classroom for what seems like forever. I feel like I spend every waking moment in my room trying to get ready for the school year. Will I ever actually be prepared though? At the beginning of the summer, this classroom was a chaotic mess. Every closet, cabinet and cubby had random things throughout. I don't feel like this classroom has been cleaned out in ages. Old curriculum books, fake money, calculators, posters... anything you could imagine is in this room. Sounds like a good thing for most teachers, but I have never felt so claustrophobic. Great resources to have, but why have three spots for fake money and five spots for bulletin board materials? I just don't get it. The beginning of my summer included clearing EVERYTHING out, even if I knew I was putting it back in. This classroom needed some organization. I have now strategically places everything in their spots. Books are by topic and are marked with reading levels. I will try and upload pictures soon. I have placed the books low enough that they are accessible to the students so that they can freely choose their own book. I'm hoping to get the students in a routine where they know which reading level to choose on their own. The walls of the classroom are pretty empty at the moment. I plan on posting student work around instead of using my own resources that may be 'cute'. I believe students benefit from seeing their own work along with their classmate's work posted. I also have created a spot where students can hang up work that they are proud of and want to show off. I plan on each student being able to choose one piece of work to hang up. Students should bring materials for the classroom (colored pencils, markers, crayons, pencils, etc.). My dad built me an awesome community-type station to place all of these items. I will make sure students know that they can use things out of this station as long as they return them. I am using this to begin the sense of community throughout my classroom. Better stop blogging and continue to work on my classroom. I will post pictures of some of the things I mentioned as soon as possible!