DIY Projects with The Learning Chambers

Hi y'all!  This is Stephanie from The Learning Chambers and today I wanted to share some classroom DIY projects that will get you excited about decorating your classroom for next year.

That's right....I said next year!  I love this time of year because not only are we wrapping the year up but a lot of us are busily thinking about ways to update our current classroom or our future classroom if you are moving.  I have a few DIY projects to share that are super easy and would look great in any classroom.

Here are 3 DIY projects and the steps that I took to complete each of the projects.



Book Box Labels:  Are you thinking that you need a new way to organize your classroom library?  This is a simple project that will make a HUGE difference in organization!  They will also last a long time!  I've had these book boxes in my classroom for over 2 years now and they still look amazing!

Here are the steps to complete this project...

I found these book boxes in the Target Dollar Spot and they are pretty sturdy.  They lasted all year and are still in great shape!  I will definitely be using them again.  I printed out some labels and glued them on using Modge Podge.

Then, I put Modge Podge over the top to seal them down and I had a box to put all of the level 18 books.  They dry on clear and the students aren't able to peel them off.  Perfect! When the kids were picking a book during stations, they clipped their clothespin to the outside of the box.  It helped them put their book back in the correct box.

Here are the labels that I used for my book boxes.  I hope you like them and can use them in your classroom.

Bulletin Board Makeover:  Do you have a super sad looking bulletin board?  Do you hate covering it and covering it each year?  The solution is to PAINT IT!!

The first thing I did was to outline the bulletin board in painter's tape.  This takes some time but it totally made the painting part much easier!

Next, I started to paint the bulletin board in small sections at a time.  I used a small roller brush and it worked great!  I'm totally OCD, so painting this bulletin board took most of the day but now I don't have to re-cover it ever!!

Once I had the entire bulletin board covered, I did a little touch up painting with a regular brush.  I mostly only had to touch up in the corners and along the edges.  Then, I waited for it to dry over night.

Here's what it looked like after it had dried overnight.

After it had dried overnight, I added some border and it was finished!  Looks nice and clean and I don't ever have to cover it again!!

Three-Drawer Makeover:  So after I finished with my book boxes, I still had some Modge Podge left over.  I saw this super cool idea from Amy Lemons to add some ribbon to dress up your plastic drawer set.  I had ribbon already, so I decided to try it out.

I took one drawer out at a time and measured out the ribbon, so that it would wrap around the top of each drawer.  Then, I took some Modge Podge and used it to glue down the ribbon.

I also put Modge Podge over the top of the ribbon to make sure it was glued down properly.  I did this in small sections to make sure that the ribbon didn't start to pucker up.

The hardest parts were the corners and the knob part.  I had to take the knob out and use my scissors to make a small hole where the knob would go.  Then, I reattached the knob by sticking the screw through the small hole and twisting the knob till it was tight.

Here is the finished project.  There is still some puckering of the ribbon around the knob part but it's not that noticeable!  You can even number your drawers or add labels if you would like too.  I definitely will be adding labels for next year.

Thank you so much for reading about these DIY projects.  I hope you can use one or more of these in your classroom for next year.  I would also love to hear some of your DIY projects that you plan on completing next year for your classroom.  Let me know in the comments.