Kindergarten Classroom Setup Made Easy!

Kindergarten classroom setup can be both exciting and stressful, especially if you go in without a plan.

This year I decided to enlist the help of a pro!

Julie Morgenstern, professional organizer and author of Organizing From the Inside Out says, “Walk into any kindergarten classroom in the world, and you will behold the perfect model of organization.”

Say what? #notmykindergartenclassroom

She calls her approach, the “Kindergarten Model of Organizing” and uses it to help everyone from business professionals to homemakers get their spaces set up and organized by focusing on one “zone” at a time.

The Zone Method

Her method is built upon the design of a more traditional kindergarten classroom set up where, “the room is divided into activity zones: reading zone, dress-up zone, arts and crafts zone, music zone, snack zone, and all items needed for that particular activity are stored in that zone.”

“The beauty of the kindergarten model,” she says, “is that it can be applied to anything: from a whole office to just one desk to a single drawer.”

If you are anything like me, you are now feeling like a slacker when it comes to the reputation kindergarten classrooms apparently have in the organizing world.

Sooooo in an effort to up my organizing game, I decided to give her approach a try!

Kindergarten Classroom Layout

I began by creating a map of my kindergarten classroom layout and identified 11 zones that make up the activities we do in our space.

Here is a list of those zones:

Some of these “zones,” such as math and reading, are already in place.

Yet, there are other activities, such as packing/unpacking, supplies, and teacher prep, that are scattered ALL over the room and could definitely use some “zoning.”

Kindergarten Classroom Setup

Next week, I’ll be going into my classroom to set up these “zones” and I’ll document the process as well as snap pics of each zone to share with you in a future post. (UPDATE: You can find that picture post HERE!)

In the meantime, try creating your own map (I did mine using the shapes tool in Powerpoint), and identifying the zones you’ll need for your classroom.

Here’s a FREE Classroom Setup Planner to get you started!

For more ideas on classroom setup and organization, check out the Growing a Learning Space category in the Roots & Wings Resource Library.

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