7 Ways to Use Post-It’s in the Classroom

Teachers are constantly bombarded with the newest and best tools for the classrooms, and it could get overwhelming at times. Why not find ways to repurpose the old time classics, like Post-Its? Most people have a stack of them in their office drawers, and they have more uses to them than you might think. Here are 7 of them!

Color coding — Since Post-Its come in a variety of colors, they could be used to group ideas based on common themes or characteristics. For example, English teachers could dedicate one color to identify themes and another to note figurative language.

Idea generating — Post-Its come in different sizes, which is perfect for different types of brainstorming. One example could be to give each group of students one large sheet of Post-It (the size of bulletin board) and have them brainstorm ideas as a team. Then, each team could stick their sheet on to the wall and present their ideas to the class. Another way would be to write one idea on each square Post-It and stick them on a larger sheet of paper.

Vocabulary Building — One creative way to integrate Post-Its in language classrooms is to write the vocab of a furniture piece (la chaise — a chair) and stick it to the furniture itself. When students look around the classroom, they are constantly reminded of the vocabulary and the physical object.

Active reading — Similar to previous uses, Post-Its are useful in bookmarking books. When reading a novel, students can also stick smaller Post-Its to summarize key ideas, new vocabulary or plot lines on each page.

Temporary labeling -Teachers or students can use Post-Its as temporary labels. Stick a Post-It to a pile of paperwork to label what needs to be done (“To Mark” or “To-Do”).

Chronological organizing — Whether it is with plot or timelines, it is easy to switch and re-organize order of Post-Its.

Goal setting — Since many post-its come in different colors, students can write down short-term and long-term goals on them and stick them onto their notebooks or binders. Teachers can encourage students to review their goals on a regular basis and check-in to measure progress.

These are just seven ways students and teachers could use Post-Its. What are some ways you have used them in your classroom? Comment down below or upload photos of your favorite ideas on room2learn.org.