Last week I got an awesome email from Chanie of Coffee & Pi. It was sooooo good, I immediately thought “I have to share bulletin ideas, too!”

These are my top 5 over the years, although you may not be able to implement all 5 in a given year, depending on the class chemistry and your personal dynamics.
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1) We love questions!

I made a board, or sometimes just a “question corner” with a big, visible envelope, labeled “Lo Habashan Lomed.” Every time a student asked a great question, I made sure to acknowledge it and say, “Ooooh, what a great question.” If it wasn’t something we could answer right then, maybe because it was too big or off-topic, I gave the student a sticky note to write it down and add it to the wall. Their eyes lit up like the star-eyes emoji. 🤩 Every few weeks, we revisited those questions together as a class. And honestly, some of our best learning came from those moments, not the curriculum.

2) We’re all different!

At the beginning of the year, I gave students an x/y graph:

• X-axis: Subjects and Hobbies
• Y-axis: How Hard is This For Me?

Each student mapped their curve and decorated it. We hung them all up as a visual reminder that everyone has things they find hard, and that’s OK. In fact, in our classroom, we celebrate effort and struggle. (Sneak peak of this activity in action on online school - if you're not seeing a picture here, scroll up and choose "show images" so you can see this email properly)

3) Student-created bulletin board!​
This one rotated throughout the year. I made sure every class had a dedicated space to show off collaborative student work. We took a perek from Chumash, split it into Pesukim, and each student made a comic strip panel. When we put them together you got the whole Perek. SO SO easy, but the kids are SO proud. Other times I would give students a cholce to choose THEIR best work to hang up from a given unit.

4) Photo wall!​
Does your house have family pictures? No judgment, I finally hung my mixtiles five years after moving! 😉Our classrooms can feel like those cozy, welcoming spaces, too. I loved printing photos of students holding up their projects, work they were proud of, participating in activities etc. I visited the Walgreens photo printer so much that the guy behind the counter knew me by name.
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5) Early finishers
​Some students finish early. Now what? In some years, I made personalized enrichment packets with fun sheets or suggested books and activities tied to their interests. But that’s not always realistic. Other years, I made a simple board with manila envelopes, each labeled with a sample riddle on the front. One envelope might have sudokus, another had rebus puzzles, and another had riddles for an upcoming Chag. Students could choose any challenge if they had extra time.
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Here's an example of a riddle I would include today:
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What bulletin board did you have in your classroom that you loved?? I'd love to hear!

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Mushkie
@evergrowingeducator
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PS: Was this email forwarded to you? Now that’s a great friend/boss/co-worker! Sign up for resources + classroom mindset here.​​
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