Art Room Supply Sharing Policy
A Love Letter to Kelliher Staff
Our Shared Cabinet of Art Supplies
Throughout my years of teaching at Kelliher School, I noticed a lot of classroom teachers coming into my art room wanting supplies. Sometimes I’d be teaching, sometimes I’d be in a plan period, and sometimes I wouldn’t even be in my room. At first, I was frustrated! I didn’t want to be interrupted while I was teaching or planning. And I really didn’t like searching for a supply that disappeared when my room was vacant. It would have been so easy to let that frustration fracture the relationships I was trying to establish.
Instead, I found a way to build friendships and give the teachers in my school what they wanted — their own art supplies.
After I started to understand that the teachers in my school were simply trying to foster some creativity in their own classrooms, my frustrations started to subside. After all, the art teacher is supposed to promote art, even if it isn’t happening in the art room. So, I set out to make a space for general education teachers to get the art supplies they were craving.
What I DID - Part 1
Step 1: Make Space
I cleared out an area in the art supply room. I know I need all the storage space I can get, but this will be a sacrifice that is well worth it. After this cabinet has been cleaned out, I made two colorful signs that clearly mark the shared teacher cabinet. I laminate these so they can be reused year after year.
What I DID - Part 2
Step 2: Create a Check-out/Check-in System
I created a check-out/check-in chart. Once it fills up, it can be erased and reused. Please record what you take and when you plan to bring it back or have already returned it.
What I Did - Part 3
Step 3: Collect Supplies
I am continually collecting art supplies that teachers are constantly wanting to borrow.
This is a slow process, but every year I try to add something new to the cabinets.
Most general education teachers want paint. So, I try to stock the cabinet with multiples of every color. How do I do this? Sometimes when I get halfway through a bottle of paint, I just put the other half in the teacher cabinet. It’ll last a while because they don’t go through supplies like we art teachers do. I also make classroom sets of supplies like brushes, watercolor trays, oil pastels, crayons, and paint containers. Then, I might add some unique supplies like a pipe cleaners and a hot glue gun set. If we don’t have extra money in our budget, don’t fear! The teacher cabinet is an excellent place for those random donations you get (26 doilies? Teacher cabinet! One set of off-brand watercolors? Teacher cabinet! 3 skeins of green yarn? Teacher cabinet!)
What I DId - Part 4
Step 4: Label Supplies
Help me label supplies so they are easy to find and return. We may also want to keep a running list of what we start the school year with in our collection. This helps us to know what supplies are being used the most so we can get more.
What I DId - Part 5
Step 5: Staff Training
As a staff, we need to learn how to utilize the teacher cabinet. I will send out an email chock-full of pictures, a list of supplies in the cabinet, and how the check-out/check-in chart works.
For Example: If a teacher comes to get a supply, and it has already been checked out by another teacher, he or she knows to check the chart to see who has it. It then becomes that teacher’s responsibility to return the supply once finished with it.
I very much want to be your favourite coworker and ease any frustration we might have over borrowed or missing art supplies. I love supporting art in the classroom!
Yours in he-ART education,
Ms. Deck