Ultimate Classroom Wishlist

Many of you know that I moved to a new school this year.  With a new school comes some reorganizing, rebuilding, and reassessment of what is truly important for instruction.  When I opened up the door to my new classroom for the first time I started to take an assessment of what I had to work with and what I might want to add to my resource wishlist.  Every teacher goes through this process when requisition time comes around.  What instruments, books, electronics, and other resources do you really need?  What is your room lacking?  What would really help to grow your program?  And what does a “standard” classroom look like?

What is the norm?  Since I am yet again faced with a new classroom I find myself thinking “What does this room need that it doesn’t already have?”  There were some obvious places where we needed resources.  For instance, we didn’t have enough rhythm sticks for even half of a class to use.  There weren’t enough.  Also, we don’t have any woodblocks, or egg shakers, or hand drums.  So, I started to make a list of all the things that would really be in a perfect classroom.  Some of those things I put on my “long term wishes” list that I could submit for requisitions to my administration over time.  Some of those things I immediately made into projects to add to my DonorsChoose.org page.  But, no matter how I started to divide the resources, I began to make a list of all the things that I would love to have in my classroom.

Instead of thinking “What is the norm or typical?”, I’d like to think “What is the dream situation?”  What sorts of resources would I have if I could go through the WestMusic Catalog and run wild, ordering with abandon?  What do I see used at workshops or conferences?  When I go to my Orff Levels, what sorts of instruments and movement resources seem to be in every “standard” situation?  What books and instruments do my friends rave about?So, I made a list, and I wanted to share!  I remember when I started teaching that I searched the internet for a list of all the instruments, books, CDs, equipment, etc. that I “should” have in my classroom.  I never found a resource like that.  We all teach in such diverse and special situations that there is no real “standard.”  However, the things that I added to the list below would aid ANY classroom.  These are all the things that feel totally “standard” and some things that I think should absolutely be standard.

So, click any of the links below to see a picture/description of the resource OR click the link at the very bottom of this post and download a Word Document containing the full list.  Use it as a guide for purchasing for your classroom and leave a comment at the end of this blog post if you see that I’ve forgotten to add your favorite instrument or book.  I definitely want to flesh out the “book/resources” section of this list and would love any guidance there.