Teachers love a good classroom theme. It’s a joy to walk into a classroom and see a bulletin board that matches the colours of the book bins or an alphabet line with the same pattern as the calendar wall. A cohesive look makes everything seem to fit together. Why? Why? Because a well-organized classroom creates a welcoming learning environment and encourages students to engage and learn from you.

I’m sure you are a new or experienced teacher who wants to make your classroom a success.

Before Decor

Before you get into decorating, I recommend you sit in your room and think about your space. The following are some questions you should ask:

• What are my plans for this space? (Will they be meeting in certain areas?) How will they reach the writing centre or library from one classroom to another? )
• What subjects will I teach? (How old will my students be? What topics will we be covering? )

Define your design

How you decorate and set up your classroom plays a big part in creating a learning environment. The big question is whether you should choose a classroom theme or use a colour scheme to decorate your room. Both can have their benefits and be very effective in your learning space. Let’s have a look at each:

Decor theme

You might be a social studies teacher interested in the ” let’s explore” theme. This will allow you to show what you have learned and share your passion for travel with students. Perhaps your style is boho-neutral. In that case, you might choose the Simply Safari collection. This will also be a bonus for your primary students who love animals. A classroom theme collection can be a great way for students to show interest in you and your personality as a teacher.

Using the same accents and characters throughout your classroom will help create a cohesive look. There are many creative ways to bring a theme into your classroom and lessons.

You might also like: Check out these photos of teachers who have used the borders, accents and posters. Nothing is better than seeing real classrooms. Carson Dellosa has plenty of examples for you to check out.

Colour Scheme

You can also choose a colour scheme if you aren’t sure which theme is right for you. This is an excellent option if you desire to refresh your space yearly. This is a great choice if you want to keep what you have.

This was the way I decorated my classroom. Although my style is more neutral, I know first graders love rainbow-coloured classroom decor. I used black and white classroom decor for their learning spaces with a few primary colour pops. Combining these two colours gave me the perfect balance in my Happy Place classroom theme. This classroom decor line allows me to combine my students’ bright primary rainbow colours with the black and white palette I like.

Start with a neutral colour palette, and then add pops of colour to your bulletin borders and areas that you wish to accent. This is not a time to use too many pop colours.

Pro Tip: Color match your shop with a small piece of your border. Did I look like the teacher holding a rainbow border for scrapbook paper? Yes! This will help you to stay focused and your guide when decorating.

It should be meaningful.

Whatever decor choice you make, make it meaningful. You don’t have to decorate every classroom area to create a learning space.

Try this:

• To showcase student work, create a focal point wall. Students feel more connected to the classroom when they have space for their work.
• Create a bulletin board with learning objectives and classroom rules.

Enjoy the whole process! It’s fun to choose and set up classroom decor. There are many options when it comes to themes and colours. You can adjust your bulletin board borders by doubling or triple them. Trust your intuition. Only you can decide what is best for you and your students. These tips will help you create a enjoyable classroom for both you and your students.