Teacher Week: Classroom Must-Haves

It’s Day 2 of Teacher Week over at Babbling Abby! Today, let’s talk about classroom must-haves. Here are a few things I MUST have in my classroom.

Clipboards
I do most of my direct instruction on the floor in large groups, so clipboards are a necessity. It allows the kids to sit anywhere, in any position, and get done whatever they need to!

Expo Markers
We use so many dry erase markers for math and direct instruction, that we fly through them! I’ve tried using other brands, but they all seem to run out or fall apart quickly. Maybe my students are just rough on them (possible!), but Expo seems to hold up best.

Magazine Boxes
I use these from Ikea, mostly because they’re cheap (5 for $2) and my students can write all over them. We keep their books in here, for easy access during Read to Self time. Prior to buying these, I’d have books in their desks, all over the floor…it was a mess! These boxes have saved my sanity.

Cordless Glue Gun
I hang everything up on the walls and door with my glue gun. They’ll stay up there all year and come down so easily when I have to move rooms (as I’ve done every year!).

Labels!
It’s no secret at school that I love labels. I’ll stick a label on anything – book boxes, notebooks, agendas, students. By the end of the year, kids were asking me to print them labels for their own things. I thought this was hilarious!

Naturally, there are tons more items that I couldn’t imagine teaching without, but these are the things that keep me sane in the midst of a busy school year. What are your must-haves?