Classroom, Day 1: Making My Classroom Look Brand-New Again, Realizations, Similarities, and Differences

I will admit it: I am kind of a dustaphobe. (Yes, I know that's not a word.) Today was Day 1 of classroom setup-- and I used Lysol wipes practically everywhere, from the baseboards to the mini blinds and vent on the bathroom door. I of course wiped my regular storage, too: my drawers, bookcases and book bins, and tables, among other items. As I got farther and farther in my Lysol quest, though, I realized the classroom was becoming newer and newer. Dust hides in many respects, and you don't realize it until you clean a surface.

My mom was VERY helpful. She organized the majority of my classroom library again. She never saw organizing books into categorized bins before I incorporated it, so she's still a tad baffled by it, I guess. However, I saw where it was so much easier to organize the books into their respective bins than see how many fit across a bookshelf. I also noticed, very well, where I was missing books. Some of my Amelia and A Series of Unfortunate Events books cannot be found. As you well know, that baffles a teacher. That's what happens at times when you purchase books for student use. And sometimes we, the teacher, even misplace them, so who knows? I moved rooms, so I don't know. I found several from A Series of Unfortunate Events at Goodwill and used bookstores this summer, but that's besides the case. Also, I have the 9th or 10th in my personal collection. But I may just use them as mentor texts.

My classroom is in good condition. The closet is larger than any I have had at my school. Also, the bathroom area is fairly spacious compared to the last room. The teacher from two years ago lined the cubbies, and I lined a scratched bookcase I inherited today. Also, most of the room is spotless and dustless because I cleaned before organizing, which was the best thing I could have done.

My desks are in a horseshoe formation, and the meeting area is in the center as well as around that area. The horseshoe table is still in the back of the classroom, and the classroom library is no different than it was in past years. The book bins that were on the shelves before are pretty much now on the same shelves.

What's different? I have a round table next to my horseshoe table for laptops and small group meetings, which I will monitor very closely because I am within 5-10 feet of that table. I also have a nice L-formation of two rectangular tables on the tiled portion of my classroom. That's also within decent proximity of my table. The area where students can go for privacy is also very different, a bit more isolated because of bookcases.

I got a lot done for the first day... I was there about six hours.

Edit: Here are a few photos.

This is the vent on the bathroom door. People don't think about these parts of the room often... but they need cleaning. 

After I cleaned the baseboards, they shone. 

Next is the Soft Scrub to finish off the awesome sink. I don't know what to do about the counter around it... the old room had some green counter stains, also, for some reason. 

There are the circular table and L-shaped formation for centers. In the background, you can see the wonderfully lined cubbies! I cleaned all those, also. Can get tedious after a while!

I will clean all the desks and get them all the same height soon. I like the horseshoe formation (though I put the four remainders there on the left). The rest of the meeting area will be in the horseshoe!

The shelves are getting there. Looks a little bunched in this photo, but it'll get fixed up even more. And... that's my Minded box up there, yet without the lightbulb. I need to find that and adhere it back! Of course, behind all of that, my CAFE board will come back up, too. 

Sorry for the blur! This is what you see from the front door.