Lessons With Shana

Effective Classroom Strategy

Music rooms are busy spaces. Between the instruments, student materials, tech gear, and classroom movement, you need an environment that supports your teaching and helps students stay organized. Whether you’re setting up a vocal room, a band space, or a general music classroom, these are my favorite decor and organization tools that keep everything running smoothly.

⸻

🎼 1. Functional Decor That Teaches

Yes, your classroom should look good—but more importantly, it should teach for you. These visuals reinforce concepts and routines without you saying a word:

    •    Staff lines – Use tape or vinyl to create large staff lines on your whiteboard or wall. Great for quick theory, solfege, or rhythm dictation.

    •    Solfege or note name posters – Hang them where students can refer to them during warm-ups or dictation games.

    •    Vocal warm-up routine visual – Helps students remember posture, breath, placement, and articulation.

    •    Guitar chord diagrams – Keep major/minor chord charts visible for easy reference during practice.

If a student can answer their own question by glancing at the wall, I count that as a win.

⸻

📦 2. Storage Solutions I Swear By

An organized music room saves so much time and energy during busy weeks. These are some of the storage tools I keep coming back to:

    •    Magazine holders or bins – Perfect for organizing class folders by period or grade.

    •    Sterilite drawers or bins – Use these to sort rhythm instruments, boomwhackers, or classroom tech.

    •    Rolling carts – My MVP! I keep one loaded with daily-use items: whiteboard markers, extra pencils, tuners, sticky notes, batteries, etc.

    •    Command hooks – Great for ukuleles, tote bags, lanyards, or headphones. Use them vertically to save space.

A clutter-free room creates a more focused atmosphere for everyone—including you.

⸻

🧾 3. Labels, Labels, Labels!

When students know exactly where things belong, your systems last all year. I label:

    •    Instrument bins by type or use

    •    Sheet music bins by genre, ensemble, or grade

    •    Folder slots by class or section

    •    Even clipboards, rubrics, and manipulatives!

These labels help reinforce routines, minimize lost materials, and save you from answering the same questions every period.

⸻

If you’re thinking about a mid-summer organization refresh, now is the time!

If you’re looking for some functional decor to add to your classroom, I have some great options on my Teachers Pay Teacher store here: Lessons With Shana on TPT