Is anyone moving their classrooms this summer? School getting renovated or the floors getting waxed? Changing classrooms? Or changing schools? A few years ago my whole classroom had to be moved and placed in the gym for storage while our school was renovated. But my โstuffโ was in a section along with 40 other teachersโ stuff. Materials did get mixed up.
Problems occurred. I learned a few packing tips and tricks I want to share with you. Especially sinceโฆit is obviousโฆI am moving my classroom again this yearโฆto another school! This was my classroom last summerโฆ{We have carpet so I can leave furniture down and set up.}
Well, this year it all has to go! Thatโs rightโฆI am moving schools and thus, I am going to be moving my classroom! Here are my Tips for Moving Your Classroom.
Before Images
Check out my classroom in the summer before the moving process began.
Another image of my classroom over the summer.
Moving Your Classroom Trick #1: Store Your Smaller Things in Manageable Tubs
I store all my โunitโ materials in these smaller Rubbermaid Roughneck Totes I love how they latch on the sides. And they hold a TON of files, games, hands-on stuff, and more. And since I use one per week, I have around 40 of them. Here is just one of my tubs for Map Week.
Additionally, I love how easy it is to lift and move them. Some of those larger tubs get seriously heavy! And the files and materials are harder to keep organized. Papers get wrinkled. The game and center parts get mixed up. And moving them, even to get the materials out can cause some back pain. These bins are usually kept on a shelf.
Moving Your Classroom Trick #2: Label Everything!
Let’s talk about how to pack up a classroom. To avoid getting my materials mixed with another teacher, or lost along the wayโฆI labeledย every single thing. My bins are already labeled with their contents but they were lacking my name. When moving your classroom, adding your name and grade is very important. I donโt have time to hand label my name and grade on every single one of them, so I went to my computer andย printed out a simple sign. Then I made 200 copies. I attached this paper toย each and everything I moved. I left a line in case I needed to write anything on it. Plus, once this label was on that box, I knew I had looked through it and it was ready to go. I didnโt want to pack up anything that wasnโt mine to take. And we know that school stuff can get a little confusing.
Moving Your Classroom Trick #3: Group Like Items Together.
Once I take posters, number lines, word walls, and decorative materials off the walls, I want to store them in a way that will help me keep them together AND put them back up easily. I organized my wall decorations in order and placed them in baggies together. When I put my number charts up, I can easily start with zero. My ABCs are in opposite order which is just as easy. I will flip the stack over and pull A off the now top. My word wall pieces are also ready to go.
I also took my FAVORITE classroom tookโฆ Ceiling Hooks... Here is a picture of the hooks holding artwork up.
I bought these 10 years ago and put them up all over my ceiling. I hang up student work, especially close to our art center to display work. When I took them down, I wound them up and placed them in a bin together. Set up will now be simple and easy.
I didnโt think these would hold up as easily in a baggie, so I put them in a small tub. Since all my materials were grouped together on shelves so I left these materials together in boxes.
I put all my math manipulatives and games together. As I packed, I left the boxes open and ready. That way if something stray was in the room somewhere, it could still be placed in the right box.
When everything was ready to go, then I taped up the boxes. I did place post-it notes on the boxes until I had a chance to label them with the printed papers I showed you above.
Plus I grabbed these boxes for a co-workerโs hallway once she moved into our school. I was 99% sure she was done with them, but I wanted to MAKE SURE before I damaged the boxesโฆand yes she was fine with it.} Do you see things left on the shelves? Those are the items I canโt take with me because they were bought by the school.
Moving Your Classroom Trick #4- Store Large Charts So They Don’t Get Bent
One thing I learned from my reno move was charts and large items will easily get bent or lost. Why? They are loose and so large that they are just hard to manage! My solution? Place the larger charts, wall decorations, and materials in a LARGE BOX. Lay the box down on one side and load it up. I found this Home Depot box fit perfectly for lots of my charts and dรฉcor. Some of the items were still too large, my poster size Center Chart. Once all my other items that do fit went into the box, I added the even larger ones to the top.
It worked out very well! My old classroom had carpet, but the halls were tile floors. And the wax had already been applied. Therefore, I was asked not to roll anything onto the hallway floors. When materials were packed, labeled, and ready to goโฆI stacked all my materials by the back door for easy loading and moving.
{Yes, there is tile there too, but that is what I was asked to do. My custodians have always been great to me, so I follow all their directions.}
Moving Your Classroom Trick #6: Move Materials… The Smart Way.
If you are moving your classroom, think about time and costs. My home school was about a 40-minute drive from my new school. That is a long trek back and forth, even with an SUV. I had to rent a U-Haul. There was no way around it. With gas prices and the distance to my new school, it would have been a chore to do anything else!
You might not need one, but donโt be scared to look into rentals for larger moves! The truck was around $30 a day then $0.77 a mile! I was able to rent it for less than $85. I did spend an additional $15 on gas, bringing the total cost to $100. The time it took to move diminished. This truck allows us to move the classroom in a few hours. This was a huge time and money saver in the long run. Defedently consider a truck if you need to move your classroom.
We moved all the stuff to the curb by the ramp. My sister, my daughter, my niece, my nephew, and I worked hard!
Once the U-Haul arrived, it took 45 minutes or less to load it up. The hardest thing to move was my filing cabinets. We had a hand truck and dolly, but they are FULL and very heavy. Plus we couldnโt use the front door, so we had to go across some grass with them. EEKK. We made it happen. Here is a glimpse of my old classroom and how I left it.
All the furniture I left belongs to the school so I canโt take it with me. That means I have to leave even my awesome lower black shelves that I love! This new owner is getting hooked up! When I had to move my furniture before, I labeled my tables with paper and masking tape. I also taped my chair stacks together. Since my chairs are color-coded, I HAD TO GET THEM ALL BACK. Or I would have lost my mind.
What did The U-Haul Look Like?
Back to this moveโฆ Here is the U-Haul my new principal saw when I arrivedโฆ GULP!
I thought she was going to fire me on the spot. I think she seriously started to reconsider my employment. To say she was shocked that I had so much was an understatement. But here I am, a truck full and at my new school. We unloaded the materials and waited for the direction to place them. My new school has two floorsโฆand I will be downstairs. Those floors were being done so I had to place my crap my stuff I mean my awesome student materials in an empty classroom upstairs.
When I Unpacked from Moving My Classroom
It was so easy to wheel these materials down with hand trucks, charts, and a dolly. Then quickly organize everything on the shelves.
When my new principal saw this roomโฆ I think she saw the organization of all the materials. She was impressed with how together it all was. {Thank goodnessโฆ right!} She also LOVED the wobble chairs! They are on the far left. She said she was a little worried they would disappear if I didnโt hide them. And she def wants to look into getting more for the school.
I hope all these tips and tricks for moving your classroom help you if you need to move your classroom soon or down the road. I know you can do it.
Good luck to you! It looks like you have an awesome start! A classroom is like having an entirely separate home and you really feel it come moving time. Definitely looking into the wobbly chairs. ๐
Katie
I Want to be a Super Teacher
I am so excited to see your new school and room! Thanks for wonderful organization tips! Good luck waiting.
Alyce
Congratulations on your new position! I'm looking forward to seeing your new room!
Amanda
A Very Curious Class
Good luck to you in your new school.
I also love your low black shelves, and am looking for something similar for my classroom. Are you able to get new ones for your new classroom? If so, where can I find them?
I just packed my last box today. I am still in the middle of teaching summer school and can't move anything for another week. To say I understand is an understatement. I feel you ๐ Good luck on your new adventure!
I have moved classrooms 4 times and once more for renovations. LABELING is the key. Each year they empty our rooms to wax then put it all back and usually it is a big hot mess. I can't wait to see what your new place looks like. BTW Where did you get those cute table one chair set.
You'd better quit worrying about packing boxes and pack your suitcases instead! See you in Vegas soon. Smiles, Jayne
Smart Kids
Enjoy reading your blog and all the fun things you do! Enjoy the summer!!
This was pretty much my process last year as I changed schools as well. Last time I changed schools I left everything behind because I was moving out of state. This time I took all of my crap, uh, student resources with me but it was super organized because I had a sub help me pack at the end of the year and I also stored my cra- uh stuff before moving it into my new school so I was able to do more sorting and organizing while it was in storage. It actually seems more overwhelming than it actually is, but knowing how easy it will be to pull out exactly what you need without digging through boxes is the best feeling. I would add that I am a huge fan of clear plastic tubs. The small shoe box size are perfect for station materials and the larger ones are great for stacking and storing the smaller ones. Plus you can see what is in them!
Thanks! My restroom in my classroom flooded last weekend, and now they are telling me they need to replace all the flooring, carpet, baseboards, you name it! Uhg! How long will that take ? I’m homeless for how long? Yuck! Help me!
Wow! I don’t feel so bad about my huge amount of ” teaching materials”! I had to move across campus so my move wasn’t so hard. I wish I was as organizesd as you are but I got moved and now I have to wait for the floors to be done also! Have a great year at your new school!