Making Old Things New Again

In my personal life I am really trying to cut down on clutter and find new purposes for old things (in both an effort to save money and help our planet).   I decided that I am going to try to do the same in my classroom this year.  Usually I go out and spend lots of money preparing for a new school year but I am going to try to reuse some things this year.  One thing that I found in my garage was an old clipboard.  I decorated it with paint pens my first year as a teacher and boy did I think I was creative (ha, ha).  Here's what it looked like before (sorry for the glare):

I bought two sheets of scrapbook paper at Michaels (for only 50 cents total) and used some paper and Modge Podge that I had at home.  Then I used my Cricut to cut out my name in vinyl.  Now I have a "new" clipboard personalized just for me!  I think I'd like to add ribbon to the top but I don't have any at home that matches so it might stay like it is.

Next I decided to cover empty formula cans with paper to make pencil holders.  I usually buy cute cups or organizers but I think these turned out great and when I get tired of the paper or change my classroom theme I can easily change them again.

Finally I decided that I'm going to designate a small bookshelf in our classroom as the

At the Celebrity Book Swap Stop, students will be able to leave a book from home and take a new one.  The kiddos will fill in information on the Give One, Get One form to help me with record keeping.  This is a terrific way for students to expand their home library or simply borrow a book, read it, and keep swapping for new ones.  Click the link below to get the Give One, Get One form, which can also be altered to use as a learning activity.  Simply give students a copy of the form (or have them draw a T-chart on notebook paper to save copies).  Students brainstorm a topic (let's say writing ideas) and write their ideas under the Give One column.  After a few minutes of writing, students then find a partner and take turns sharing an idea.  Students each record a new idea in the Get One column.  Students find a new partner and repeat the process until time is called.  It's a great way to have students work collaboratively!

Give One, Get One