Two Cents or Ten?

Naturally I have been checking the post on Unclutterer that features my classroom in order to see what people are saying. I was very controlled and only defended myself once, but I do like how random strangers are sticking up for me! Pretty soon the post will disappear into a long list of old news and I will no longer get feedback on my (I must say) beautiful organizational system. So here are the current comments in case anyone was interested. :)

Straight from Unclutterer...

24 comments posted

1. Posted by EJ - 06/11/2010

   Very cute and oh so tidy! Can I ask where the white bins are from? I’m looking for something like them for my 2-year-old’s toys.

2. Posted by Dorothy - 06/11/2010

   Super, and I so agree with MinsyMins: If a child is old enough to get a toy out to play with, he or she is old enough to put it away when done.

3. Posted by JustGail - 06/11/2010

   Very nice classroom! Love the photos for labels, although, I’d probably consider putting the words with the pictures. The North Scott school district here in Iowa uses cartoon characters for the buses, not numbers. Apparently it’s cut way down on the number of kindergarteners who can’t remember the bus they need to be on by the end of the day.

   EJ – I’ve seen those bins (or very close to the same) at Target, K-Mart, Walmart, etc. I have a couple and they are much sturdier than the little mini clothes basket types of bins.

4. Posted by Erin Doland - 06/11/2010

   @EJ — I don’t know exactly the basket used, but maybe the Slugis from Ikea could work? http://www.ikea.com/us/en/cata.....s/66696910

   Or the Clear Handled Storage basket from Container Store: http://www.containerstore.com/.....d=10022155

5. Posted by Erin Doland - 06/11/2010

   @EJ — Oh wait, maybe these are them: Dot Baskets from the Container Store: http://www.containerstore.com/.....1553407148

6. Posted by EJ - 06/11/2010

   Thanks, everyone! How nice to find out that lots of places have similar bins.

7. Posted by Dawn F - 06/11/2010

   This teacher rocks! What an amazing organizing system!

   TGIF!

8. Posted by Rebecca - 06/11/2010

   At home we also put a picture label with a word label as well on the box or crate the item lives in. It makes cleaning up a lot easier for parents too. And it helps teach kids that things in life have “homes” too and they need to put stuff back where it belongs so they can find it again later.

9. Posted by EJ - 06/11/2010

   This is a lovely classroom but its pretty standard, also. i’ve toured way too many K classes, and this is what they look like. Also many preschools. The visual labelling is a great thing for kids.

10. Posted by Ris - 06/11/2010

    This is brilliant. Getting kids to pick up after themselves can be so hard but with pictures it’s easy to start early!

11. Posted by chacha1 - 06/11/2010

    Absolutely agree with JustGail and Rebecca, the photos alone are terrific but adding a word would be educational.

    Wish I’d had a classroom like that when I was little!

12. Posted by Steve Clement - 06/11/2010

    This is my 22nd year teaching primary.
    I just started labeling shelves with pictures this year.
    It works great!
    I have different shelves for math centers, word work centers, and toys and games for free choice and rainy day recess.
    Every morning my students use clothespins with their pictures glued to them to sign up for the various stations. Red clothespins for word work, yellow for math centers, and green for free choice. They clip their clothespins on long pieces of tagboard next to the pictures of the manipulatives they wish to use. Two (or three) children can sign up for each activity.
    I’ve placed velcro on three long pieces of tagboard which makes it easy for me to switch pictures and change which manipulatives are available at each center each week.

13. Posted by MinsyMins - 06/11/2010

    The bins are from Target or Wal-mart. They are the Sterilite brand – very light, easy for kids to carry and very easy to clean/disinfect.

    I have a LOT of pictures with word labels around my classroom – pencils, paper, caddies, markers, clock, door, etc. and this is one space that I felt could use solely photos. I’ve been in a lot of classrooms where there is just too much – too much on the walls, on the tables, on the shelves – and it can be overwhelming for kids. Especially little ones or those with special needs (my class is full inclusion – special needs, kids who speak no English, etc).

    If you check out the rest of the photos in the pool you can see where I’ve chosen to pair words with photos.

    Thank you for the kind words. You can see the before photos on the Flickr site also!

14. Posted by We Live Simply link love | we live simply :: learning to live simply so others may simply live - 06/11/2010

    [...] :: Workspace of the Week: Classrooms are workspaces, too 25 Areas of Digital Clutter to [...]

15. Posted by terriok1 - 06/11/2010

    It does not look to me that the kids are using the manipulatives much.

    Even in a Montessori class, where the kids are trained to be organized, does not look that good.

    You bet kids can be taught to put toys away but…

    I have never seen a classroom look like that.

    More power to you!

    The ideas of photos is a great one. I have done it myself. ) They often cannot read.

16. Posted by Jen - 06/12/2010

    As an upper grade teacher, I also use these same bins. We do not have permanent furniture in our rooms. We have rolling cabinets and those bins are great for organizing supplies to store in them. I also found that most paperback books will fit in them and then can be taken off the shelf and taken to a table.

17. Posted by Kate - 06/12/2010

    Those with questions or critiques should take the time to look through the whole collection of photos and informative captions on Flickr — this is truly a great project. Congratulations, MinsyMins, your students are really lucky!

18. Posted by Chuck - 06/12/2010

    Great post…glad to see a classroom make it onto the WOTW. I bet it is a public school classroom led by a highly-effective public school teacher. And for a change…she’s not getting bashed. Okay, off my soapbox. Love the organization scheme!

19. Posted by terriok1 - 06/12/2010

    I apologize. I was just a little taken aback. It is obvious that the teacher works very hard!

20. Posted by Nancy - 06/13/2010

    I’m a big fan of the baskets from Really Good Stuff. They are a teacher resource company, but they sell a mind-boggling array of baskets and organizing tools for classrooms and offices. I order from them every year and drool when the catalog comes in the mail. http://www.reallygoodstuff.com.

21. Posted by leansim - 06/13/2010

    Great example of organization. Also perfect for teaching adults the basics of 5S and visual controls for their own workspaces!

22. Posted by Margaret - 06/14/2010

    Love it — I’m going to use it as inspiration to deal with my kids’ stuff at home, which is my next big project.

23. Posted by Tiffanie - 06/14/2010

    Is it strange that I was more touched by the bear toys than anything else? While the overall pictures is quite pleasing and organized – I was transported to 6 years old just by those bears I immediately remembered the smell and touch of them. Thanks for bringing that memory back

24. Posted by Leonie - 06/14/2010

    Kudos to you!
    Especially as you had to use your own money to buy some of the baskets.

    Did anyone catch the reference to her keeping some of the toys/materials in a closet and switching them out – “too many toys can be overwhelming” (I paraphrase).

    thanks for the reminder!