Store Your Stuff!

Recently I posted about how I prep the TpT activities I create & buy, so I thought it would be good to share how I store my Literacy Stations materials.

I'll start with the before:

These file boxes aren't the worst way to store monthly materials, but they aren't the best way, either. On the plus side ~ they don't take up a lot of room in my work room. (We are super lucky to have tons of storage. Click HERE to see an old post that shows my half of the work room.) Really, hanging files are a pretty good way to store things. But... (see next picture)

Getting the files out to use with my guided reading groups was a pretty messy ordeal. I use materials I've made plus resources purchased from others on TpT. That's a lot of stuff to have to deal with when planning for my groups. (Click HERE to read more on how I plan for small group instruction.) So, I needed to come up with a better way to store things so that they are a little more user friendly.

Side note ~ zipper bags & a Sharpie are a MUST HAVE! I like to label the bags with the month they go with as well as the name of the activity. This is helpful when putting things away ~ I don't necessarily use everything in its "assigned" month. Differentiation, you know. ;-)

Anyway, back to my storage drama. Like I said ~ the hanging file folders were not a bad way to store the materials, but not so great when it came to using them. I bought these nifty containers that have locking lids at Target that are just the right size for holding a month's worth of activities. They are plenty big enough to hold any papers that go along with the cards. The containers are easy to use when planning my groups & sit neatly on the counter behind my table, unlike the file folders that spilled their contents all over the counter behind my table.

They stack neatly together & really don't take up much more space on my work room counter than the two hanging file boxes. 

What about you? How do you store your small group materials? Drop a comment to share your ideas and/or links ~ I'd love to get a peek at how you organize your stuff! Thanks for reading!

Spring Clean Up Blog Hop

I am very excited to be a part of this fun blog hop!  I try to keep my classroom neat & organized.  It really is a lot of work keeping things neat when you have eighteen busy little kiddos hanging around all day!  I have created spaces for my literacy activities that are kid friendly ~ and are usually pretty organized at the end of the day.  Here are some pictures of the different areas in my room where literacy takes place.

This is our Writing Station.  It features a round table & lots of writing activities and words.  The tree on the left was inspired by Rocket Writes a Story ~ Rocket collects words & displays them on a bush.  We post words that aren't on the word wall or easily spelled.  Other words are collected on chart paper & on book rings that are stored in a bin.  The basket on the table holds pencils, erasers, crayons, glue sticks, scissors,  highlighters, and a stapler for the kids to use when they write.

                                                         

Close-ups of the Writing Station.  The orange bins sit on top of the Manipulative Center's storage cabinet.  They hold various writing activities.  The yellow inset shows our Write the Room materials.  The other pictures show what is on the counter behind the table.  More bins & stackable paper trays hold lots of choices for writing practice. 

Our classroom library is in a prominent place of the room.  I like for books to be the centerpiece of our day.

I use little tubs to store my "I Can Read It" type books, my leveled readers are in the green & yellow bins on the cart.  Our colorful book bins are arranged on top of the shelves.  I put numbered labels on them rather than student names.  This way I don't have to relabel them each year.

The back of this cabinet is seen in the library.  I was so excited to get it last year to hold my Word Work activities.  My Kinders are able to grab a tub, and take it to their seat.  More Word Work activities are in the baskets (from Target's Dollar Spot) on top of the cabinet. 

 More Word Work area!  I like to provide my students with lots opportunities to work with words.  Baskets, bins, tubs, and little buckets from the Dollar Spot help to keep everything organized.

I keep a binder & clipboard at my half circle table to keep track of my Strategy Groups & student data.  

Get a copy of the planning pages HERE. 

 Tools for my Strategy Groups are kept within reach at my table.

 I created this colorful storage unit for my letter cards by covering the drawers of a tool bench organizer with washi tape.  Now I can easily get the letters I need ~ and easily put them away!

I hope you enjoyed your tour of my Literacy Spots!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Now, hop over to Smack Dab in the Middle for some more ideas! 

Organization and Storage

I try - I really do! - to be organized. Here are a few pictures of my attempts at creating an organized classroom. If you have any ideas to share, please do! I would love to hear them.

I know - you've seen this picture before. But I love the way inexpensive dish tubs hold things. They are light weight and easy for Kinders to carry.

My side of the workroom. I share this workroom with one of my partners (our third partner is sadly down the hall and has her own work space.) Our Terrific Teaching Assistant uses the table and desks in the middle when working with students.

In a recent post I stated that I was at school until nearly 5:00 PM. I was organizing this corner. It's amazing how quickly stuff piles up. (Oops! I guess I didn't get everything - the green basket contains various parts and pieces. ...that's for another day.)

These file crates hold all of my file folder & envelope games as well as other things that will fit in a hanging file folder. I have them categorized by subject (Language and Math), then organized by skill.

My craft supply cabinet. One summer day I recruited my college aged daughter to make the labels for each bin. As you can see, I removed some bins in order to fit large items like construction paper.

The space above the cubbies holds tons of stuff! Most of the lower cabinets house my read aloud collection. The high cabinets contain seasonal items.

 Ziploc bags and clothespins...an organizational mainstay in my classroom.