Since our students are often at a variety of levels & they all end up benefiting from a variety of different supports, we often end up needing a lot of stuff materials! Right?! If you aren’t careful, you can easily start hoarding materials “just in case.” Instead, I try to find materials that I can use in multiple ways. I just don’t have a ton of extra space in my classroom… materials need to be able to do double duty. Here are my MUST HAVES in my classroom with some ideas for using them in a variety of ways.
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Snap Cubes
I LOVE snap cubes!! In fact, I wrote a whole blog post on different ways you could use snap cubes to teach. Click HERE to read more about them.
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Clip Boards
Clip boards are so useful! I generally like to have at least one for every student and staff in my classroom. Ideas for using them include:
- Hang up behavior plans, data grids, etc.
- Hold a student’s paper still and reduce frustration
- Give the students a writing surface for write the room activities
- Data grids on the go… to lunch, recess, mainstreaming, etc.
- Staff to do list for the easiest lesson planning system (click the picture for more info!)
Index Cards
Index cards?! YUP!! They are handy for so many different things. I love that they are a bit thicker than just regular paper, so they are more durable. Here are some of the ways we use them in my classroom:
- Flash cards
- Use colored index cards to color code students’ sight words, for making multiple sets of number cards, etc.
- Direct instruction prompts for staff (click the picture below for more info)
- Laminate quick visual cues or directions on index cards
- Word of the week sight word practice (read more: 10 Ways To Practice Sight Words)
- Word of the week sight word practice (read more: 10 Ways To Practice Sight Words)
Thematic Units
I use these thematic units for the WHOLE school year! I absolutely love theme units. They immerse students in the vocabulary which help them learn the language better and quicker. We use the materials for direct instruction, task boxes, centers, movement groups, etc. Click the picture below to see more details:
Read more: Why You Should Be Using Thematic Units
Dry Erase Markers
Dry erase markers…. lots and lots of them! Make sure you have a variety of colors as well as thick dry erase markers and thin dry erase markers. Ideas for using them:
- On laminated task cards
- Insert a worksheet into a page protector and have student complete it with the dry erase marker
- Writing on upright white board while in high kneel (your PT will love you!)
- On laminated sign in boards or lunch menus
Read more: How To Fit In Extra Writing Practice
Large White Board
I also highly recommend having a large white board. We use it for everything! We hand our thematic word wall cards on it with ticky tack, write our theme sentences on it, tally and graph with it, etc.
Baggies Galore
We use baggies of all different sizes for everything! When you buy baggies, be sure to think about what you will be using it for. If the student is going to be handling the bag a lot, you want to make sure it is durable and a bit bigger than you need. If the bag isn’t going to be handled a lot, I buy them at the dollar store. Otherwise, I spend a bit more and buy them at Target.
Ways we use baggies:
- Store theme units
- organize math manipulatives
- Carry edible reinforcers with us out of the classroom
- Keep therapy brushes clean while not in use
Plastic Bins
If you are a teacher, then you know already know all about plastic bins. I use them for a variety of different reasons and ways.
We use these large bins for our direct instruction work centers:
We also use shoe box sized plastic bins for our task bins.
Laminate & Velcro
We use laminating pouches and Velcro on 80% of the materials we use throughout the school day. Instead of listing all the ways you can use Velcro and laminate, here is some reasons why you should:
- Laminating helps make our materials more durable.
- Velcro gives the hands on pieces easier to pick up off the table for students with fine motor delays
- Laminated materials are washable if you have students who put everything in their mouth.
- Using Velcro to attach materials to sorting, matching and sequencing boards will help keep pieces from moving around on the student and lead to less frustration.
Book Binding Machine & Interactive Books
If you follow my blog, then you know how much we use interactive books in my classroom. We use this RubiCoil book binding machine to bind them and make them more durable. We use this machine to make interactive books to teach reading, math and life skills. We also bind our social stories, math instruction books, etc.
Example from our subtraction math unit:
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