In the fall, students were greeted with Pinterest-perfect bulletin boards but by the end of that first marking period teachers are buried in paper and overwhelmed. The out-dated fall decor is maddening but the thought of coming up with a new bulletin board idea is just too overwhelming during the busy holiday season. These simple winter bulletin boards will highlight student work and be so quick to put together that a student helper or parent volunteer may even be able to take this off your plate.
DECEMBER
Consider inviting students to design their own ornaments or offer a box of blank templates that they can decorate as a fast finisher activity. Students will work hard to complete their work so that they have a chance to color one or more ornaments, especially once they see they will be displayed in the classroom. You could even send an ornament template home for students to complete as a family or add a photo of a student to the ornament. Draw a string for the ornament title with a marker or use an actual piece of string and you have an exciting seasonal display that your students can take pride in.
JANUARY
Snowflakes are a great winter bulletin board option because you don’t have to rush to take them down as soon as a holiday ends. These 3D color-by-code characters are an example of a differentiated math activity that uses winter excitement to keep students engaged and channels their holiday excitement in a positive way. When they finish their work, staple it to this bulletin board and you have a winter bulletin board that showcases student work in a way that can stay up for several weeks.
FEBRUARY
Although I love to reach for these hearts around Valentine’s Day, you can share the love of reading at any time in the school year so this bulletin board can stay up for several weeks. Some teachers have a designated bulletin board that stays up all year and the students change their artwork showcasing the book they are currently reading. Imagine setting up this bulletin board title once and having it last for the full school year.
Using student work samples as the star element in your bulletin boards, some simple seasonal bulletin board letters can keep your classroom looking fresh during the year without requiring a lot of time and money. When bulletin boards are kept simple, you can change them before you leave for holiday breaks. Students love to walk into the classroom to see an exciting new display, especially when it includes their own work. Complicated bulletin boards make it seem like the room belongs to the teacher but simple bulletin boards that are centered around student work really make the room feel like it belongs to the whole classroom community.
The bulletin board set I use is editable which means I can type in any sentence and print out only the letters that I need. I don’t need to sort through a box of the full alphabet and hope the letters that I need are in there. I hope these ideas help you think of something simple and seasonal that can help keep your bulletin boards look fresh this holiday season. I’d love to see your ideas – tag me on Instagram any time!
If you liked these ideas, check out this post with a full school year of simple bulletin board ideas.
