Dollar Store Finds

As a teacher, we are all aware of dollar stores and the numerous supplies they have that can be modified for classroom use.

My personal favorite is the Dollar Tree and their teaching section.  Many school districts have tax-exempt status, so grab the form from your office and show your teacher id to save a little extra.  (Ok, not save...just not pay tax)

Laundry bins:

These two items make great book organizers.  I like to organize my bookshelf by genre, but you can always do alphabetically or leveled :)

 

l love the idea of buying all white bins and then using colored ribbons to differentiate for reading groups.  If you're not feeling that crafty, you can always laminate note cards, put a hole punch in the top two corners and attach the note card to the bin with binder clips.  Plus, if the note cards are laminated, you can easily change the information, table names, etc.  I love working smarter, not harder :)

However, printing labels on card stock and laminating them works just as well:

photo albums plus flash cards =

Just make sure your students use dry erase markers and not sharpies :)

Speaking of dry erase markers...

Gluing a pom pom on the end makes for an instant eraser!  (Also, it saves your napkin/tissue/paper towel supply and kids keep their hands clean..well, cleanish)

You can also use the picture frames to display instructions to students at centers:

They're easily changeable too!

The fake flowers can also help you make sure your pencils don't disappear.  Use duct tape to beautify pencils and pens, then store in a vase on your desk:

Happy thrifting!