Classroom Decorating Ideas for Teachers

By August, summer is in full-swing with its abundance of sunshine and steamy hot temperatures, but for many parents and teachers, August means it’s time to start thinking about back to school preparations. If you’re a teacher, cleaning, organizing, and decorating your classroom is likely on your to do list. While creating an exciting and inspiring space for your kids to learn and grow this year should be fun, it often becomes a frustration for many because of small (if not non-existent) budgets.
We scowered the web to create this list of DIY classroom decorating ideas that are budget-friendly and use items and materials many people have lying around the house or are inexpensive to purchase. From the ceiling to the walls, furniture, windows, and floor, your kids will love their new classroom décor!
Ceiling
This is often one of the most forgotten pieces of classroom decorating real estate. Adorning the ceiling with colorful decorations helps pull the entire room together and can make the space feel bigger by drawing the eye upwards.
Create this whimsical piece by tieing ribbons around a hula hoop and then hang over your reading area or craft table.

Truffula flower pom-poms are super easy to make and can be used in so many different ways; hang them from the ceiling, turn them into a tree, or use white and blue paper to create a cloud-filled sky! Get the directions for how to make these here.

Walls
Forget boring, plain-white walls! One of our favorite decorating ideas on the list turns board games into wall art by mounting them on the wall. Not only do you now have colorful wall art for no extra cost, but you’ve also eliminated bulky boxes and freed up some storage space. Get more details here.

Using vinyl transfers, you can make semi-permanent decals to be used on whiteboards, chalk boards, and even cubby spaces. This is great for use in spaces where you can’t use staples and are easy to remove when they are no longer needed. Get more information here.

Windows
With just tissue paper and fabric starch you can make these adorable window clings! Inexpensive and easy to remove, it’s the perfect classroom decoration for special occassions and holidays that need to be changed frequently. Have each kiddo make their own tissue paper window art and work together to create and assemble a masterpiece – it’s some good, old-fashioned, messy fun! Get the easy step-by-step instructions here.

If buying curtains is definitely not in your budget, you can make an inexpensive window hanging using ribbons or streamers. Similar to the hula hoop ceiling decoration, tie colorful ribbons and streamers around a curtain rod for window cover that literally cost a couple dollars to make!

Floors
Classroom rugs can bring so much into the learning environment. Not only do they add a fun splash of color, but they are also great for dividing the space to be used for different activities and lessons, and can help make the classroom feel more comfortable and inviting. There are many different styles of classroom rugs covering everything from the alphabet and counting, to reading, math, and geography!
Individual seating squares are not only fun for inside the classroom, but because they are portable, they are perfect for story time in the park and lunches outside in the grass. An added benefit is their small size that makes them easy to store on shelves, in a bin, or even in cubby spaces.

If you’re looking for a more permanent flooring option, there are thousands of full-size classroom rugs to choose from! Shopping rug sales and buying factory seconds is the best way to get the kids area rug you want and still stay within your budget. Shop clearance classroom rugs here.

Furniture
Give plain, boring bookshelves and cold, metal desk and filing cabinets a much-needed make-over by adding cheap stickers or inexpensive contact paper to them. Try using different shape stickers or various patterned contact paper to make it easy for kids to remember what goes where! Check out these great examples of what a little sticker magic can do.