I’m finally to the point in preparing the classroom where I can afford to take the time to pretty things up a bit. Here’s our reading corner, featuring our CAFE menu.
I think all our decisions in our classroom should be intentional, so here are some thoughts on what you see in the picture:
- I don’t see a need to have the Daily Five choices themselves written anywhere all giant. As I introduce them, we write the choices on sentence strips and staple them under the daily schedule. After all, we do keep our T charts for expectations posted year-round, so they don’t need to take up much space here.
- The empty room under the white paper explaining each CAFE category was left there intentionally. My students will post sticky notes with their names under each definition so we know what strategies they’re currently working on.
- I want as much space as possible for our strategies, so this year I added a second column to accomodate all the comprehension strategies. For the record, I will be adjusting the burgundy paper so both columns are even. :)
- The crab chair is named Oddvar. He’s from IKEA and I bring him around the classroom with me when I confer.
- Chart markers are in a plant pot under the phone. I started using the pot after getting frustrated because I could never seem to get baskets and cups to work for my markers.
- Our Word Collector will be located on the bulletin board to the right of the easel.
- Do you see our class crests on the lower part of the whiteboard? So exciting!
- The big “Day 1” on the white board is posted because we have a six-day schedule instead of just a Monday-Friday schedule. Tomorrow, I’ll post my schedule so you can see how I block out my time.
Questions or ideas for improvement? Let me know in the comments or by e-mail!
I always use clothespins with each friend’s name rather than sticky notes. I found sticky notes don’t tend to stay put for extended periods and the clothespins do. They are also extra handy in that they can be clipped to individual strategies as well as categories. I also as you know have Oddvar for conferring.
Oooh, this is wise. I’ll see how the extra-sticky Post-Its work this year… I wasn’t as diligent as I wanted to be about using them last year.
I may have to experiment with the clothespins! :D
In addition to sticky notes that give ownership to the learners reading goal, I also plan to use lanyards for each individual. They will write their reading goal on the attached post card (the lanyard will look like a teachers badge). Some may choose to decorate as well.