Supplies

//Compile your list of helpful supplies to have in the classroom//

What I use constantly in ALL my teaching contexts (K-12 language, professional development, Sunday School, workshops and conference sessions, etc.):


 * Beanbags (you can make these--good for throwing at paper plates with questions on them)
 * Bingo chips and game pieces - Try to get them in at least 4 different colors (so you can use them for groups later)
 * Bulletin Board materials (lots available from Carlex and Teacher's Discovery)
 * Carpet squares - Classroom set for sitting on the floor
 * Children's books in the target language
 * CDs (or downloads from iTunes)
 * Dice - 20 of one color and 20 of another color
 * Dictionaries (classroom set of "good" ones - i.e., NOT the ones from the dollar store--I like Larousse--the blue and yellow one, Chicago isn't bad either)
 * Diving Rings - (The heavy plastic ones with different colors--great for all kinds of activities)
 * DVDs - I have a few favorites for Spanish (like La historia oficial)
 * Flyswatters (classroom set--get the ones on metal sticks, not the plastic)
 * Kitchen Timer (esp. w/ magnetic backing designed to stick to fridge)
 * Magnets
 * Musical instruments - Castanets, cymbals, maracas, tambourines, and anything else you can find
 * Plastic tubs (for storing unit materials--you can also use boxes that paper comes in)
 * Play food and dishes (Dollar Store is a good place to start)
 * Play telephones (the kind that ring--although you could probably use cell phones now)
 * Props and costumes (go to garage sales this summer)
 * Puppets (both finger puppets and regular ones)
 * Scissors - Classroom set
 * Whiteboards - (Have Home Depot or Lowe's cut 12 x 12 squares for you, or get heavy duty plastic sheet protectors and slide white pieces of paper inside them--they make great, cheap whiteboards as long as you have the kids erase them after each use)
 * White Flat Bedsheets - Sooooo good for costuming, seating (when they don't want to sit on the floor, using as a make-shift screen, etc.)

CONSUMABLES - Other items that would have to be replaced on a regular basis:


 * Art supplies
 * Colored paper (not construction)
 * Crayons
 * Dixie cups (for putting Bingo chips, dice, etc. in)
 * Dry erase markers (for whiteboards - be SURE to get the LOW ODOR ones)
 * Folders (both colored and plain manila--I went through hundreds of these)
 * Gluesticks (classroom set)
 * Highlighters (a classroom set)
 * Index cards
 * Kleenex (I let kids bring it for extra credit--one of the few things they can do--it keeps the learning community healthy)
 * Labels (like the computer address ones and nametag kind--nice for making assignments, pairs, etc.)
 * Lysol Kitchen Spray (like 409) - Use it to disinfect the desks in the winter)
 * Markers (about 10 sets of regular colors and 6 sets of fleshtones so you have enough for groups to use)
 * Masking tape (Get the kind that is at least 1 to 3 inches wide--great for putting on the floor to denote various areas, for putting stuff on walls--scotch tape damages them)
 * Overhead Transparencies (if you don't have a computer projector)
 * Paper plates - Cheap paper ones in as large a quantity as you can get--they are great for activities
 * Pens - Colored--for grading
 * Permanent Markers (Black Sharpies, to be specific)
 * Plastic Sheet Protectors (Good for protecting pictures and visual aids that you don't want to laminate)
 * Playdough - In lots of colors (classroom set)
 * Popsicle sticks
 * Posterboard of various sizes
 * Post-Its (the more the better, as many different colors and sizes as you can find)
 * Tacks
 * Velcro (the black kind you can get at Sam's--the other colors don't stick as well--I went through LOTS of this)
 * Vis A Vis Overhead Markers (get the colored sets for writing on Overheads or laminated posterboard)
 * Watercolor paints or pencils (with a set of small, aluminum bread tins to hold the water)
 * White out (or correction tape--for quickly fixing worksheets)
 * Ziploc bags (the snack pack size, the sandwich size, and the freezer size--for pre-packaging materials so distribution is easy)



FURNITURE


 * Bookshelves
 * Bulletin boards around the room
 * Chalkboards around the room
 * Filing cabinets (as many as they'll give you)
 * Fridge (a mini-one)
 * Hot plates (a couple of the electric ones you can plug in)
 * Microwave

TECHNOLOGY


 * Classroom set of iPods (or at least 6--enough for each small group to have one)
 * Data projector and extra long cable
 * Flip videocamera (ideally, enough for each small group to have one)
 * Headsets (one for each computer)
 * Microphone for each computer
 * Teacher computer

THINGS YOU CAN MAKE -

user:chericem1

To add to Cherice's lengthy list: user:cartierm
 * White Boards if possible (they don't leave chalk all over your outfits, or dry your hands out as much as the chalk does)
 * Extra large hanging folder bins (Easily collect worksheets, units etc...1 or 2 for each level, and they are great to store and have ready for the next year- plus they are water proof!)
 * Large 3 ring binders to put in originals (I have lots of nicely cut and pasted worksheets that I like to keep here) of things so that you always have that as a back up to the hanging folder bins.
 * A cd player/radio. Great when you want to set the tone of the room, and at the end of the year when you are cleaning up or doing grades, its fantastic.
 * A classroom set of "correcting pens" so students can correct their work.

A recent discussion post regarding supplies in the classroom [|What Helps You Teach?] user:cartierm