After a last-minute hire a week out from school starting, I had just one week to get my room ready for the first day of school. As a primary (K-2) special education teacher, my room serves as a resource room to pull students throughout the day for reading, math, and social support. I wanted to still incorporate the global and cultural theme into my classroom design, since its such an important component of my teaching philosophy. After lots of thought and careful planning, these are the results of my one-week mad dash to completion!
Before
Clean but bare; leftover 1st grade and speech therapy supplies scattered about; lots of potential!
Once I packed up all of the leftover supplies that weren't primary Spec Ed related, compiled all of my Pinterest-worthy ideas, and created a plan of action, these were my results:
After
My reading area is where I could really incorporate the global theme into my classroom design. The world map and U.S. map are some of my favorites; they are dry erase maps, so either I or my kids can write on them, and they have picture symbols to represent the various regions presented. Such an awesome visual for my students! I also am in love with the banner I created using "Children of the World" puzzle pieces; it's a little hard to tell, but the children are wearing traditional clothing from regions around the world. On my book cart, I've brought all of the children's books I've been collecting over the years, most with a global theme. I'm waiting on my K-2 books to arrive. I ordered an overstuffed box of books from Books By the Foot, which was a great value and useful for getting a good selection of books in a hurry, so I'm super excited to see what I end up with! Top it off with some reading buddies and (soon-to-be added) reading quotes, and I think this area is good to go!
My door display will be completed once the kiddos start school and decorate their own set of handprints to post on the door. This picture also shows my "calm down" area, where students can retreat when they need a break. Along with a bucket of fidgets, I've included a Peacekeeping picture book for them to reference, emotion cards for them to use to help express how they are feeling, and a Social Skills Mate (not shown in picture). The entire area is taped off to establish a boundary line for this area.
I wanted to dress up the cabinets a bit, so I decided to create chalkboard silhouettes using black vinyl and silhouettes from Schoolgirl Style. It was a drawn out process that included engineer printouts, cutting, stenciling, cutting again, and applying, but I think it was totally worth it! I added bowties and hairbows, and still need to add the jumprope and swing rope using some leftover ribbon I have, but I think these are such an adorable addition to the room and perfect for the primary grade levels!
With the exception of my bulletin boards, which I will add to as I get to know my students' needs this year, and a few minor details throughout, my classroom is nearly complete! Most of the visuals you see come from The Black Series Classroom Decor. I was really going for something clean, appealing, primary-appropriate, and something I wouldn't get tired of quickly. After all, as a teacher (especially first year), I spend 10+ hours a day in the classroom; I wanted to make sure its a place not only I, but my students, feel completely comfortable and welcome in. When the classroom is appealing and organized, it is a more conducive environment for learning, which is, after all, our primary mission!
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