Creativity in Teaching

Creativity as a Teacher

This year I am a first year teacher! The school year has already begun so I wanted to share some creativity I have used in the classroom. There are many different creative ways to impact the classroom. From class set up, organizing/ creating lessons and making presentations for the class. As a new teacher I am doing a lot of trial and error processes, but here are some ways that I have been creative in the classroom.

Classroom Organization

The main way to showcase my creativity has been through the way I set up my classroom. The classroom that I received was minimally decorated, and needed a lot of TLC. I took about 2-8 long nights setting up my classroom so it would be ready for the first week of school. 

First I spent a lot of time at Michaels, five below, dollar tree, daiso and walmart. I wanted to make sure it was a comfortable environment for my students and ensure that their learning environment was fun but not distracting. The main focuses that I had for my classroom was to have paper organization, a proper whiteboard set up, learning posters, and a calm corner. 

For paper organization I used items that the classroom already had, and bought two more organizers from daiso. I have 2 file organizers that I use for current classwork, and syllabus information. I also have a cubby organizer that came in the classroom that I use as a bin for students to turn in all their paper work. I have another organizer for bell work and exit ticket papers, and the two containers from daiso for absent work. I labeled all of these clearly with labels from Walmart so they would be easy to find for the students. 

As for the whiteboard set-up I wanted it to be functional and visually appealing. I have two whiteboards, one in the front and one in the back. Luckily the classroom I have came with a projector screen so I don’t have to worry about what I write on the board being projected over. On the the front white board I split off about 1/3rd of the board to be where I write down the learning objectives for the students to write in their agendas. Then I have another small corner of the board where I put down all the Google Classroom codes to ensure that the students have access to their digital assignments. On the back board I set up an assignment calendar using smiley face bulletin board borders from walmart. I have a section for each weekday and the class so the students know what they are working on in class that day. I really wanted this section to be colorful and effective for the students. 

For my classroom when deep diving and organizing I found many educational posters for business. And as the business teacher I was very excited. These large posters allowed for pops of color and information to be all over the space! A few other posters and wall decor I have are these Job skills prints from Amazon, a ‘No Cell Phone Use In This Classroom’ sign, a ‘This Week’ calendar white board from Michaels (this is so I can keep track of what is going on at the school) and a golden grid board where I showcase student’s drawings and art that they make me. 

Lastly, my favorite area of the classroom I set up is the ‘Calm Corner.’  As a high school teacher this is not used super frequently (except by me during prep period). But I wanted to have it just in case a student needed it. In this corner I bought a purple and white checkered rug from five below, as well as a blue flower pillow. I brought two squishmallows I had at home and allowed that to be the area for students to sit at. I have an LED sign from Michaels that says ‘Calm Corner’ with a rainbow. I also bought word searches, coloring sheets, and sticker books from five below with a clear bin with colorful flowers on it. Then next to that bin are two pencil cases, one with colored pencils and one with crayons. I wanted the students to have activities to take brain breaks, without using technology. These activities are the way that I have decided to get them to slow down, but still think. 

Lesson Plans

Coming up with lesson plans and assignments was not as easy as I thought it would be. But I am slowly but surely getting the hang of it. The biggest thing that I have done to be creative has made all my own slides using canva. I wanted the slides to be fun and enjoyable for the students. Even if they don’t seem to care, I still feel that adding a small amount of creativity to the classroom just makes all the difference. Making the slides makes me feel more productive than just a plain google slides presentation, and I want it to look nice for them! 

I have also began organizing all the worksheets and plans I have with folders, and the paper station. I make sure to know where I can locate everything and keep it (decently) organized.

Activities

I have been looking up many different activities for the students. This coming week, I believe will be my favorite. The activity for my students varies for each class, but essentially, they are picking out a birthday party for me and throwing it as managers! I am very excited to see what they come up with and see their creativity throughout the school day!