Free Daily Class Schedule Cards
I am a firm believer that EVERY classroom should have a day plan posted on the board. It helps everyone know what is going on and what is coming up next. Student anxiety can lower when they have a predictable day.
Before I started putting a day schedule on the board students were constantly asking me what we were doing next. That had to stop REAL quick.
I have gone through many versions of a day schedule from just writing it on the board with a whiteboard marker to having super fancy labels.
Here’s What I Found
Writing it on the board each day took too much of my precious time and I was getting covered in whiteboard marker because I would try to save time and use my hand instead of a brush to clear the previous day. Also, I don’t have the neatest printing/handwriting. Yes, not all teachers have that amazing, perfect printing that you admire about your primary level colleagues. lol
Next, I tried the fancy labels. While they did look cute at first there were days where I thought they looked to cluttered on the board. I like clean lines and the chevron AND polka dots (we all remember those trends) were very busy. Also the subject text was so small because I wanted to get in all the fancy borders and images that some kids could not read it from the back of the room.
I am not judging you if you use these types of labels (they are some of the best sellers in my store) because I think they are stinking adorable. They just are not for me right now. Who knows maybe in a few years I will change my mind again.
I’ve seen the schedule cards that have little clocks on them to show students what time they will be doing each activity. No pun intended but I do not have time to change the times everyday. We generally do the same activities at the same time of day but not always.
What I Use Now
Now I use a very simple label that is a solid color with just the text.
You can print them on one color or multiple colors that compliment your room decor and they do not take up a bunch of printer ink.
I have the outside break times (recess, lunch, and home) on a their own color so students can easily see when they get a break.
After I laminate them I attach magnets to the back so they will stick to the board. I did find that the magnets fell off the laminated surface pretty quickly so I covered them with packing tape and it works perfect!
I store them in a plastic container form the dollar store and put it on my board ledge. It is super easy, and quick (best part) to put up our new day schedule.
Our Routine
Each morning, a different student tells us what the date is and then they read over our day schedule. If a student needs a little bit of help reading the labels, no problem. That is what I am there for.
If I know right away that a student will struggle with reading them, I wait until later on the rotation to pick them to read. This way they will have seen and heard the words read numerous times and they will have more success with many of them.
For You!
If you want a FREE copy of the labels for your own classroom, here they are.
The file is on Google Slides so that you can completely customize them yourself. I have put in the labels I use, but you can easily change the font type and words. You can also make more labels that will suit your needs.
The Slides are set up so they are printable at 8.5 x 11 size.
More Labeling Fun
If you love labels as much as I do and need (want) more free ones, here are the labels I use to organize the materials I have prepped for the week.
If you want to save this post for later, here is an image to pin to Pinterest.
Cheers,