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Teachers Are Sharing Their Smart And Creative Classroom Hacks Online

Teachers have tough jobs. They put up with a lot — especially in the classroom, where it's hard to keep things sane.

Luckily, today's teachers can share tips with each other on social media. From tips on how to organize crayons to teachers building remote graduations, social media has introduced us to some amazing educators doing amazing things!

Keep water bottles off the floor and desks!

"Plastic cup and zip ties on the side of the chair to hold water bottles or pencils."

I would have LOVED this in school. It's so much handier than just leaving the bottle on your desk.

Sort papers into two distinct pouches.

"These mesh bags have been sooooo helpful this school year! They are completely versatile and perfectly fit papers."

For higher grades, I'd recommend entire file folders. You know how it is.

A rolling cart is a classroom must.

"[...] and it has been AMAZING during my math and reading groups!! I don’t know what I did before I had a rolling cart!!"

As someone who has, like, three of these, I can confirm how useful they are.

This is a great tip for Zoom classes.

These handy guides help kids learn the proper virtual learning icons easily!

"Now all I say is 'Please mute your microphone' and I hold up the visual and they know exactly what to press!"

Hit up the dollar store for some fun learning tools.

"We've already found so many ways to use these dry erase dice in ELA and Math! Great for centers too."

This is such a cute idea, and it's infinitely reusable!

Scrap paper can always go to good use!

"Save scraps of paper and hole punch it to make confetti! This is perfect to sprinkle of students’ desks for the new year or birthdays!"

I use this hack for packaging for my business, too!

Ditch those awful whiteboard erasers.

I can feel how crumbly those things were, and I haven't seen one in years.

Instead, use microfibre cloths! They're washable, reusable, and won't get super gross.

Use color-coded folders for a week's worth of handouts.

"Really pleased with this idea of cheap folders for printed sheets ready for the week ahead."

Label each one with the days of the week and pull them out as you go!

Track drawing skills in a fun way!

"This kindergarten teacher had the class decorate the front of a white dress the first day of school and the back on their last day. Not only is it adorable. , you can see the progression of art ability over the year."

Use a handy chart to teach kids different ways of learning to count.

"There is NEVER just one way to learn, so we went over 4 different types of counting strategies they can use."

I love teachers that recognize all kids learn differently!

There's definitely a time and place for interrupting.

"Today we had to have THE TALK. You know, the one where we discuss that my small group should NEVER be interrupted unless:

  1. Someone is BLEEDING.
  2. Someone is THROWING UP.
  3. TAYLOR SWIFT enters the classroom."

Mad respect to this Swiftie.

Game-ify homework!

Every time a kid turns in their homework on time, they get to move one place forward on the board! This totally would have worked on me as a kid.

Use a shoe rack for assignment organization!

"I used a shoe rack to hang up all of my math fact assessments. Instead of passing them out, my kiddos can grab their own and save me a ton of time."

This is actually so smart and organized!

Teach kids appropriate voice volumes with lights!

This is a great and simple way to teach kids what volume they should be speaking at. This is perfect for quiet nap time, reading, or work time!

Keep those glue bottles clean!

Draw smiley faces on your glue bottles when they're closed. Not only will they look cute and happy, but it will also help remind students to close them properly when they're done using them. No more clogged glue bottles!