What you gon' do with all that junk?

Didn't feel like being productive..so thought I'd blog instead.
Guess I'll move us right along to some other thangs I wish I'd known before this year took off.
Next on the agenda: Get rid of that stuff you don't need.
Don't be afraid to throw away or donate your classroom junk. If there's stuff in there that you don't need, give it the boot! Plus, dust is nasty. And extra crap-i-ola will only collect more of it.

Toss-able junky items include:
*Puzzles missing pieces (yes, these could be really cool for a project. So if you're having a hard time letting go, put the pieces in a Ziploc bag and save 'em for later. I'm proud to say I got rid of all of mine.)
*Broken/chewed up pencils. Let's face it, they will not be super useful. Just toss them.
*Dead markers. 'nuff said.
*Board games that after a few weeks of school you notice your students are not interested in. Give them to teachers in older grades. This year, "Torah Slides and Ladders" was just not a big hit amongst my kindergarteners.
*Hardened and/or moldy play-doh?
*Books that are falling apart. Torn covers/missing pages/mold growing inside of them (not even kidding, this happened.)
*soccer balls (it's okay to keep one, but do you really need 4 in your classroom?)
*and, oh, so much more!

I'll never forget the night I went on a throwing away rampage. There was a ton more space and the "oohs and ahhs" from the kiddos the next day said it all. They notice everything! So it was not shocking that the lack of clutter made a difference for them and for moi, me.