Bright Ideas Link Up: Keeping Student Desks Together

It's one of my favorite times of the month again, time for myself and a few hundred of my blogging buddies are sharing tried and true ideas from our classrooms. 

My bright idea is one I wish I had thought of years ago.  I have always had desks in my classroom that I have always grouped into tables for easy partner work and collaboration. However, those silly desks ALWAYS moved around.  Always. Halfway through the day, we were always rearranging our tables, and there was always one kid who managed to push his desk into another child's.  Always.  Before blogs and Pinterest, I searched message boards, AtoZTeacher stuff anyone?, to try and find a solution. I tried taping the desks together, using bungee cords, ropes, etc. to keep them together.  Nothing worked. 

Then one day a colleague of mine suggested old coffee cans, which I thought was brilliant, but I didn't have six coffee cans just sitting around the house. So I went to Home Depot and bought some one quart mixing containers.  You can find them online {here}. 

I put the container in middle of where I wanted each table to be and put one leg from each chair inside. Problem instantly solved!

Their desks still move a little bit, but not nearly as much as they did before.  Only one or two tables need readjusted throughout the day instead of all of the. Additionally, since all of the desks are connected, it's so much easier to slide them into to place when needed.

If you enjoyed this bright idea, please consider 
joining me on Facebook, Instagram, or my Teachers Pay Teachers store for more great ideas. 

To keep searching for even more bright ideas from 150 different bloggers, please browse through the link-up below and choose a topic/grade level that 
interests you. Thanks for visiting! 

An InLinkz Link-up

Bright Ideas Blog Hop: Mystery Motivators

Welcome to next stop on the Bright Ideas Blog Hop! 

Thanks, Gina for the warm welcome! I hope you enjoyed reading her post on easy ways to collect papers. :) Today I'm going to be blogging all about my new favorite behavior management tip, mystery motivators! 

This year my teaching partner and I have a student who has been extremely hard to motivate to make good choices.  All our tried and true tips and tricks have failed and we were desperate to find something that worked to motivate this student to make better choices, so we could teach. 

We consulted our administration, who are FABULOUS, and they suggested we give our student a motivation survey.  We found that peer approval motivates our student and we started brainstorming peer approval rewards to motivate our student to make appropriate choices.  

We decided to have our student work towards a treat that the whole class could enjoy as a reward for his good behavior.  He earns things like a special snack for the class, going to recess 10 minutes early once a week, extra computer lab time, etc.  

To keep him on track, we came up with three things we wanted him to work on and then broke up our day into nine sections.  If he is successful in meeting his goals during each section of his day, he gets a star.  Each week, we determine the number of stars he needs to earn a treat for the class.  

He was initially excited about this but it wasn't working.  He'd not earn a few stars, and then automatically think "Why bother, I'm never going to earn _____ stars?"

Our principal suggested the concept of a mystery motivator as a reward for making good choices at the end of each day for earning a certain number of stars. We have started out low, 5/9 stars, but will increase the number of stars he needs to earn as his behavior improves.  We sat down with our student and brainstormed things he'd like to receive as a reward for making good choices at the end of each day. It was important that HE come up with this list so HE felt motivated.  It was important for us that they be free and easy to implement since he would get a reward each day he met his goal. Our student's list of motivators is below.  

He carries his behavior chart and mystery motivator envelope back and forth between his two classes.  Before the day begins, I slip a slip of paper with one of his mystery motivators written on it inside the envelope.  I try to rotate them out so he doesn't get board with them.  At the end of the day, if he reaches his daily goal, he gets to open the envelope.  He likes it because it's a surprise and a present he gets to open at the end of the day. It also helps us build a more positive relationship with us as well.  

Opening his mystery motivator has become a special moment for my student, as well as for the rest of the class.  They are always excited to see what he earned for making good choices that day.  

I am proud to report that last week, our student earned a treat for the class. So I let him choose a special snack for the class.  He chose fruit snacks, and I was happy to buy them!

He also reached his weekly goal on Friday, so the class will get to enjoy a special treat next week as well.  

I hope you enjoyed reading how mystery motivators have been a difference maker in my classroom this year.  Mystery Motivators could also work has a whole class incentive for making good choices as well, especially if you use the WBT Scoreboard System! :) 

For another bright idea, hop on over to The Second Grade Surprise.  Jeannie is sharing a bright idea on keeping students quiet in the hallway. :) 

For even MORE bright ideas, feel free to hop along the links below.  I know I will be after I pour my first cup of coffee! :)

You can also check out more bright ideas on our collaborative Pinterest board {here}! :) 

An InLinkz Link-up
An InLinkz Link-up

Organization in a Departmentalized Classroom: A Bright Idea

Hello! Welcome to the next stop on the Bright Ideas Blog Hop! I know I have LOVED reading all the wonderfully bright ideas. :) 

I hope you enjoyed your previous stop on our hop, learning about post it note fluency with my sweet friend, Christina of Sugar and Spice.  

Today I'm sharing a "bright" idea or two on how I keep my classroom organized this year.  

For those of you who are visiting my blog for the first time, I am departmentalized this year.  I teach two classes of language arts this year.  Previously, I had always been self contained, so organizing two of everything was hard to get used to at first.  

Being organized with two groups of kiddos really starts with them. Each of our kiddos carry an organizational binder to and from school.  Inside this binder is their pencil pouch, folders for each subject, and their home to school folder.  You can see how this binder is essentially set up {here}.  

I also stay on top of them to keep their desks clean.  This cuts down on the whole "the person who sits here in the other class took my pencil, put my book pack in the library, etc," complaining.   Ideally, all that should be in their desk is their binder and two bag of books, their own and one belonging to a student in the opposite class.  

These two kiddos are doing an exceptional job. :) 

Another way my students help keep our materials organized is putting their writing materials in their table's writing basket. 

Each basket does have a label on the front of the basket with either my name or my partner teacher's name and a table number. However I flipped them around for privacy's sake. :)  These baskets may look a mess but they WORK!  Each student's writing notebook and any other materials we are using for writing, such as spelling aids or graphic organizers, go in them each and every day. I love this is one less thing for them tote back and forth each day.  

Sorry this picture is so blurry but this pocket chart is another way my kiddos help me stay organized.  They each have a number and when they turn in work, they put it in their pocket. For the most part their numbers are in ABC order, excluding move ins and such, and having them pretty much in ABC order makes putting grades in the computer SO much easier.  At the end of each class, I just take out the papers and paper clip them together and throw them in my teacher bag.  In my bag, I have two file folders for each class, one labeled "grade" and one labeled "return."  This keeps me so organized when it comes to graded work and it starts with my kiddos. 
 
 Another thing that keeps me organized with my two classes is our daily rotation chart.  

Under this chart, I keep a list of who is in each reading group for both classes.  I make a quick switch in rotations after lunch to meet the needs of both of my classes. 

When we switch up reading groups, I just print off a new poster for each class.

I teach reading in small groups but it all starts with an mini lesson where we create an anchor chart together. 

Exclude my SUPER messy handwriting.  My anchor charts are functional but certainly aren't cute.  I usually have two sets of post it notes or index cards when I record student responses.  One set is for my morning class and one set is for the afternoon class. I snapped this picture before my afternoon class got to create their chart, but I think you get the picture. :)  

As far as materials for each groups go, I keep them on a shelf by my guided reading table.  One of my basket's labels went missing and I just haven't replaced it yet. :)  Basically I have have one approaching grade level group, two on grade level groups, and one above grade level group.  The A, O, and B baskets hold the leveled readers for our reading series.  The group baskets hold materials each group is either working on or will use that day.  I just simply paper clip each class' set when I put them in the basket. 

For materials that all groups will use at some point throughout the week go in these baskets.  I also keep our daily copies close by in these letter trays. 

I separate each class' set of copies with a paper clip or binder clip. I do this because the make up of each of my classes is different, so sometimes their daily whole group activities differ from day to day.

I hope that you enjoyed learning how I organize my class this year.  :)  Additionally, if things look a little "off" on my blog, don't worry, it's in the process of getting a MAJOR facelift! 

If you are looking for more great ideas, please visit the next blog on our blog hop, written by Arlene at LMN Tree! Her post is all about using sentence frames to get your students started writing! Click on her button below to check out her awesome post!

You can also visit the link-up below and choose a topic that interests you! Thanks for hopping around all the "bright ideas" on our blog hop! :)