Best Writing Folders...Ever!

Here they are! Aren't they beautiful? Literacy Consultant Kristina Smekens showed me how to make these. You'll need two plain pocket folders per student if you want a 4-pocket folder, 3 folders if you want 6-pockets.

Notice the spiral binding. Cut one folder in half. These two pieces become the front and back. Fold the 2nd folder inside out and place it in the middle of the two halves. Bind them and voila!! Best folder ever!

The first year I made these (99 of them, by the way, since I teach 3 writing classes), I used three folders so students would have one pocket for each of the 6 writing traits. In these pockets, students stored their writings that represented each trait, organizers, writing notes, etc. By the end of that year, I didn't like it so much. The traits overlap, as they should, and I felt I was compartmentalizing their writings too much. These days, I have four pockets and each pocket has a label: Argument (persuasuve, opinion), Expository (informative), Narrative (real or imagined), and the 4th pocket is for writing ideas in general. These are the 3 writing genres recognized by the CCSS. This really works for my students; they like building a repository for their writings. Since I'm thrifty, I remove the black spiral at the end of the year and staple the folders together so they can take them home for their parents to treasure (a girl can dream!).

Bought my folders at WalMart during the 1¢ sale advertised by Staples. Price matching! Yayyy!

Changing Classrooms

The layout of any middle school cIassroom is important, but the unique design of the middle school language arts classroom is critical for creating a functional environment where deep reading and thoughtful writing occur. This summer I moved into a classroom down the hall for a few good reasons. Foremost, I have never had a window in my middle school classroom, and we all know that great energy comes from natural light. Next, an empty room with four bare walls is a blank and undefined canvas. I painted, polished, scrubbed, and sanitized every inch of my new space. That was June. With the bones of the room ready, I organized, pitched, shared, and sorted all of my professional belongings (files, school supplies, decorations, and furniture). I didn't take anything into that room that wasn't purposeful and relevant.
With a little influence from pinterest, colleagues, fellow bloggers, and a little research in color theory, my new room is warm and cozy. I can't wait to see my new 7th graders' faces when they walk into the space I've set-up for them. Thoughtfully-designed and clutter-free learning environments matter. We spend a lot of precious time there, right?
It isn't fair to boast about the finished product without sharing the grueling process of getting there.....so stay tuned for The True Confessions of a Packrat Teacher!

This is everything I own....waiting to go in the new room!

Ohhhh okaaaaayyyy....
And all this too! It's the Greeks who coined the phrase "Nothing Overmuch", not the Americans!! This, friends, is overmuch. Welcome to a teacher's world.

 I wrote love notes to our hard-working custodians so they'd know just where I wanted the chalkboards moved. My school would crumble without Dennis, Andy, Judy, & Larry. Never miss an opportunity to show gratitude to the custodial staff. Our crew loves KFC buckets and homemade pies. Just sayin'. Got my chalkboards moved, didn't I?

I chose a dark green accent wall for the front of the room. My research revealed that a darker wall is better placed where students will be focusing on a Smartboard or white projection screen (I do not have the former). Also green is our main school color. In coming photos, you will see that I changed that light blue blind to black with the magic of spray paint.

I recently attended my first Pinterest Party. Made this for my classroom. I call it my Reading Wreath and it showcases the books we read together in 7th grade. You can see it in its proper place at the beginning of this blog. I love it.

I fell in love with this chair on Pinterest. Planning to add a vinyl cling to the backrest that says Reading Takes You Places. I almost covered it in book pages from a worn out Tom Sawyer novel. Decided on the more colorful map option instead. Old maps and glossy ModPodge. That simple. You can see this chair again in the pic at the top of this blog.

Well I THOUGHT this corner of my room was done, until I decided to scrap the white (and dented) lampshade for a nice burlap one. Then I took the base home and painted it black. I wonder if there's any sales data on how many spray paint cans teachers purchase in the summer months!! I think my upcycled lamp looks much better now. 

Last summer I spent $3 on this basket set at a yard sale. Each basket was a different color: red, blue, and black. Not sure why I stood for that all last school year! I guess I was just thrilled to have a home for my 3 class periods of writing folders. All I'm saying is Spray Paint Happens! Cannot wait to show you my very cool writing folders. I'm assembling those now. Yep, I hafta make em! Pics forthcoming. But again, not my idea! Indiana Writing Consultant and author Kristina Smekens showed me these ridiculously cool folders. Show you those very soon!