I looooove browsing through the office supplies aisle. What teacher doesn’t? I could quickly rack up a large bill buying all those must-haves okay, wants. However, we are teachers and our paychecks don’t always exactly support our office supply habits. Well, I have some amazing, budget friendly tricks to share with my teacher friends. In fact, each item is made at the cost of $1.50 or less!!!!
You can watch the video here where I explain each item, or you can scroll below to read about it. The links to each item are by each picture.
The new year was upon me and I needed wanted a cheery desk calendar, but since I had just bought a gazillion Christmas presents, I didn’t really feel like I could justify it at the moment.
Budget Friendly Desk Calendar: Krista Wallden from Creative Clips has created a Free Bold and Brights Printable Calendar in her Teachers Pay Teachers Store. I love the bright pop of color in my classroom and I can easily slide the calendar in and out to write on it. When printing it out I change the advanced setting to an 8×10 paper setting so it will fit in the 8×10 frame or adjust the custom scale to 90%. I bought the clear acrylic frame for $1 at the Dollar Tree. This is a HUGE savings and I love the colors of the calendar!
Save on paper and printer’s ink: I can’t tell you over the years how many class lists I have printed out or written. It is time consuming and can be costly over time.
This year I made a template for my class list that I could put in an 8×10 frame and use over and over. As you can see in the picture, since it is behind glass, I can mark it and remark it again with a dry erase marker. I just recently made a free Editable Classroom Desk Organizer version for you in my Teachers Pay Teachers store. When printing it out I change the advanced setting to an 8×10 paper setting so it will fit in the 8×10 frame or adjust the custom scale to 90%. You can print your student’s names or weekly to-do list on it. As kids turn in their permission slips or I finish my tasks, I just mark them off my list. I also use it to jot down participation grades.
Save on all those Post-It Notes:
I think most teacher’s have an obsession with Post-It Notes. (It isn’t just me is it?) I love jotting down notes on them because it keeps me organized throughout the day. However, Post-It Notes can be expensive (especially when you want the beautiful bright colored ones like me). I found this amazing and free My Week at a Glance organizer from my friend Brooke Brown, from Teach Outside the Box. When printing it out I change the advanced setting to an 8×10 paper setting so it will fit in the 8×10 frame or adjust the custom scale to 90%. Put it in an 8×10 frame and use a dry erase marker to reuse again and again.
Don’t have colored ink? No problem. If you love the idea of this type of organization, then find some cute scrapbook paper and slide it behind the glass of the frame. Viola! I use these frames as reminders for my students about the supplies they need for special activities. It looks cute, organized, and I don’t have to repeat myself 5 times. The kids are now in charge of gathering supplies rather than me.
