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January 2008

REJUVENATING YOUR CLASSROOM

For many people, the beginning of a new year is a time to reflect, reevaluate, refresh and renew. For educators, it’s the perfect time to reinvigorate your classroom with a few simple tasks.

While established schedules and predictable procedures provide smooth transitions, doing the same thing over and over again can make previously stimulating practices downright boring. Small changes to your routine, environment or materials can rekindle the excitement you and your students had at the beginning of the year.

CLASSROOM LIBRARIES
By January, your students have grown a lot as readers; consider adding more challenging books to your mix.

Think about the units of study you’ll be introducing the second half of the school year; consider adding titles that support your current and future topics of study.

If you’ve systematically organized your books at the beginning of the school year, are they where they should be now? If not, you may want to re-examine your system. Our new LEVELED READING BOOK CARTS along with our new LAMINATED CODING DOTS allow you to create custom color- coded systems that are easy to use by students of all ages!

BULLETIN BOARDS / DISPLAYS
Do the walls of your classroom showcase recent student work and support current units of study? Can the space be used more effectively to spark interest and engage learning? Although time consuming, changing bulletin board displays often ignites student curiosity and provides additional opportunities to reinforce concepts.

Discount wrapping paper, discontinued/leftover wallpaper and newsprint provide economical alternatives to more expensive background papers.

To create environmentally friendly displays, use inexpensive cotton fabric, felt or burlap for your background. It will not show the tack holes and can easily be taken down, folded for storage and used the next year!

Go beyond static, two-dimensional displays by using three-dimensional objects, interactive components and unique visuals to captivate students. The new CRICUT EXPRESSION™ ELECTRONIC DIE CUTTER helps you make thousands of creative shapes, from ¼” to 23½”, with the press of a button! Store letter collections and die cuts in compartmentalized storage like our new BULLETIN BOARD/LETTER CHEST for easy retrieval.

Take pictures of your favorite displays so you (or a parent volunteer) can recreate them easily.

CLASSROOM SUPPLIES
When you were a child, how excited were you to receive a new box of crayons, sharp pencils or bold markers? Did it ignite your creative juices? Could rejuvenated supplies do the same for your students?

Ask students or a parent volunteer to take inventory of shared classroom supplies. Ask them to rejuvenate worn items (clean and fill glue bottles, sharpen crayons, add eraser tips to pencils, etc.) and to make a list of supplies that need to be replenished. It’s easy to revive worn-down crayons to like-new condition with our new CRAYONPRO™ ELECTRIC SHARPENER. You don’t even need to peel the paper back!

CLASSROOM ENVIRONMENT AND ROUTINES
One of the most dramatic changes you can make to your mid-year room is rearranging students’ desks. A fresh view or new student pairing can be the catalyst to positive change for struggling students. Our new NO-NOISE SEAT FEET and CHAIRHUGGERS™ can further aid struggling students by reducing the distractions caused by scraping chairs. They also keep floors scuff-free!

Add lamps, colorful art and plants to counter the short, dreary days of winter. Plants also improve air quality and provide moisture to heat-scorched air.

STUDENTS
Look for fresh ways to present or review materials. Our exclusive HOLD-‘EM-UP PADDLE BOARDS provide fun, whole-class participation in review sessions, surveys, assessment and more! The new GEOSAFARI® QUIZ BOWL keeps students engaged while playing games you create!

Student organization is one of the keys to their success. Now is a great time to ask students to reorganize their lockers, desks, binders and backpacks! Our AUSSIE POUCH® CHAIR POCKETS provide organized storage for binders, folders, calculators--even laptops!

TEACHERS
Take the New Year / mid school-year opportunity to reflect on where your students began, where they are now and what your end-of-year goals are for them. Take the time to enjoy their successes and evaluate their challenges. Keep a smile on your face, charge your batteries the best way you know how and have a little fun with your students. You’re half way through the school year!

HOT TIP: To remove residual adhesive from walls and desks, pick off any of the remaining tape with your finger. Using the dull side of a knife, gently lift off the sticky residue. If needed, use hot air from a blow dryer to loosen the adhesive and make it easier to scrape off.

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