Storage Tips for Posters and Gameboards
Posted by Amy Erickson on 11 Feb 2009 | Posted in: Grade 1, Organization and Supplies, The Mailbox
I have a confession to make: I’m a bit of a packrat. That was especially true when I was teaching. I had tons of store-bought teaching supplies as well as a closet full of cardboard tubes, cotton balls, craft sticks, and other miscellaneous items that I had collected over the years. The trick with being a packrat is figuring out how to store things so you remember them at opportune times. Have you ever finished teaching a unit only to discover a week or so later that you had overlooked a perfect poster or game to go with it? If so, you know exactly what I mean about figuring out the best storage options.
As the managing editor of The Mailbox® magazine, grade 1, I hear from many of our readers about how they store the pull-out posters and gameboards from the magazine. Some teachers organize them by subject area. Some prefer to keep all their posters in one place and all their gameboards in another place. I’d love to know what works best for you.
Currently, I feature either two posters or two gameboards on the pull-out centerfold in each issue. First-grade teachers, how would you feel about having one side a poster and one side a gameboard? The posters and gameboards have been so well received, I wonder if you’d like one of each in every issue. Let me know what you think.
And please don’t forget to share your tips for storing The Mailbox magazine posters and gameboards. As a packrat, I always enjoy hearing great organization ideas!
| Find this poster in the February/March 2009 issue of The Mailbox magazine, grade 1! | |
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 Look what’s coming in the April/May issue of The Mailbox magazine, grade 1! |
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19 Responses to “Storage Tips for Posters and Gameboards”
More Comments Pages: « 1 [2] Show All Comments
More Comments Pages: « 1 [2] Show All Comments
I laminate my posters for durability. Than I use left over wrapping paper tubes and roll the poster inside to protect it. you can write on the tube to say what posters or subject is inside. This is a great idea and works with all size posters. You will also be surprized at how many posters fit inside a roll.
You can store your rolls in a store purchased rubbermade tote designed for wrapping paper.
I am a packrat too with file cabinets and storage bins full of lesson plan ideas that are clearly marked for themes and academic categories. I would prefer gameboards and posters back-to-back as it would conserve space, but the theme of each would relate to each other. I have access to a laminator which would preserve them better.
I would love to have both a poster page and a gameboard page in each magazine. My kids love your games at Center Time. I really like your posters; they come in handy as teaching aids for whole class discussions. I’ve started collecting them and I’ll have a variety when I teach something new or just to change decor to make the kids ask questions. They love something new in the room.
Suzi,
I teach preschool 3s, 4s, and 5s. I’m fortunate enough to have an extra bedroom for my “office”…crafts, clothes, and school supplies. I’ve put most of my school supplies into see-through Rubbermaid tubs of different sizes. I put things that have similar uses in a tub and then label what’s inside on the outside of the tub. It’s been very helpful. I have my tubs on shelving from Home Depot or Lowes…and it even looks organized!
I love the gameboards and posters. I organize them by skills in three ring binders. Sections that I have titled in one binder is patterning, shapes, same/different, measurement, and color matching. In another binder I store all gameboards and posters that relate to nursery rhymes and fairytales. Most of the centerfolds fit nicely into sheet protectors so I can thumb through the binder and see exactly what I need. On the spine of the binders I label Mailbox Mag. Centers. I also have binders like this for your recipes from the magazines.
I like to organize everything on a big Excel spreadsheet. I keep my posters and bulletin board sets in the poster storage boxes that Trend Enterprises makes and label each box with a sharpie marker: box 1, box 2, etc. I try to put things that would be used most of the year in one box, things used in the fall in another box, things used in the winter in another box, and things used in the spring in another box. Then there is a box for miscellaneous items that can be pulled out at various times. I store these boxes in my basement.
Whenever I get new materials I add them to my spreadsheet. I put the type (poster, bulletin board materials, cut-outs, etc) the subject, any special notes as to the curriculum area this covers, and the box number it can be found in.
I also have a similar style spreadsheet that covers my Mailbox magazines. Each time I get a new issue I go through with post-its and mark anything that catches my interest. I then add the idea, issue #, and page # to my spreadsheet under whichever subject it relates to.
Whenever it is time to plan a new lesson, I use the Find option to look through my Excel spreadsheets for posters, worksheets, ideas, etc that correspond with a particular curriculum area.
To those who are computer challenged, Excel is not complicated at all to learn. I never had formal training, I just taught myself. But you can always find classes at computer stores or local colleges on learning how to use spreadsheets. Some school districts offer classes through their IT department. Spreadsheets are the key to keeping me organized.
I’m a first year teacher of twos and threes, and I need organization tips big time!!