Do you want to plan your bulletin boards in advance of the school year? Great idea!
Here is all you need to know about how to store bulletin boards and their decorations.
Why You Should Prep and Store Bulletin Boards
The school year is a mad rush.
You have lessons to prepare, meetings to attend, and papers to grade.
Who has time to select and prep bulletin boards every month?
You can relieve a lot of stress by prepping your bulletin boards ahead of time.
Although preparation is one part of the equation, how do you organize and store the materials? Keep reading!
This article contains affiliate links to things that you might like.
Choosing the Right Bulletin Board Materials
When storing materials, you want them to be sturdy. Begin by selecting the right bulletin board materials.
Cardstock
Construction paper is vivid, but it bleaches quickly in the sun and rips easily.
Your best bet is cardstock or poster board.
If you are using printables, you can print directly on cardstock.
But you aren’t quite done!
Lamination
The best way to prepare and preserve your bulletin board materials is to laminate them.
Lamination takes extra time, but you can reuse the items year after year.
Not only does it ultimately save time; it saves money. Reusing materials is cost-effective.
You can even laminate the borders that go around the frame of the bulletin board.
Cloth
Many teachers use large rolls of paper as backing for their bulletin boards.
Although this is inexpensive, it is not as convenient as cloth.
Cloth is not only durable, it is easy to store. Just fold it or roll it!
You can choose a few colors of cloth and use them as your backing for different bulletin boards throughout the year.
Labeling Your Bulletin Board Materials
After you plan your bulletin boards, sort the items by month or purpose.
For example, you will have a pile of “January board materials” or “birthday board materials.”
Use quart and gallon zip lock bags to store the individual items.
You can label the bags with a Sharpie (e.g. January: “Let It Snow” and include all the individual letters of the phrase.
You should have a series of bags to go with each bulletin board.
The average classroom bulletin board is 7 x 4 feet, so you need enough materials to cover the space.
Storing Your Bulletin Board Materials
You will want a one-stop shop for your bulletin board materials. Here is how to store bulletin boards.
Extra Large Ziplocks
Have you ever seen the extra large ziplock baggies? These are special-order baggies that are perfect for storing your bulletin board materials.
Roll or fold your backing material and place it in the bottom of the bag.
Add the individual baggies of letters, borders, shapes, and pictures.
Include a photo of the completed bulletin board (if you have done this board before) or a printout of your online inspiration.
If you are looking for inspiration, we have many bulletin board ideas (one for every month of the year!). For example, here is a list of back-to-school and fall bulletin board ideas.
Label the large bag with the name of the board and the month you’ll put it up.
Plastic Tote
Store all of your bulletin board large baggies in a large plastic tote.
This will be a single place where you can retrieve and store all your bulletin boards for the year.
Storing Your Bulletin Boards After the Year
Before you remove your bulletin board, take a picture of the completed board. This will save you time in the future.
If items rip, make a note on bright paper (I like neon sticky notes) and slide it into the bag.
(Of course, if you laminated your materials, this is unlikely to happen.)
If you want to add items (or need to repair items), keep a running list on the top of the tote.
In the summer, when you are prepping your boards for the upcoming school year, you can address all the concerns you listed.
You can repair or reprint broken items.
You can add new items.
How to Store Bulletin Board Materials
You can save yourself a lot of time and frustration by not only planning your boards in advance but storing them in a way to keep them in good shape.
This will free you up to spend more time doing what you love: teaching and inspiring young minds!