I'm starting my first teaching job in August. What are some good bulletin board ideas for the beginning of the year in a 3-5 grade classroom. I like the idea of centering the classroom around a particular theme (that would change frequently) to use with interdisciplinary units and hopefully teach my students to generalize among subjects (It's an ED/BD classroom). I thought about possibly making a large spaceship with the theme "Blast off into the new year" but couldn't decide if this would be too young for them. Then on the first day of school they would complete some sort of theme related project telling about them that we would hang up around the class.
My main concern is that alot of my ideas may be too juvenile for my students, especially considering the age difference among them. What are some good age-appropriate bulletin board ideas for the beginning of the year and throughout the year.
Thanks in advance...I need all the help I can get!
How about a jungle? Theme could be "Swing into a New Year" with monkeys swinging on yarn vines?
I also have found that you don't want to have to change bulletin boards every month. I have a bulletin board for each SEASON. I just come up with some cute saying and use a pad of predesigned paper to put student's names on. For example" "An UnbeLEAFable Class" with leaves with names on them.
I think "Blast Off to School" sounds very appropriate for grades 3-5, as does "Swing Into a New Year".
You'll probably want a bulletin board or two to display student work throughout the year. Some headings that I've seen suggested by other teachers on this forum might be:
Picture Perfect Work (die-cut cameras and/or photos of your students)
Super Student Work (superheroes)
We Do Great Work! (photos of students)
(Name of school) Kids Do Great Work! (your school mascot)
Check Out Our Great Work! (gingham, or checkmarks w/ big pencil)
Cool Kids' Work (penguins)
We Really Shine or Super Star Work (stars)
Toadally Terrific Work (toads/frogs)
Doggone Good Work (dogs and bones)
Our Work Rocks! (rocks and minerals)
Sea What We're Working On (sea creatures)
Last year I bought a small, die-cut notepad at K-Mart that looks just like a sandwich. I had the heading "Get Ready for a Scrumptious School Year" and had each student's name written on a paper sandwich fixing, like tomato slices, Swiss cheese slices, ham, lettuce, and slices of bread. I received several compliments on that board, and it was SO easy to make! Another year I'd gotten a 3-foot cardboard Dole banana from my grocery store and used the heading "Mrs. ____'s Bunch" and made small paper bananas with each child's name on them.
Also, I read somewhere that blues, greens, and purples are soothing, relaxing colors, so I use those as my bulletin board backgrounds, along with some light yellow. I use "generic" multi-colored borders that stay up all year (rainbows, ABCs, character traits, gingham, etc.) Seasonal decorations are on our classroom door. It's just easier for me that way.
Great ideas! Kids at the upper elementary level love to make bulletin boards, so maybe you could 'save' one board for them either as a reward or as a class job once a month or every couple of weeks. I agree that boards do not have to be changed all the time to be effective. Long term theme boards which are interactive or help with classroom procedures are very effective. (Ex. writing process, parts of speech, grading policies, classroom rules, class news or photos, center organization, etc.)
One trick I use (that I've seen others here also use) is to use material instead of paper for the backgrounds. Wal Mart has material remnents for $1-$2 a yard. They are usually in a 48" width and are so bright and colorful. You can get solids, patterns, seasonal, and all types of textures. They are so much easier to put up than those big sheets of butcher paper, and best of all, they never fade and are so easy to store until you need them again!
I have only used it on cork bulletin boards. Maybe for a door or wall display, you could use the wide library tape and then tape the border over it....? Might work.
I think "Blast Off to School" sounds very appropriate for grades 3-5, as does "Swing Into a New Year".
You'll probably want a bulletin board or two to display student work throughout the year. Some headings that I've seen suggested by other teachers on this forum might be:
Picture Perfect Work (die-cut cameras and/or photos of your students)
Super Student Work (superheroes)
We Do Great Work! (photos of students)
(Name of school) Kids Do Great Work! (your school mascot)
Check Out Our Great Work! (gingham, or checkmarks w/ big pencil)
Cool Kids' Work (penguins)
We Really Shine or Super Star Work (stars)
Toadally Terrific Work (toads/frogs)
Doggone Good Work (dogs and bones)
Our Work Rocks! (rocks and minerals)
Sea What We're Working On (sea creatures)
Last year I bought a small, die-cut notepad at K-Mart that looks just like a sandwich. I had the heading "Get Ready for a Scrumptious School Year" and had each student's name written on a paper sandwich fixing, like tomato slices, Swiss cheese slices, ham, lettuce, and slices of bread. I received several compliments on that board, and it was SO easy to make! Another year I'd gotten a 3-foot cardboard Dole banana from my grocery store and used the heading "Mrs. ____'s Bunch" and made small paper bananas with each child's name on them.
Also, I read somewhere that blues, greens, and purples are soothing, relaxing colors, so I use those as my bulletin board backgrounds, along with some light yellow. I use "generic" multi-colored borders that stay up all year (rainbows, ABCs, character traits, gingham, etc.) Seasonal decorations are on our classroom door. It's just easier for me that way.
Hope this helps! Good luck!
~Jaicie
Just to add a couple of ideas to yours.....
I use "Red Hot Chili Papers" with a cowboy/chili pepper them for displaying student work
and
I have used purple balloons (each with a student's name on it) and green curling ribbon to creat a really cute 3D beginning of the year bulletin board that is labeled "Mrs. Ivey's "Grape" bunch. I staple the curling ribbon to the bb to keep the inflated balloons from bobbing around. ALSO....don't put this bb together too soon.....one year I put mine up a few day's before Open House, and even though they had deflated quite a bit, they still, luckily, looked more "grapey" than raisin-y"
I am going to do "Look Who's Hanging out in 4th Grade". I am going to make die-cut Tshirts with their names on them and let them decorate the tshirt (either at open house or the first day of school - which ever comes first). I will have the bulletin board decorated with two trees and yarn strung across so I can "hang" the shirts with clothes pins. The rest of the bb will have a picket fence, a sun, some flowers...
