I am so excited to be linking up today with my friend, Rachel Tanenblatt for her linky party, “What’s on Your Desk?”
….ok, well no, I am scared to death to actually show you my desk. You will stop following me and call the TLC hoarders show! Yikes! I do realize it is a problem and believe it or not, I am a very organized person – I just have 30 projects going on ALL the time. I counted the number of folders in my TpT Works in Progress file – 45. Yes, 45. And no, I don’t work on them at school unless it is something customized specifically for my kids. (Gotta keep it legal and ethical and all!).
Are you ready for the picture? Sit down – I promise. Scary stuff…. scroll down if you dare….
Yes, this is actually my desk. I took this picture when I arrived. I’ll give you a quick tour, starting at the front left.
Class binders – it is almost grading time and I keep grades on my seating chart. Going through them.
I am working on filling out some Big Hand Awards. Read more about them here. My supervising teacher in my internship used a similar behavior management system. 12 years later and I have never felt the need to change.
See my fabulous computer? I have a big monitor with a printer. You probably can’t see it well, but I have my own mini-laminator and paper cutter. It is fabulous. Works in progress for school on the far desk. Also on this part is my fridge and microwave, extra scanner, coffee machine, pictures of my kids, pictures from my kids, teaching manuals, song books, master lists, and paperwork to fill out..
On the floor in the boxes are props I am going through for the 1st grade musical I am writing for the spring. More on that another day. Just barely pictured is the shelf where I keep all the class binders.
Don’t judge. I told you it was messy! I have watched all my music teacher friends join the linky party with little messages like “Look how unorganized I am – scared to show you!” Their pictures of course are spotless. I just laugh. They have no idea (now you guys do!) 🙂
Want to see more? I took another picture at lunch….
On the floor in the boxes are props I am going through for the 1st grade musical I am writing for the spring. More on that another day. Just barely pictured is the shelf where I keep all the class binders.
Don’t judge. I told you it was messy! I have watched all my music teacher friends join the linky party with little messages like “Look how unorganized I am – scared to show you!” Their pictures of course are spotless. I just laugh. They have no idea (now you guys do!) 🙂
Want to see more? I took another picture at lunch….
I cannot believe I am posting this. 🙂 Now you know I am human too! Actually I thought of an AMAZING add-on to a lesson for a class that afternoon. I had no open periods, so I worked through my lunch. It TOTALLY paid off. Bingo chip manipulatives for solfege? AWESOME! You can see them in different colors on the back part of my desk. Don’t worry, at the end of the day I cleaned it up….some.
In all reality, I have to find a way to make this area smaller. I am eating up too much room with my workspace. I have a very large room but have some ideas for what I could do there. Hopefully the next time I join the what’s on my desk party I will have a better space!
What’s on YOUR desk? Can’t be as bad as mine! 🙂
Wrapping Things Up
My final advice? When in doubt, bake cookies! (Pillsbury makes an excellent pull apart cookie dough, I must say). A dozen cookies on someone’s desk can make them feel warm and gooey inside (pun intended). This strategy has been around since the beginning of time and is a tried and true method.
If you are new at school and looking for lessons for the first day, you might also enjoy this post on first day lesson plans!
Who did I miss? Any other key people in school we should add?
Musically,
Shelley
I love reading your thoughts/ideas! I nominated you for a Liebster Award! See the post here:http://cabelloelementarymusic.blogspot.com/2014/12/liebster-award.html
You are welcome! 🙂
I love all these pictures. My desk may be neat, but only because I don’t have nearly as much cool stuff as you! Did you pay for your laminator and stuff for yourself? I’ve had one to use at all of my schools, thank goodness… Thanks for linking up! Rachel Tanenblatt
Thanks! I have a mini-laminator I pay for and then for BIG jobs we have a school one 🙂 It’s just easier sometimes to do it right in my room!
I would’ve LOVED to have a microwave in my old office. I was lucky to sneak in a coffee maker 🙂
Jennifer – it is awesome! I have collected lots of rejects from various teachers who left over the years. I’m all about the hand-me-downs! 🙂