Having a patriotic themed classroom in 2015 is remarkable!!!
Robin Davidson has been teaching for 27 years and is still going
strong! She teaches 2nd grade at Lacey's Spring School in Alabama.
Her school is implementing the Seven Habits which is a perfect match to go with her "Proud to be an American" theme. She has done a great job sticking to a three colored theme- red, white, and a pop of blue!!! Sticking to a three colored theme helps student work
stand out and the colors balance-so it is not "too" much!!!
This hangs above her door and adds a homelike feel to the room. It balances well with the matching curtains across the room.
She also added some lights in front of the curtains! Fun!
Uncle Sam is going to encourage lots of mathematical thinking and sharing of strategies!!!
Lady Liberty will anchor comprehension strategies and thinking!!!
Fabulous display of American pride!!! Robin's class sends care packages to different Troops that are deployed. She sent one to my son last year when he was in Guam!
A fun little mirror so students can see the leader in themselves!!!
A painted stool is just the right touch!!!
Using photos from a calendar will be a great visual aide to teach students about our great country!
Here is her management chart!!
There will be lots of 5 Star students!!!
This is on the back of her door!!
Meet my friend and former coworker- Robin Davidson!! She is a fabulous teacher and goes way beyond the call of duty to ensure that her class feels loved. She teaches them to love to learn!!!
The Glyph Girls have several products available for a
Patriotic Theme.
The American Flag Glyph is a very popular choice. Click on the pic below to check it out!
We also just added this adorable Eagle Craft
with Writing Options to our products.
Click on photo for more information.
And our Abe Lincoln and George Washington Writing Projects
Hey, Classroom Decor Rockstars! It's that time of year. The time when we spend hours on Pinterest, scour the discount stores, and hide receipts from our spouses. (Shhhh! Don't tell him how much those cute pillows cost for my class library.) Well, we want to
help just a little with some decorating tips we've picked up through the years.
We've included our 10 best decor ideas for you here and there's a FREEBIE at the end! Plus...a CONTEST!
Deciding on your color scheme should be one of the first things you do. If you are new, you have a world of choices. If you are a veteran teacher looking to redecorate, then you may want to adapt and reuse some of the things you already own. Limiting yourself to just two main colors keeps your classroom looking clean and neat. Then you can add interest with a splash of a third color here and there. You can check out popular color combos on Pinterest for ideas.
Whether its Pirates, Down on the Farm, Safari, Fairy Tales, Superheroes, or Nursery Rhymes, an interesting theme can be the best jumping off point for decorating your classroom. We love getting really creative with our themes. An awesome place for theme ideas is to check out an Oriental Trading, Stumps, or U.S. Toy catalog. You can find them all online.
Forget that giant paper that fades rips, and wrinkles, PAINT, is the way to go baby! And BLACK is the perfect background for any bulletin board. It just looks awesome with any border and makes your displays POP!!
If double is nice, triple is better! You can make your bulletin boards SPECTACULAR by layering your borders. The one below even has 4 borders!
Angela draws them freehand but I'm terrible at that! If your artistic, go for it! If not, use your projector to trace your image onto tagboard. Draw it, trace with a black sharpie, then break out the soft pastel chalk. Color over each area with the chalk, then blend it with your fingers. The oil in your fingers helps you blend. Then use a black or dark brown piece of chalk to add shading. Spray your finished product with aerosol hairspray to set it. You can add white chalk accents after you spray it. Then laminate and cut it out. Adding raffia, fabric bows, buttons, etc. can give it a 3-D effect.
We are planning a blog post in the near future showing you all the different steps if you've never chalked before.
Angela painted the furniture below but don't worry if that is not your talent. There are tons of inexpensive, interesting chairs, tables, etc. at discount stores. Don't forget to check your local thrift stores as well.
Photos, photos, and more photos! Students love to see themselves in action. Remember to take a photo of each student to match your theme at the beginning of the year. These can be displayed all year.
Here's a first day pic of my cute nephew when I was doing a Safari Theme. The kids adored "driving" the jeep and the pics looked awesome on my classroom door! I added some buttons in the corner and a raffia bow at the top, of course. Then those photos became the cover of a memory book I gave them at the end
of the year.
Use construction paper or scrapbook paper to mat your students' best work. It will make their projects stand out so much more. Nothing makes a classroom more attractive than interesting student work displays.
Tissue paper pom poms, paper lanterns, twinkle lights, bunting, and accent walls can all make a huge difference in your classroom. They add just the right amount of warmth and interest. Be careful not to overdo it, though. You don't want students to be distracted by too much busyness.
Leave a good deal of white space at the beginning of the year, so you can fill it up with anchor charts, graphs and such as the year progresses. It's all about student learning, right!
I teach kindergarten and I love it! I have taught
1st, 2nd, and 3rd grade, and have been an instructional coach, too! This year my class theme
is Fairy Tales and Folk Tales! I love it when they say "What are we doing next?"
About Kelley
I'm currently teaching some sweet first graders at Union Hill School in Alabama. I've been a school counselor, reading coach, and 3rd grade teacher. I'm proud to be the daughter of two amazing teachers!!
