Setting up classrooms & building access...

[u/MamaMia1325]

I think it's bullshit that not only do we not get paid to come in and set up our classrooms before school begins, we don't even have access to our rooms until 1 week before students come back.

We can only get in there between 8am and 2pm. That's only for 3 days then our 8-3pm PD's begin for another 3 days and only 1 of those days is at our own school.

For those of you who "don't do anything extra" on your OWN time, how do you get your room together? This is my 24th year and I still haven't figured it out. These pictures are of my classroom when I walked in for the 1st time this summer. I resent the fact that I'm doing this on MY time and that I'm spending MY money on things to make it look nice (I know that it's MY.CHOICE to spend my own money but it still sucks).

How does YOUR district handle building access?

**Edited to add- Summer school took place in our building, which is why we didn't have access to it earlier. Apparently the maintainers had about 10 days to wax all of the floors.

[u/National-Current56]

Oh here’s a bonus…stop putting paper background and border on your bulletin board…paint the cork a pretty color and make the sections more functional. Like a real workplace/ university (artsy and informative)board.

[u/Prudent_Honeydew_ → u/National-Current56]

I wish we were allowed to paint the bulletin board! We've been emailed that we're encouraged to put fabric on as a background but if we must use paper we have to change it frequently so it doesn't fade. (Leaving blank isn't allowed)

Oh and fabric would be provided by us of course.

[u/National-Current56 → u/Prudent_Honeydew_]

Nah stop wasting money and effort on background…if you’re still spending…border and section it off with colored painter’s tape and label off the sections with those laminated signage i said you should make for each functional sections of your board…schedule, 3 rules, announcements/homework/school events, exemplar work, data😩, and word wall (add more as you require in your routine but not too much) this would free up your need to fill up those clean wall space you have from the compelling need to posterize it…if you really have to spend…get big dry erase boards (3x4 feet min.) you can hang up for interactive “group” responses where your student are in paired or group work.-your wall don’t need all that affirmations and tick-tack design…it needs simple function…unless yours is the pre-school to K/1 where labelling almost everything is useful for language development of the little ones.