Bulletin Boards

This year, my classroom theme is Mary Poppins. It has been my favorite classroom so far in my teaching career. It’s not in your face, but it’s also pleasing to the eye. It is my happy place.

One of my absolute favorite aspects of the room is actually outside of my room – our hallway display board! It’s so simple and so vibrant. It’s easy to create and (seriously, the best of all) it can be kept up all year long! I’ve had questions about this board from the second I put it up, so here we go!

You will need: black bulletin board paper, bulletin board paper in a bright color of your choice, a fun border, bulletin board letters or white paper to print your letters on.

Step 1: Tape a long piece of black bulletin board paper to any type of Smart Board or onto a wall if you have a projector.

Step 2: Find a Mary Poppins silhouette image online (by searching “Mary Poppins silhouette” on Google Images) and enlarge it to your entire computer screen by zooming in on the picture. Project this on your Smart Board or wall.

If your paper does not fit over the entire image (see the suitcase above) you may choose to use another piece of black paper and tape them together at the end.

Step 3: Trace the outline of the image with a pencil.

Step 4: Take the black paper down and cut out the image.

Step 5: After adding the colorful background paper and border, place the Mary Poppins cut out on the board. Slightly lift her off of the board so that she looks as if she were flying. Staple carefully to the board, and tape any excess pieces that hang off onto the wall.

Step 6: At the beginning of the year, I use this as my welcome board. I used an image of a umbrella from Google, inserted it into PowerPoint, and added each child’s name. You can download the font here (I used the Solid option). Print these onto patterned card stock for a fun look!

Step 7: To make the title, use bulletin letters or download the font I used to make your own. If you choose to make your own, the SUPERCALIFRAGILISTICEXPIALIDOCIOIUS title on the board will take for.ev.er to cut out. But, just embrace it. You’ll only have to do it once. Grab your stack of paper, scissors, and start that Netflix marathon!

Step 8: Staple the letters from one end of the board to the other. Overlap some, because it may JUST fit. Add the umbrellas and any other text that you want on the board. Ta-da! Done!

This board display is extremely versatile!

Titling the board with SUPERCALIFRAGILISTICEXPIALIDOCIOUS makes it perfect for displaying student work. I did not change anything but student work the entire school year. I will never again change paper, borders, and titles each month. Work smarter, not harder! Below are some of the displays our class has had so far this year…

SUPERCALIFRAG..... bulletin board. Perfect for a Mary Poppins themed classroom and versatile for the entire year! — London Bridge is… (Kindergarten was England for Multicultural Night)

If you are interested in using Mary Poppins as your classroom theme next year, check out these other ideas!

First Day ideas – FREE printables

Mary Poppins first day of kindergarten treat for parents. — Parent gift for Meet the Teacher night before kindergarten

Data Wall in a Mary Poppins themed classroom and versatile for the entire year! — Student data wall with a Mary Poppins spin!

Hello friends! As back to school time approaches, bulletin boards are a constant topic. Today, I am linking up with Ashley from Schroeder Shenanigans in 2nd and Angie from Lucky Little Learners to share some tips and tricks to make your bulletin boards beautiful (and not too stressful!). Hope you enjoy!

If you haven’t noticed already, I am (just a tad) OCD in my classroom. There is a place for everything, everything is in its place, and everything is tied together with COLOR. I have used blue, green, and brown with small pops of yellow for the past two years and absolutely love it! Why do I keep my color scheme the same? 1 – It’s expensive to purchase this stuff! Using it from year to year is important to me. 2 – A color scheme can go with almost any theme you wish.

Why blue, green, and brown?

There has been research done that shows the color blue produces a sense of calm. Yellow on the other hand, can be a very strong color for students who struggle with attention disorders or students who have autism. Think about ambulances and stop/yield signs. They are either red or yellow. These colors spike our attention and make us very aware of our surroundings.

When creating a classroom environment, color scheme is KEY! Pick a few colors and go for it. Your bulletin boards are going to be the pops of color that “ground” your classroom and pull everything together for a cohesive look. Layer borders to give your bulletin boards more detail and “curb-appeal” from far across the room. I use brown paper in the back of my room so that I can add more color when the student work is added. In the front of the room, I use the brighter green paper (seen in the first image with the chevron border).

You can see from the images above that I have many different colored bulletin board papers and borders in various arrangements. However, all of the colors are in the same “family”.

Here are the links to the specific borders used in my classroom:

Key border: Dollar Tree

Brown and lime chevron borders: Creative Teaching Press

White wavy border: Creative Teaching Press

Lime polka dot border: Teacher Created Resources on Amazon

Lots of Dots brown border: Creative Teaching Press

Brown Bordette: Pacon on Amazon

All bulletin board paper is the Fadeless brand from my local teacher store.

This year, I knew I wanted to put a quote above my boards to fill the blank space. We are not allowed to paint any walls, so this idea added a large pop of color. Our grade level theme is Fantasy, so I chose a Mary Poppins quote that I just ADORE for kindergarten. This is the focal point of our classroom. Your eye is drawn to it the moment you walk in…and you may just start singing “oohhh a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down”.

How do I create one for my classroom?

If you are interested in creating a large quote for your classroom, it is VERY simple. Just create a PowerPoint document and insert a text box on each page. Type one letter per page and choose a thick font you love at a large font size. I used KG The Last Time at size 667. Click format and change the font fill to “none” or “transparent” and the outline to “black”. Print it on bright paper. I used the green from this pack and teal from a pack parents donated last year. I layered the two for a textured look. When you print, be sure to click on “Fit to page” or “Shrink to fit” so the edges of the font don’t get cut off!

Here’s another focal point example from my first grade classroom two years ago.
Kids and staff alike LOVED our tree. Plus, it tracked our AR progress!

Here’s a quick tip to leave you with…

Imagine you just created a “fake” bulletin board on the ugly back of some cubbies, but you weren’t sure if you want to use white or green lettering. 🙂 Yup…that was me!

I’m not sure why I didn’t think of this before, BUT all you have to do is take a picture of the blank board. Then, insert it into a PowerPoint and type right on top of it! (See mine above!) Mess around with the colors and fonts until you get something you love. Then, simply enlarge the letters, print them, cut them out, and tape them up. Ta-da! I wish I had thought of this sooner. I would have done every bulletin board this way!

Be sure to check out the links below to get more brilliant bulletin board ideas for back to school!

An InLinkz Link-up

How-to Create a Mary Poppins Bulletin Board

Bulletin Board Ideas

Bulletin Boards

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