Finally It Is Ready

After much packing, purging, packing, chucking, packing, purging, and unpacking my new classroom is finally ready for occupancy. I will begin teaching there tomorrow. I'm so excited. Twenty-five students will arrive, eagerly seeking a new room. I'm sure that there will be very little learning happening. So, (drum roll please) I introduce MY NEW CLASSROOM!

This is the LONG hall to my room. Once you get through this hall you have to walk through the entry, down the old hall and finally to the front doors to go to recess or to the gym for lunch and P.E. We will all be a little healthier by the end of the school year. But, it is bright and smells like fresh paint and new carpet!
My favorite part is my office right in the back of the room. It has a lot of storage and most of it is empty. I haven't accumulated enough, yet, to fill it up.

My soft, squishy office chair fits perfect in the office. Now I don't have to share it with kids because... NO KIDS ALLOWED! That white board on the floor will be mounted on the wall there sometime. Why? Because it can't go anywhere else. My own children will be able to draw pictures on it.

This is what you see when you first walk in. The door on the right is to my office. The superintendent said the current furniture now looks ugly and so we can all expect new desks or tables by Fall. The best part? Those big windows straight ahead that offer plenty of sunlight and can be opened for fresh air. Didn't have that in the old room.

Right inside the door is this washing station. It evens comes with hot water. Now we can wash away even more germs. By next Fall it will be equipped with a drinking spout.

The coat cubbies are around the corner from the doorway so no one will have to step on coats or backpacks or boots or snowpants to come in. What a bonus. The cubbies are bigger and can hold more "stuff" during the winter.

The computer center is nicely tucked over on the side of the room. Next Fall it will have five brand new 20" flat screen monitors. That will be nice. The counter is too high and so the students will sit on stools instead of chairs. That's ok because I will be able to tuck them neatly under the counter.

This can be called the "Center of our Universe." I love the magnetic whiteboard that doesn't have permanent black clouds on it. However, I can't use tape or ticky tack on the board. I've made a ton of magnets instead. Do you love the TV stand hanging in the top left hand corner? Someday it'll have a TV in it. Until then Curious George and the Construction Ducks call it home.

That's the tour. There are many things that aren't ready yet such as there are no phones or communication devises in the new wing. We are using cell phones for now. And hopefully the computers will be ready by Friday. The office is a million miles away but that will keep me out of the candy cupboard. It is almost a two block walk to the gym and to recess but by the time we get there the kids will be all warmed up and ready to go. When we walk back they will be so worn out they'll just want to sit. But, we are so grateful for this new building and the space that it provides. Can't wait for total completion next Fall.