Teaching Tip Tuesday: Dry Erase Boards

I can't believe the weekend flew by without me posting.  I did announce the winner of my Weekend Wishlist Grateful Bag giveaway - congratulations again, Celeste!!!  I didn't start another Weekend Wishlist giveaway because I'll be posting my 1,000 Follower Giveaway this week!  I've got some great surprises for you!

Just a quick "you've probably already thought about it" teaching tip for you on this lovely Tuesday.  Dry erase boards are a quick, easy, and FUN way for you to assess students, but sometimes they can be hard to manage.  A couple of quick tips that I've found handy:

Tip #1:
Hot glue pom-poms to the ends of each marker for a quick "always there" eraser.
Tip #2:
Place markers in socks for easy storage - this way erasers and socks are passed out at the same time!  The socks are perfect for erasing bigger jobs.  This is also a great way to eliminate "picking" colors if your markers or pom-poms are different colors!!!
Tip #3:
Find an easily accessible place to store your marker set so students can grab them when they need them, and also help pass them out!
Don't have dry erase boards??  I remember being a new teacher and wishing that I had a set of whiteboards but needing to spend my money on so many other things!  Finally, I inherited a set (which I later left behind at a previous school), then I purchased the cheap $1.00 boards from the Target bins.  They lasted a couple of years before becoming too disgusting to keep!  So....
Tip #4:
If you need a set of dry erase boards on a $0 budget, laminate a piece of white paper and lined paper back-to-back using the thickest laminating film you can find.

Voila!
I have a set of Magic Boards that I now use (and LOVE) in my classroom, but students also have a set of these laminated sheets that they keep at their desks and can pull out to use anytime they want!  Easy to replace and doesn't cost me a dime!

What are your other tips for using dry erase boards in the classroom?


6 comments

  1. You can use the dry-erase markers to write on tables too. Simply wipe off with a Clorox wipe and presto! My students love to do math on their table - they feel like real "rule breakers". Whatever it takes to get them to practice :)

    ~Realistic
    http://realistic-teacher.blogspot.com

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  2. I made my dry erase boards from something I bought at Lowes... and leave it to me to forget what it was... something maybe used for a shower? Ugh terrible.. anyways, it was about $20 and I think I got around 30 boards. They cut the big piece into squares for me and I just used colored tape around the edges.

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  3. I always get mine from Home Depot. They work great and you get to choose the size you want them!

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  4. Use page protectors and they erase easy and change out when you want

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  5. I used to use a sock. I found tiny magnetic erasers at the target dollar spot the last 2 years. I love the Pom Pom idea!! Do they lose the top to the marker? Thanks for the tip!
    Sarah
    Kindergarten Korner

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  6. Great tip and much needed! I have been struggling with organization of markers and marker boards!

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