Walls and Working Together

What do you like on your walls? There are, like in most rooms, four walls in my room. They are so full of stuff.

My favorite is the back wall by my desk, which is full of stuff kids have made me unrelated to class - there are poems, drawings, letter, thank yous, awards and all the real benefits of teaching. Then there are the posters that describe me - which I give to my seniors as they graduate.

I keep the rest of the walls covered with maps and projects - my favorite is the 1920s project, in which I have students recreate pop culture artifacts of the 1920s, from sports memorabilia to music, to celebrity. I love looking at it and I think the kids enjoy it. 

We're starting some new stuff on my campus this year  - PLC stuff, professional learning communities. I dig it, but we're still at the very beginning. I'm interested to know how other teachers, especially those who have been to a Dufours conference, have felt at starting this process. I'm excited, but it's a lot of pressure being a leader in that situation - to convince colleagues and such that change can be a good thing and that it doesn't come from somewhere else. 

I did and activity at the beginning of the year where I had my students share what bothered them more than anything else in class (a norming activity) and that worked pretty well. 

School Starts

So, now that we're back in sesson, with less money - how is it going for you? I'm curious what teachers and students saw in thier first weeks of school that refected this change in our economic climate.

I've had to do some serious cutbacks on my classroom spending as both my family and my school are dealing with lower incomes. Copies cut by 1/3 - no supply budgets - fewer teachers - more students.

My students seem to feel the squeeze, thier parents have purchased less - they seem to notice the extra four kids per class.

What are people doing to make their $$ go further and their classrooms feel bigger?