Next up on our organizing list is classroom centers! If you’re a teacher, especially in elementary school, you most likely have different centers for your classroom. With several activities that need to be prepped between small groups, literacy centers, and possibly math centers, it’s essential to keep these materials neat so you’re prepared to teach.
This post features some of my favorite tools and organization tips to help you do that.
Organizing Small Groups
One of my all-time favorite organization tips is using this rainbow drawer tower to keep all of my small group materials organized. There are several reasons that I love this tower for organizing, but I also love its appearance. The bright colors can liven up any classroom or office, and in comparison to other rainbow drawer towers, this tower is much sturdier. It isn’t made of flimsy materials, so it’ll last longer than other similar options that may be less firm.
If you notice, this tower has eight multicolored drawers, which is the perfect number of drawers to keep all my small group and center supplies organized.
Each year I usually have between four and five reading groups. I use these drawers to keep these groups’ math and literacy supplies organized. I place one of my group’s supplies in each drawer. For example, the pink drawer would contain the materials for the group of students, which I then refer to as the pink group.
This helps me keep all supplies organized and allows me to swap them out quickly. I park this tower by my horseshoe table to help me quickly grab everything I need between groups.
Organizing Math & Literacy Games for Centers
In my classroom, we love games and use them in our centers. Whether students are practicing math, literacy, or completing STEM activities, I’m at my personal best when everything is organized.
For my STEM boxes resource, I prefer utility boxes like this one. These are fun, glittery boxes, which I love. This specific kind is smooth on top, which is great because I can quickly hot glue labels onto them that will last all year. I organize my STEM materials in these and then pop them onto a three-tiered rolling cart so that students can roll them around my classroom as needed.
Resources for literacy and math, such as my grammar games and math games, are organized using this craft keeper. It’s great because students can grab the box they need and get to work. These also have a smooth surface which allows for easy labeling.
Are you looking for tips to get started with your grammar games and math games? Look at this post where I explain how to get them prepped and ready to go.
Organizing Literacy Centers
Do you have literacy centers where you practice spelling and other activities in your classroom? I love using a rolling cart to organize these because you can easily hang task cards from the hooks on top. These hooks are also great for my word lists which are a part of my spelling resource and can be used with any set of words.
I love the top tier of this cart because it already has storage for smaller items. This space is perfect for little manipulatives such as pointer fingers, magnetic letters, and Playdoh. Everything you need will all be in one specific location within this rolling cart.
If you’re using my spelling word lists resource, then the second tier is perfect for the word list printables that coincide with the cards. Simply print them and place them on the second tier of the tray. Students can quickly grab the activity that corresponds with each day’s lesson.
Did these organization tips help? I hope so! These four resources help keep me sane. I’m not even kidding! Are you thinking of trying any of them out? Let me know below!
Looking to get other areas of your room organized? Check out the other posts in this series:
Organizing Your Teacher’s Desk
Organizing Your Student Supplies
Want to take a look at some other must-have organization tools on my list? Click here to take a look.
Happy organizing!
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