The Little Things

I get stressed out sometimes when there's too much going on. Like if there are 3 different kids calling my name or asking me questions all while I'm trying to do two other things it's not going to end well for anyone. 

I need things that work well because there is far too much going to for me to deal with how all the little things are working. So I wanted to share some of the little things I have around the room that make my life easier because they work.

If you use ISNs and you cover them in packing tape, you NEED this thing: 

I'm sure you've seen in. The first time I was taping up books I started with one of the big ones that are used to close boxes and that didn't work well. So then I was cutting the tape piece by piece. About halfway through the day my friend recommended the one above and it just makes the job SO much easier. It's just a little thing, but I use it so much that it was worth writing about.

Another thing that has been driving me crazy is the pencil sharpener. I found a big electric one in the room when I moved in but it was never wonderful. And last year it went from eh to straight up bad. It wasn't jammed but it just wasn't sharpening. Kids would try to empty it to solve the problem and then it was a mess. And then they'd come tell me that it wasn't working which at the moment I couldn't do anything to fix. And my little hand sharpeners all jam in about 2 seconds. Oh and by that point in the year I'd already ordered my school supplies for the next year so it was too late- I'd have to buy it myself which is not what I'm looking to do at the end of the year. It ended up in June where kids were leaving the room to sharpen pencils. So irritating.

So the whole sharpener fiasco gave me the chance to get my hands on one of the sharpeners that I've seen everywhere online for the past year. I looked no further than Classroom Friendly Supplies. If everyone was going crazy over a pencil sharpener I figured it had to be worth it.

So here is my pretty new sharpener:

Um please excuse my bar cart in the background- I swear I don't have a bar in my classroom! I don't go back to school for another two weeks so this guy is still at home with me being put to good use on all my pencils around the house. And it's actually funny because I've never used pencils so much as I have been lately because they are just so awesomely sharp.

Check out their video on how it works:

There's a bit of a learning curve the first time but it's super easy once you know what to do. I like the little bar too that holds it securely to the table- it's very sturdy. I also really love that they sell replacement parts. All the sharpeners that break in my past rooms have been trash once they stop working because I have no clue how to repair them. With this I can easily order replacement blades so I can be sure it's always in great shape.

I can't wait to have this be in action when school starts! I'll try to post how it works out with kids once school starts but I didn't want to wait to write about it because Classroom Friendly Supplies has been kind enough to offer my readers a 5% discount if you use the code VCR67. So if you don't already have one I would strongly suggest heading over there and checking it out!!