Student Centered Decor: Tips and Ideas

Displaying student work can be a nightmare. OR maybe you love it! I'm a control freak . With little classroom space to display student work.... so I get stressed out about it! This is the struggle that goes on in my mind: Can I get every student's work on display? Does it look neat? Did they cut correctly? 

Read on to see how I deal with these voices in my head and hopeful you will gather some great ideas along the way.

As we approach Back To School season, teachers are slowly heading back to their classrooms. I always feel overwhelmed when I take those first steps into my classroom from summer break. The first thing I do, to combat the nauseousness that overwhelms me, is my bulletin boards! Sounds weird, right? Here is my theory.... it will look like I have accomplished A LOT once I get my boards up. I will feel like I have made progress and be able to come back to work over and over. I will be able to ignore the other mess.

BUT... then I realize something.... All of my boards and wall space are for my students' work. Sure, I have a few posters for scheduling, behavior etc. They are standard, but the actual board and wall space is BLANK until those kiddos create the work to display!

WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT?

I want my students to have ownership of our room environment. It's not solely MY room. It's OUR room. If their work is valued and highlighted, it will encourage them to do their best work and take pride in it! 

HOW DO YOU ACCOMPLISH IT?

Give your students activities they can succeed at! This will build their self confidence and they will want to show off their work! 

These kiddos are always a hit with my students and parents. I have my students complete these before Open House. This gives them the ability to share their accomplishments with their parents in a natural form. Nothing is forced. These are from My Future Is So Bright Craftivity packet.

Photo from Sailing Into Second

I have to get creative with space to display student work. I am able to hang some work from a wire across my ceiling. I know this isn't an option for everyone, but this is the best way for me to get the most out of the space. My students are always "ooing" and "aweing" at their work and each other's work. They try to guess who wrote what and which one is theirs. They also beam with pride when guests come in and admire their work.... hence, building SELF ESTEEM! 

Scarecrow Writing Craft

I also use the doors of my cupboards to display student generated work (Hey, a girl has got to get creative). This is one of my favorite character building/self esteem projects we do each year. I teach my students how to draw self portraits. Then, I walk them through the process of writing their own All About Me poems. The students LOVE sharing what they write with each other and having their parents read them at Back To School Night. Building each student up is SO important to do throughout the year.

Self  Portraits

This year I am going to create an Instagram display to highlight each of my students. This is a display I leave up all year! It makes every student feel special. It promotes their self esteem and there is always something for them to show off about themselves in our classroom. 

I have each parent email me their child's favorite picture of  himself or herself. It can be a picture of them doing their favorite activity (like the picture below) or a special family event etc. If I don't get a picture sent to me, I take one of them at school to use.

Next, students choose a simple caption and hashtag to go with their picture.

Finally, I will print them on white card stock and laminate them. I display each Instagram page with our class title. It makes my heart pitter-patter to highlight each student all year. 

Build your students' self esteem and grab your own Instaclass Bulletin Board set below:

I hope you were able to gather a few new ideas to highlight each student in your class, build their character, and self esteem throughout the year. 

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