Every year I try to change things up a bit. I like to add a few new things or try a couple of new ideas out each year. Gotta keep it fresh & interesting for the kids and the teacher ?. For the last several years the changes have revolved around flexible seating. This year I am so excited to be adding a STAGE to my classroom!
I have wanted a classroom stage for a long time.
I see them on Instagram and I am always so jealous. I’ve had visions of having a stage made for my own classroom for ages. Last year I finally said it out loud… and once I said it out loud there was no turning back. I was a bit obsessed this summer.
I was surprised to see that there are lots of free stage plans online. There are even Etsy stores where you can order a fully completed stage to be delivered to your classroom!
Sadly, there were a few hurdles standing in my way. First of all, my “stage budget” was pretty much nonexistent. And secondly, I do not have any stage making skills (and while I love my husband dearly, he is not the kind of guy who usually jumps at the chance to use power tools!).
So, the odds were stacked against me. But I wasn’t going to let that stop me.
Never doubt the determination of a primary teacher who wants something adorable and useful for her classroom!
So, here is my guide for:
Creating a Classroom Stage in 10 (Not-So-Easy) Steps
- Obsess over the idea of classroom stages for 3+ years
- Pour over #ClassroomStages on Instagram and send your husband and teaching partner screenshots of every.single.one until they stop opening your texts.
- Get really serious about actually building a stage three days before you have to go back to school.
- Make approximately 200 trips to Lowes because you can’t figure out what supplies you need.
- Talk your husband into making something (“anything!!”) for you.
- Take apart what your husband built because now that you see it you realize that isn’t actually what you want.
- Find someone who knows how to use power tools (who is still speaking to you at this point).
- Have your children help you paint it while it is about a million degrees out. (Bonus points if they have already showered for the night!)
- Bribe your teenage daughter to cut out letters for the front of the stage using the Silloutte that you don’t know how to use.
- Buy lights for the stage that are totally unusable because they are so bright they blind anyone who tries to look at them, get everyone you know to help you lug the stage into the classroom before your teaching partner gets to school because you are a little worried she might try to “veto” the idea and then take adorable photos at “Meet the Teacher” and act like it was no big deal. ?
In all seriousness, I would share “plans” with you if I could… but this was not really a carefully planned-out operation.
I have about a million of these hollow blocks in my classroom.
I have a huge stack of them out for my students to play with. But there are so many that they could never, ever use them all. I wound up just building a wooden box that I measured to fit around a pile of these blocks.
I did this for two reasons.
- It was a really cheap option. I didn’t need much wood and it was pretty easy to transport.
- I was really worried that the stage wouldn’t be sturdy enough and these blocks are solid.
So, my stage does not have any extra storage underneath like so many of the Instagram stages… but I don’t worry about it’s sturdiness at all. (And I did get the extra blocks out of the closet… so that almost feels like extra storage!)
I have to tell you, we have only been in school for a week and I LOVE it so much.
We got the absolute cutest photos at “Meet the Teacher” and on the first day of school and the kids are already using it to reach the Smart Board, to play teacher, to dance and to make announcements.
We’ve sung “Happy Birthday” to a friend who was standing on the stage and our “Star Student” gets up on the stage to be interviewed.
So, while I am not a “stage making expert” by any stretch of the imagination, I don’t think that’s going to matter at all. We are going to make our own fun and add a little magic to our day with this new addition! And that’s really all that matters.
So, how about you? Is there something you are obsessing over for your room? I’m always looking for new ideas! I would love to hear yours! Leave a comment and let me know what you would love to have for your classroom!
What are the measurements?
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