Free Classroom Decor

Accessing free classroom decor is important for all teachers. Money is tight at the end of the summer after not being paid for 2-3 months. Last week, a teacher reached out to me and asked if I had any ideas for decorating a classroom on a budget this year. I found some great links to free classroom decor resources that you can print off and hang up around your classroom.

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Packing Up My Classroom

In June of 2020, I had to pack up my entire classroom and bring any item home that was not purchased with school district funds – this meant all my flexible seating, classroom library and classroom storage all got moved into my basement. I only kept my classroom library books – all flexible seating and storage got given away or sold on Facebook Marketplace. It took 6 SUV loads to get everything out of my classroom. I will definitely re-think what I re-purchase for my classroom once Covid restrictions ease.

Classroom Tours

Teachers are permitted to hang up items on their walls and bulletin boards, so I wanted to create a list of free classroom decor resources that teachers could download, print, laminate and hang up in their classrooms to make the space more inviting.
If you look at photos of my classroom (Tour 1, Tour 2, Tour 3), I intentionally leave lots of blank space around my classroom for student work and anchor charts.
I worked with Stacey Lloyd to develop this list of 10 Ways to Create A Beautiful Classroom Space.

Below is a list of links to classroom decor items I have used in my classroom and school library to decorate.

I love these Growth Mindset Posters from the Kitchen Table Classroom. When you sign up for her email list, you get access to these beautiful posters. I sent them to be printed and then laminated them. My teacher friend told me about this 100-pack of laminating pouches, which would be great for all this classroom decor.
Once these posters are hung up around your classroom, you could use them as journal writing inspiration by asking students to pick a different one each week and reflect on the meaning. Always model any writing activity first with the class before you ask your students to complete it.
I also love this “Reading is like bathing; you need to do it every day” quote decor from Jen Jones. If you go through the free section in her Teachers Pay Teachers store, she has a lot of these cute quote posters.
During the first week of school, I want students to socialize as much as possible with their new peers. I make an equal number of copies of each option of this Kindness Activity from Danielle Knight. Put on a classroom-suitable playlist and let students get creative colouring and lettering their posters. You can now hang up these posters around your room.
Finally, we end the first week or begin the second week (time depending) by reading the poem Where I’m From By George Ella Lyon. I found a free online poem creator that uses this mentor text and helps students create their own Where I Am From Poem. Once students complete this poem and work through the writing process, I print out their completed copy and have them decorate around the words with images, pictures or colours that represent them and their poems. These also get hung up around my classroom.
This summer, I found these Free Book Themed Posters created by Megan from Tipler Teaches.
Lastly, these are not free, but they would make a great addition to your classroom. Megan from Tipler Teachers created these Indigenous History Month Posters that would be great for classrooms any time of the year.

First Week of School Lesson Plans

Now that you have decorated your classroom with some free classroom decor – what are you teaching for the first week of middle school? Don’t worry; I have compiled a list of activities for in-personal and virtual teaching in this blog post.
I also reached out to other TPT authors and asked them to share their links to free classroom decor. I have compiled a list below for you to look through and see what would work for your classroom.