Back-to-School Ideas

School started last week for my kids as I am sure it has for most of your kids too, or it soon will be. Today I was playing catch up on my Tivo-ed Studio 5 shows and saw some back to school ideas that might help someone out there.
The 1st idea is to throw a Back-to-School Bash for your kid(s). Several ideas were given and for a range of ages too.
There are five ways to prepare your child for a new school year. Find out what they are...
And finally, check out these clever Back-to-School Survival Kits. I am sure any child would feel special finding one in his/her lunchbox.
Oh and count on Bakerella to have a fun idea with cake pops...Candy Apples. Oh so totally irresistible.


I am sure it is no surprise that Tip Junkie has plenty of wonderful ideas. Have I mentioned before that I love that site?!?

I can't believe summer is over! It went by way too fast, but I am happy to get back into a routine. Do you have any back to school traditions you want to share?

A Gift Made From Crayons

Do you have left over crayons and pieces of crayons? I know at the end of the school year when the kids clean out their desks I always do, but the crayons go in the garbage. Well here's a cute idea I came across for a teacher gift, and I thought I would bookmark so it isn't forgotten. I found the idea over at testosteronetimesthree. Thanks for the creative thought!

Back to School Bulletin Boards & Themes

Back when I taught 3rd grade, my classroom had a bee theme. I will have to dig up some pictures so that you can get the feel for the way it looked, but it was simple and very cute. With the bee theme, I ended up making quite a bit of my items displayed in my room, but if you are looking to save money, that might be a way to go. My bulletin board outside my classroom read, "Welcome to Mrs. Smith's 3rd Grade Hive." This was written on 2 separate bee hives that I had blown up using an overhead transparency and tracing onto yellow poster boards. I then wrote each of my students' names on a small die-cut bee and stapled it around the hives. Like I said, I will get some pictures of my classroom out so if you like the bee theme, you can get ideas.
(This wasn't my door, just a picture I found and thought could help.)

As for now, I thought that maybe someone out there could benefit from getting some classroom decorating ideas. Here is what I have come across.
* AtoZ Teacher Stuff had a lot of GREAT ideas!!
* Look Who GREW in Kinder "garden". (This might be better for the end of the year, to compare how much each child grew, but still cute.)

* Here are some thoughts for decorating older classrooms.
* I found some more ideas HERE, but you have to scroll nearly all the way down the page to find the ideas. If you have a chance to look through this site, there are also management ideas listed. Anyway, to give you a sneak...here were some ideas they gave:
** Put up a palm tree and the words Chicka, Chicka, Boom, Boom look Who Is In My Room! I then have brown circles (coconuts) on the tree. The first day I take pictures of them and then cut them to fit on the coconuts. If you don’t want the picture idea just put their names on the coconuts. (Chicka Chicka Boom Boom is a popular children's book used for teaching the alphabet.)
** Hang a "fishnet" from a party store and put fish shapes with each child's name and picture with the title "What a Great Catch!"

Some other themes I have seen used for elementary classrooms, include M&M's , Snoopy, hot air balloons, safari, under the sea, bears, apples, animals, Harry Potter and cars. A theme doesn't need to be used, but I thought it made my classroom come together easier. It's also is a good idea if you can find something from the curriculum you will be teaching. (ie: If you teach about animal habitats, decorate with animals.) Do what works best for you and be creative! I am sure there are plenty more ideas out there (the ideas are truly endless), but I don't want to give an overload. Hopefully this can give someone the help they need to get the school year started.