Does anyone else have a
drawer that looks like this?
I started my “Summer to Do” list
this weekend after attempting to open this drawer. It was so jammed up that I couldn’t
find what I was looking for without everything falling out! So #1 on my list is:
Clean out junk drawers! My motivation is that I’ll find stuff to contribute to
my class prize box, the teacher’s lounge “Free to a Good Home” pile and maybe a
few other places along the way. Most importantly, it will be out of my house. Do
you need some motivation too?
Here are some ideas Erin and
I brainstormed for THE BIG SUMMER CLEAN-OUT!
What to clean: Closets
What to look for: hats, jackets, scarves, umbrellas, mittens, gloves and
shoeboxes
What to do with everything: Hats, jackets, scarves, mittens and gloves - Donate
to kids at your school, hold a school clothing drive or even try a Staff Scarf
Exchange. Encourage members of your staff to bring in a scarf they no longer
wear. (Make sure they wash it.) Display all the scarves in your teacher’s
lounge where participants can swap their scarf for a new one.
Umbrellas - Keep extra
umbrellas in the office for staff members who get caught in those sudden storms
at bus duty.
Gloves - Cut off the fingers
and let your students make puppets out of each finger.
Shoeboxes - Use for dioramas about
books or SOL content. Check out this diorama of a rainforest ecosystem!
What to clean: Drawers
What to look for: buttons, junk jewelry, key chains, wallets, change
purses, pens, notepads and socks.
What to do with everything: Buttons - Make math counters/manipulatives or eyes
and noses for craft projects.
Fake jewelry - Use for a
dress-up center (if you teach kindergarten or pre-school) or put it in your
prize box for the girls.
Key chains - Put in your
prize box. Kids love to attach them to their backpacks!
Wallets and change purses -
Our students are always bringing lose change and bills for lunch money. Allow
them to borrow a wallet or change purse to transport their money safely to the
cafeteria.
Pens and notepads - Can be
used at your classroom writing center or put them in your teacher workroom or
teacher’s lounge for staff to use or take.
Socks - Use for sock puppets
in your classroom or see if your art teacher needs them
What to clean: Garage, Basement or Attic (All 3 if you have them!)
What to look for: games, toys, stuffed animals (slightly used, not
grungy), picture frames, marbles, flashlights, books and coffee mugs
What to do with everything: Games and toys - perfect for indoor recess. If you
don’t need them, give them to a first year teacher in your school!
Stuffed animals - Wash them
on the gentle cycle then stock your reading corner or classroom library, donate
to your school library, or put them in the class prize box.
Picture frames - Frame
student artwork, poems or letters. Set them up around your teaching space to
add a polished look to your classroom. Picture frames without glass can also be
put in your prize box.
Marbles - Play an old fashioned
game of marbles during indoor recess. (Use a hula hoop on the floor, to keep
them contained and from rolling under furniture.) Marbles also make colorful
fillers for vases that hold flower pens or flowers if you get them.
Flashlights - Save for a campsite
escape (see previous post), lights-out reading (turn out the lights and read by
flashlight) or put in the prize box.
Books - Put in your classroom
library, give to a first year teacher, host a teacher book exchange or have a
“Free Book Giveaway” and let each student choose a book or two to take home.
Coffee mugs - Donate to your
teacher’s lounge or use at your classroom writing center to hold pens, pencils
and crayons.
Ann Marie
