It is time to start thinking about next year already. Maybe admin has given you money to spend for next year, or you need to make a classroom supply list for the student’s families to purchase, or you still have left over money to spend. I like to plan ahead for next year.
Each school is different in the way they handle supplies and each socio-economic level of your population will factor in on how much support you are given.
I was in a school where about 2/3 of the students would bring in supplies and about 10% brought in everything on the list. The school gave the teachers a supply amount each year to invest it into the classroom.
Here are my TOP 10 CLASSROOM SUPPLIES that students usually purchase
Student purchased items
I prefer the thin ones- In my classroom these were used daily. They are great paper savers. I use them for quick assessments, math games, in centers, with teamwork, on sheet protectors to re-use a worksheet. You will need a lot of these!
Gallon and Sandwich size Ziploc BaggiesG
There are so many uses for these throughout the year, I can’t even mention them all. Keep Sight word cards in, Parts of speech cards, Word Work activities, snacks, extra crayons, etc.
These work great for word cards, sight words, flash cards, game cards, and letter cards.
These big pink erasers can be cut in half so that they last longer. They have a tendency to disappear, be stabbed with pencils and chewed on (eww!)
These get used up and dry up quickly. Keep the extra caps because they will get lost.
Ideas that can be purchased with Classroom FUNDS, donated or purchased with your money
Personal white boards (1 per student and an extra 12 for center rotations)
I personally use these white boards daily. We use them in math for practice, review, assessments, and games. We use them in centers, phonics, word practice and more.
Picture Books that go with your standards
“What if You Had Animal Teeth” is seriously one of my favorite books that goes with our Science Curriculum. Go through your grade level standards and make sure that you have enough books to go with them. Don’t forget to check your social studies and science standards.
If you do community supplies, these are a great option. I like that they are different colors because you can tell which color belongs to which group. These also wash well in the dishwasher.
(A must need!) It pays to get a more expensive one. Students will use and abuse this daily. This one is easy to clean (for the teacher) and you can use it for a variety sized pencils. It also works well on colored pencils.
Your favorite pen for grading (at least use something that brings you joy)
I was completely late to the game on these pens. Everyone raved about them and I thought “it is just a pen, what is so amazing”. Then I saw the price and thought “I will just use what I had”. Then I tried them….. I have never gone back!
The amount of items you bring from school to home everyday can be a lot. You need something sturdy that is easy to lug back and forth.
Some schools supply these, but not all of them do. These are used for anchor charts, lessons, showing how to do a math lesson and students can use them for posters. One side is lined and the other is blank.
These can be costly but are so nice to have. You can slip in worksheets and it saves a ton on copies. They are great for independent work, math small groups, and centers.
These mailboxes are a great storage for student’s papers. As soon as papers are graded or completed then students can easily put their paper in their mailbox. The labels are easily covered year to year. The other advantage is that this makes it easy for folders to be stuffed or for students to grab their papers all at once.
I loved mine. This may seem like a big ticket item, but once I had it, I could not see teaching without it. I could stand tall and see the students and not have to sit or bend down. I could lock my computer and purse in it as well. I put my ELMO on top, has space for my computer on top and inside kept my everyday items that I needed on a daily basis. I was able to get mine through Donor’s Choose.
What are your must haves for the classroom?
This blog article contains affiliate links. The little money that I get from it is used to help support this blog.
No Comments