Articles & Collections
5 Steps to an Organized Summer-Ready Classroom
Five shortcuts to packing up your classroom for the summer.
- Grades: PreK–K, 1–2, 3–5, 6–8
Save Those Bulletin Boards
- Protect trim and bulletin-board backdrops by covering them with newspaper to prevent fading.
- Secure rolled posters with binder clips and store them in bins lined with plastic wrapping paper.
- Save die-cut letters even if you don’t plan on creating the same message next year; you can use them to make new headings.
1. Photograph Work
Help parents manage the piles of work kids bring home at the end of the year by photographing students’ favorites and sending home digital snapshots instead. Bonus: Next year, you can show the images as examples.
2. Return to Rightful Owners
Invite kids to go on a “library-book scavenger hunt” to make sure all books are returned; ask them to check the names on their supplies to ensure that, for example, Kayla G.’s binder doesn’t go home with Kayla S.
3. Pack Up Student Desks
Bring in kitchen-size trash bags in case supplies don’t fit in backpacks or open arms. Accept donations of gently used supplies if students don’t want them. Have children spray and wipe down their desks themselves.
4. Pack Up Your Desk
Make piles: “Use Next Year,” “Save for Future Use,” “Toss or Recycle.” Put things to save in marked folders (Math, Field Trips, etc.); if you can’t leave them over the summer, bring in a tote to carry them home.
5. Label Everything
Supplies have a way of wandering off while you’re on break, so if you’re leaving anything behind and want to make sure it’s yours next year (whether it’s your stapler or your desk), put a label on it.
- Subjects:Teacher Tips and Strategies
