Clipboard Makeover!

My students LOVE read, write and count the room activities so much that they nearly wore out our clipboards last year.

So this summer I decided to get some new ones...but I wanted to make them fun and decorative!

SO....

I now have 24 boards that went from

I chose to detail how I made these boards so that if you want to 'dress up' your boards for the year you'll have the easy how-to!  This project took NO time at all- all you'll need are boards and craft/duct tape!

I also chose to highlight my brand new 'count the room' product that I made for my kinders to use to try out these boards as part of 

It will be only $1 all week!

and will be a perfect way to try out your new boards too!!!

I'll tell more about it later in the post...

SO now onto how to make the boards fun and fabulous!

 I ordered a case of clipboards from Amazon

and purchased craft tape from CVS (50% off this week- only $2.99 a roll) and patterned Duct Tape from a few different craft and discount stores.

Starting on the front side of the board, measure a piece that fits across the board with a little 'leftover' to hang off each edge.

make sure your first piece is lined up right on the bottom edge

You can measure/cut with scissors, but I found it easier to rip the piece off as I went along

 Once the front was covered, I flipped the board over.  Starting at the bottom corner I folded the 'center' first and then the sides to make a nice rounded corner

 then I folded each piece over as I made my way to the top and did the same with the top corner pieces

This is what the back looked like once all the pieces were folded over

to make a pen/marker loop cut a small piece of tape (I eyed it) and fold one edge down about half way

and then folded the bottom edge up to meet and 'seal' in the sticky!

fold it into a loop

Once the pen/marker loop is secured, cut pieces of tape to cover the back.  You want these to be a tad shorter so that it fits in the space without having to fold it over the edge (if it is too long and you have to fold it over it doesn't look bad- it happened a few times to me!)

 and here is the back all covered:

put a pen or marker in the loop!

(You can make it w/o the loop if you choose)

Now- I found that one of designs had tape that was a bit thinner so it didn't fit to the top perfectly.  If this happens to you, here is how to 'finish' off the top.

Lay a piece over the clip part... 

 and then use a knife to trim off the excess (I used a pairing knife- you could use an exacto blade)

and then 'peel' away the excess tape that was covering the clip

and when it's all trimmed it fits in neatly! 

So here are all my boards ready for fun and learning this year!

And I also made some for my sons to give to their teachers for the first day of school!

I am going to write in the teachers names and have each of them 'sign' their names at the bottom.

The poem I wrote says to 'sit down with a cup of tea' so I attached a tea bag to the clipboard too.

These adorable bags were only $1 at Target!

Now onto the $1 item for the week.... 

This is a fun way to try out those new boards!  PLUS it is virtually NO prep on your part!  Simply print the cards on cardstock, laminate and cut!

Print the recording sheets and copy- BAM- you are done!

PLUS the cards can be used for multiple activities (see below) so your 'prep' will pay off!

You will get 10 picture cards that you can tape around the room (or if you prefer they can be put in a basket and kept on a table)

 and 10 number cards

 There are 3 different recording sheets so that you can differentiate.

The first one is for students who do not need any number writing/ID assistance.

The second one has a number line on top for reference.

The third has the numbers (answers) dotted- students would simply have to trace the number after finding/counting the objects.

In addition for using it as a 'count the room' center, you could also use it for ordering numbers 1-10, matching objects to numbers 1-10 and/or as a 'partner' game.  Distribute picture and number cards to students.  Have them then walk around to find their 'partner' (match number to number of objects)- perfect for back to school and getting to know you too!

If your students aren't quite ready to use this right in the beginning of the year it is an easy one to use at any other time of the year because the 'theme' is 'school!'

This pack will be 50% off ($1) through 8/31!

Are you ready to make some fun boards for your kids for this year?

I'd love to see pictures of the patterns you choose!  There are so many to choose from- it was so hard!

And now I am thinking of ways to use the 'excess' tape!!!

This is my last week of summer vacation...I will be working in my classroom and having fun in the sun with my kiddos!  I am hoping to post 'classroom reveal pictures' but back-to-school crazies may get in the way!

Until next post,