Isn't it adorable? Let's get to my classroom:
Almost one entire wall in my classroom is covered in carpet for bulletin boards. Next year, I'm planning on covering those in all black and adding more of my themed items to that. This year was a bit crazy... SMALL baby steps!! The left board is my objectives, my 'We Will...' and 'I Can...' statements, and the jobs I use for science (more on that in a bit). In the middle, there are posters of various scientists from different branches of science. On the right bulletin board, there are various quote posters and 'Tiger Pride' saying (more on that in a bit). Those mailboxes to the far right under the pink bulletin board are so handy! Since 4th grade students at our school switch to 5 classes per day, our students have numbers. The mailboxes have my homeroom students' numbers on them (I use #'s on the mailboxes instead of names so I don't have to change them each year), and all of their papers go in there for Tuesday folders. The File Organizer from Amazon was about $70, but it has been so worth it not to worry about the crappy cardboard organizers that I've used in the past.
I took most of these photos during our Meet the Teacher Night, so that's why there's neatly stacked papers on their desks. This is just a view of the front of my room. I LOVE my lanterns and group numbers.
This 'Fourth Grade Stars' board is where I hang the students' 'Star of the Week' posters after they've been the student of the week. The decorations are all from the '#TooCute' theme from Mardel. I LOVE the lights.
At the left, in the picture below, is where students will 'sign out' when they use the restroom, library, or the computers. They move their number up when they leave or use the computer. It really helps see who is out if there is a fire drill or what not. The 'AR Stars' board is to help students keep track of their percentage each week. The 4th grade reading teacher takes the students' pictures using themed props (this year it's western) while they pose. Then, we laminate the pics and cut them out. The students start out at zero - or the bottom - and will move their person up each week based on their goal. At the right is where I hang the lunch menu, the AR reward parties and dates. There is a small bookcase under the lunch menu board where the students mark their lunch choice and pick up morning work.
This is something that I REALLY don't like. It's just too blah!!! I wanted to change it this year and make the objectives cuter and the 'We will' and 'I can' posters match my theme. However, I found out that our science TEKS (Texas science standards) are changing next year. So, I might as well use them for one more year, and next year I'll be able to make the objectives super cute to match my theme.
I love these jobs that I revamped for this year. I did a lot of research and mixed and matched some jobs I found online that other teachers use, plus I added my own touch to the jobs to make them work for my class. The desks in each group are numbered 1-4 (I'm using a lot of Kagan in my classroom this year), so each week, students have a different job when they come in to my class on Mondays.
Since education is moving toward emphasizing a growth mindset, my coworker, who happens to be the wonderful Nicole from Rowdy in Room 300 (she's also our 4th grade writing teacher) made these 'Tiger Pride' reminders that fit with our district and school motto (our district's mascot is a tiger). They are SO cute! Thanks, Nicole for your creativity. She really does ROCK, y'all!!
Well, that's it! Thanks for following along!!! My classroom is a major work in progress. It is starting to feel like my home away from home.