I just wrapped up my fifteenth year of teaching first grade. On the last day of school I sat staring at my classroom alphabet posters, my mind boggled a bit to think of how these years have come and gone and how I am continually using my summers to not only rest up and restore my tired teacher brain….but also to reflect on how things went and what I might change moving forward.
This year my little class of first graders made FANTASTIC progress! I had all-time high proficiency and growth data for my little readers and I just couldn’t be happier about that. There are a lot of factors that went into that and I hope to do a blog post about them later on, but for now I want to talk about just one of those factors…and it may surprise you a bit.
Calm classroom decor. Yep. I truly think that having the right kind of classroom decor aided and supported my first graders in their efforts to become fluent readers, and I think this is particularly the case with my classroom alphabet posters. There is nothing better than having a calm and happy classroom. I do want the space to be cute (since I spend A LOT of time there and want to feel at home), but I also want it to be functional and useful to my students. Allow me to share a few of my favorite classroom decoration ideas.
I am not a fan of covering up every inch of wall space. It is okay to leave some walls fairly empty and some counters totally bare. U.K. researchers examined decor in over 150 classrooms and came to the conclusion that too much visual stimulation can make students perform more poorly on their assessments. Calm classroom decor is key. “The displays on the walls should be designed to provide a lively sense to the classroom, but without becoming chaotic in feel. As a rule of thumb, 20 to 50 percent of the available wall space should be kept clear.”(Edutopia)
I use calm classroom decor that features real photographs. They are visually-engaging for students, and supportive of their academic learning in so many ways. I wanted to detail a few of my classroom decoration ideas and elements such as my sound wall, classroom alphabet posters, shape posters, and more and explain how I feel they are beneficial to my little learners in the hopes that perhaps they can be beneficial to yours!
Classroom Sound Wall
My sound wall might be my most cherished space in my classroom. It is BEYOND valuable as a tool and it actually has a post of its own right here, but suffice it to say my students use it every. Single. Day. Each phoneme card features an exemplar word (with accompanying real photograph), a caption, voiced/unvoiced cue, real mouth formation, and spellings/graphemes organized from most common to least common. My sound wall even doubles as a sight word wall as well. I organize my sight words by initial phoneme directly under each sound card. If my kids forget how to spell a sight word they can easily find it on the sound wall.
Classroom Alphabet Posters
At the beginning of first grade it is sometimes tricky for students to keep all of their beginning letter sounds straight, not to mention the correct letter formation. These alphabet wall cards are the perfect reference for kids who are still mastering those. In my experience a lot of incoming first graders especially struggle with the following letters: b/d/p/q, f, v, and w. I place these alphabet posters above my front whiteboard and students are able to reference them anytime. I also like to laminate and give my students their own personal mini version to keep in their writing folders!
Classroom Number Posters
Number formation can also be tricky so these number posters also merit a special place on our classroom wall. I like to place these number posters right near my classroom alphabet posters. They showcase not only the correct formation, but the number word spelling itself, and the quantity represented with tallies and with real-world pictures. My students reference these all the time during math lesson and centers.
Classroom Shape Posters
This is one of my favorite classroom decoration ideas! Basic shapes (circles, squares, etc.) are frequently mastered by first grade, but this is the year where we learn some of the more obscure ones as well (rectangular prism, anyone?) These 2D and 3D shape posters are fun for kids to look at and feature the correct spelling of each shape/figure, a black line display of each one (great for identifying attributes!), and a fun real-world example of the shape. I use these classroom shape posters as a jumping off point before we go on shape explorations around the classroom and school!
Classroom Color Posters
I am in love with these color posters! These are perfect for helping students learn how to spell their colors, particularly how to spell each color. They are also just lovely to look at and really add to the clean, bright, and calm classroom atmosphere I am going for.
Visual Directions, Schedule Cards, and Centers Signs
I use these all the time! Visual directions with real pictures are so much easier for students to interpret than clipart. And these schedule cards and center signs are editable so you can display exactly what is needed for your specific classroom.
Editable Desk Nameplates
After teaching first grade for so long I KNOW what I want on a desk nameplate. I created these to have the essential that kiddos need for daily reference. Each one features the following: uppercase and lowercase letters (aligned with my classroom alphabet posters), number lines 1-20, 2D/3D shapes/figures, U.S. coins (front and back), colors, as well as a left/right hands. I laminate these at the beginning of the year and adhere them to our desks. They are supportive, efficient, and visually engaging without being chaotic. And these are the exact calendar items that I use in my classroom. Clear, engaging, and functional.
I really do feel like calm classroom decor, particularly some well thought-out classroom decoration ideas, classroom alphabet posters, and classroom shape posters can be a powerful tool in your teaching when it is done thoughtfully and with the intent of supporting our little learners. If you are interested you can grab the growing bundle of clean and bright classroom decor items by clicking on the image below.
If you have any questions about these items click on the images or links to see more or you can always email me at [email protected] and we can chat. Happy classroom decorating, teacher!
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