1) Sand glued to the backs of paper/cardstock materials makes them work perfectly on a flannelboard. I've also heard that dryer lint works but haven't attempted itmyself yet. If you don't have a flannelboard but would like one, don't waste your money on an already made version like this, instead buy a piece of posterboard (the kind with the foam center), and cover it with a yard of felt or flannel for a total of about 3 dollars at walmart. Or you could cut up an old box, use an old picture frame or ceiling tile, a cereal box, or even the back of a bookcase and cover with felt.
2)Walmart sometimes has packs of 10 yellow gluesticks in a strip for $1.00, which is an even better deal than the 4 packs from Dollar Tree. I found them up near the checkouts in the bargain-bins and stocked up.
3)Don't buy an Epson Stylus CX6400 all-in-one unless you are prepared to spend 50 dollars every other month on ink cartridges. Sadly it's too late for me.
4)Mr. Clean magic erasers can clean permanent markers, dye, and paint off of wood tables or chairs super easily, and they are completely odor free!
5) If you have a list of things your child needs extra help keeping straight or in memorizing in order and you want the practice to be fun you can use packaging tape on your wooden blocks and write each item on a block and the child can practice stacking them in order. You could also make a strip showing the order of the answers and the child can check his/her own work. We are using this to learn the Stairway of Time.
6)A child-sized carpet sweeper is handy if your schoolroom is carpeted. Children can clean up their own messes without disturbing the others who are still working. Ours is a huge help.
7)If you have rabbits you can put a small amount of non-scoopable (the cheaper stuff, it's nontoxic) cat litter in their bathroom corner or box under their usual bedding. It cuts the odor down to almost nothing and keeps the whole cage area fresher for longer.
8)You can get 25 lbs of magic mud from Dick Blick for 30 dollars (This is a huge amount of clay). This stuff is just like the big blocks of natural clay you remember from your school art classes and it air dries beautifully without a kiln. It feels fantastic (much better texture than a polymer clay like sculpey or regular modelling clay) and even if it dries out you can crumble it up and add water and it is back in action. You can paint it or glaze it after it's dry.
9)Have kids use dry erase crayons for your wipe-able books/cards/placemats instead of markers and you won't have to worry about replacing expensive markers when the kids put them away with the caps left off or improperly sealed. Oh, and these are the BEST whiteboard markers ever.
10)Watercolor crayons create a much cleaner/neater finished painting than traditional watercolors for younger children who sometimes make the paint too watery and get frustrated when it runs. They can make their own "paint with water" books this way too.
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