Classroom Set up

I love my classroom this year so I thought I would share my layout and the thought process. 

This is my teacher area. I hold my guided reading groups and other small groups here. Everything I need is on the red shelf behind the table. The small cabinet to the right holds Mailbox magazines and math workbooks, etc. I also keep some testing supplies in there for easy access. The placement is perfect: I can see the door and all the tables and it is also right next to the carpet area so my plans are easy-access! (I keep my notebook with my plans on that right hand corner.) 

My lesson plan book: 

The book, Day-by-Day Kindergarten Plans, is from The Mailbox, is AMAZING, and can be bought Here.

 

 The front of my lesson plan notebook has our grade level's Long Term Plans.

The rest of the notebook holds my weekly plans.
You can grab My Lesson Plan Template here.

These are my centers:

Dramatic Play (Housekeeping, as the kids call it). we set it up near the classroom kitchen and it also acts as a barrier between the room and the bathroom, which is nice.

This is the listening center which is right beside the reading center. I have also added some Leap Frog Leappads to this center, which the kids LOVE. They have a difficult time with cassette tapes, I need to upgrade my listening library to CDs! :)

Here is the view from the doorway. You can see the calendar on the back of the cubbies shelf. It works well there for Calendar Time in the mornings when students are sitting on the rug. I have enough jobs for every student this year and one of those jobs is "Calendar Helper." 

Here is our word wall. It's right at the front of the classroom where everyone can see it from their seats. Underneath the word wall are the puzzles and blocks centers. I keep them covered so there are no distractions during "carpet times."

 This is my writing center (I am in the process of changing some things around via Pinterest ideas, I will update as soon as that is complete.) There are white boards and markers; stamps, stamp pads, and paper; pencils, crayons, and colored pencils. I also keep students' journals and Everyday Math  workbooks in those colored bins (from Really Good Stuff). They are labeled by table number and students are responsible for getting their books or journals and returning them to the correct bin. 

This is what I use to organize my week. There is a pocket for each day of the week and I also keep an "Absent" folder (that's the one with polka dots) and an "Extra Work" folder or two. This hangs on the side of our huge (unattractive) AC unit, which is right beside the teacher table. Easy access and really self-explanatory for a sub!

You can get one of these nifty file organizer pocket charts at amazon.com for $14.99 (a little cheaper than a teacher store!)!