My 8 Favorite Teaching Supplies That Make Life Easier!

Teaching is a hard job!!!! The teaching profession has changed IMMENSELY since I began teaching in 2000 a few years ago! We teachers are expected to work miracles daily combined with lesson planning, meetings, the list goes ON and ON!!! Luckily there are tools out there that can make our job SO much easier and better! Here are just a few of the tools or supplies that I LOVE that help make my job easier (and sort of FUN)!! - Disclaimer: This post contains Amazon Affiliate Links -

At-Home Laminator:

I have to admit that this was a difficult buy for me. Why would I spend money on a laminator when there is a FREE one to use at school? I can't tell you how GLAD I am that I did spend the money!!! I use task cards a lot in my classroom, and I like to laminate them so they last longer. I can print them out at home IN COLOR, and then quickly laminate them, cut them out, and voila... I'm ready for the next day or the next week, whenever I plan on using them. The only downfall is that I can't laminate bigger items, like file folders or bulletin board borders. If I'm in a pinch and need to print something quickly the night before and laminate it, I can do it WITHOUT having to get to school at the crack of dawn. The one I bought isn't very expensive and works like a charm:

Laminating Pouches:

If you have a laminator, you MUST have GOOD laminating pouches! You might be asking, "Why in the world would she include it on this list if it's OBVIOUS that one needs pouches with a laminator?" Well, I feel like I would do a disservice if I didn't throw in my two cents. I've had experience with two different thicknesses (3 mil thick & 5 mil thick) when it's comes to laminating pouches, and there is a MAJOR difference between the two. Around Christmas time, Amazon had a FANTASTIC deal on 3 mil thick thermal laminating pouches, like almost half off!!! How could someone pass that up??? As it so happens, 3 mil thickness doesn't hold up to cardstock, even after running them through the laminator TWICE!! I've used both thicknesses with cardstock, which is what I laminate the most, and the thinner pouches don't stand a chance against cardstock. Don't get me wrong... they're great for laminating regular copy paper and printable vellum for my lightbox. BUT, I prefer the 5 mil thickness... and NOW I have an entire box of 3 mil thickness to use before I can buy the good stuff!! 

HP Instant Ink Compatible Printer:

If you haven't heard of HP Instant Ink, you're MISSING OUT!!! When I first heard about how great the HP Instant Ink program was, my initial thought was, "It must be a gimmick; nothing can be that good!" Well, I was wrong!!! Before I could join HP Instant Ink, I needed a compatible printer (see below for an explanation of the program). I had been nagging telling my husband for months that I NEEDED a new printer that was compatible with HP Instant Ink. He got sick of my incessant nagging  Because he loves me so much he decided to surprise me with the new printer that I wanted. I thought for sure that this new printer would cost an arm and a leg because I would never need to buy ink again!! Again, I was WRONG!!! The printer cost less than $50. It prints in color, scans, prints BORDERLESS, and even double-sided!!! Did I mention it's wireless, so I can send a print job from anywhere? It's a no frills printer, but it works for me especially when I print my task cards double- sided. It's awesome... I don't even need to worry about turning the paper over; the printer does it for me!!! 

HP Instant Ink:

Probably the one tool that has saved me the MOST money has been the HP Instant Ink program!! If you're anything like me, you print AN AWFUL LOT of pages, whether it's newsletters, worksheet pages, task cards, labels, and the list goes ON and ON!!! I also like to print things in color when appropriate. Before I got my Instant Ink printer, I could easily spend a couple hundred dollars a year on printer ink (and that was in my conserving state of mind). Let me give you an overview of how HP Instant Ink works:

Here are some stats I compiled from when I started the program in July 2016 to the present day:

Isn't that AMAZING?!?!?!?!?! If you decide to join HP Instant Ink, my referral code can get BOTH of us a month free!!!! Seriously, check it out!!! Here's the link to sign-up using my code: HP Instant Ink Referral Code

Teacher Toolbox:

I'm sure you've seen all of the pins on Pinterest showing cute teacher toolboxes. My initial thought was, "Why am I going to spend money on THAT when I can just put stuff in my desk drawer?" Well, obviously I've changed my mind, and here's why... Before this school year started, I wanted my classroom to be my home away from home because... well, IT IS!!! I wanted more organization and a more home-like feel to my classroom! Enter the teacher toolbox - I can't tell you how happy I am that I decided to buy one. My supplies are so much more organized, and I don't have to rummage through my desk drawers to find a binder clip or my staple remover! It's all in my beautiful toolbox all nice and labeled. I liked it so much that I bought one for my office at home. The picture below is the one in my office that is partially labeled (the labels need to be finished). For some reason, the toolbox looks like it's bowed on the top in the middle. It's perfectly straight; no matter how I took the photo, it still looks like that! Maybe my photography skills need work!!! HA HA!!

Heidi Swapp Lightbox:

These lightboxes are super popular right now, and I happen to LOVE mine!!! My lightbox made it's first appearance on my son's 11th birthday! He absolutely LOVED it!!! 

I have many uses for my lightbox in my classroom: holidays, inspirational quotes, and birthdays. As soon as I saw my son's face light up when he woke up to this surprise, I knew that I had to do something similar for my students! For the top two sections, I made a generic 'Happy Birthday' with balloons for the whole year (like the one above). Then, for the bottom, I made generic chevron ends (like the ones encompassing 'Brodie' above). Next, all I had to do was add in each student's name and print them out. Anytime a student has a birthday, I showcase the 'Happy Birthday ___________'. I reuse the 'Happy Birthday' and give the student their name with the chevron ends at the end of the day! The students went bananas, and they LOVE taking home their name! Plus, the cost is VERY minimal! Since spring begins this Monday, I made a lightbox insert welcoming spring! 

I can't wait for the students to see that spring has sprung!!! If you don't have a Heidi Swapp Lightbox, get yourself one!!! The possibilities are endless!!

Essential Oil Diffuser:

Yes, there's a lot of controversy about diffusing essential oils in the classroom because of allergies and asthma!! Believe me, I get it! This year alone, we have several students with severe allergies and asthma! However, those students spend about an hour in my room each day with my diffuser going full blast and NOT ONE issue with the oils being diffused!! The key to essential oils being diffused and not affecting the students negatively boils down to the purity of the oil (I'll get to that next)! I am a research-based person (I am a science teacher, after all), so I did a lot of research before investing in a diffuser. The one I bought has lasted me over a year, and I use it EVERY SINGLE DAY! During the summer when I brought it home to use, my son loved it so much that he asked for one for his birthday! We now have two diffusers at home, and I have one at school! I'm seriously considering buying another one for my classroom so the oils can cover every square inch of the germiness!! In the photo, you can barely see the mist coming out of the top!

doTerra On Guard Essential Oil:

This tiny bottle of heaven is the nectar of the Gods!!! I order this stuff like the zombie apocalypse is upon us!! Remember above I said that essential oils are controversial for classroom use. Well, I truly believe that those people have never tried pure therapeutic grade essential oils, like doTerra! I've sampled several different brands of essential oils that claim to be pure. I can tell you that the ONLY essential oils that I've experienced as being pure is the doTerra brand! No, I'm not a doctor, but I have personal experience where doTerra happens to be the ONLY brand that doesn't cause a negative side effect from use! I'm not going to get into the details on this post. 😎 Moving on... I will be the first to admit that doTerra is NOT one of the cheaper brands, but in this regard you really get what you pay for! When I first started using essential oils, my husband was outraged at the amount of money I spent! However, he changed his tune when he had horrible food poisoning and I rubbed peppermint oil on his stomach. He was very skeptical, but was amazed by the results! I've got lots more success stories where that came from! It really is worth the money because in the long run, you'll save money when you DON'T have to go to the doctor because On Guard has done its job!! My cow loves his On Guard... and LOOK I'm almost out! Time to re-order!!! 

I could go on for days with teacher supplies that I love to use. What are some tools or supplies that you can't live without that you use for teaching?