It can be difficult trying to figure out cute and creative ways to display student work throughout the school year. If you are having trouble figuring out a fun and easy way to display student work, then this post is for YOU!
This display will make each of your students take great pride in what they complete. They will absolutely love showing off all their hard work and effort. My students loved our display for student work and honestly, kids from other classrooms enjoyed it too.
It is fairly easy to set up and can easily be reused year after year. It is also something that you can easily prep during the summer and have everything ready to go. What is not to love?!
Materials Needed to Display Student Work
- foam sheets
- clothes clip art
- paper or card stock
- clothes pins
- laminator
- laminating pouches
Preparing to Display Student Work
1. First you will need to create some hands for your display. I found it easiest to trace out hands on a file folder because it tends to be easier to trace on the foam sheets. School down to download the hands template that I used.
2. Using the tracers that you just made in the previous set, trace and cut a class set of hands.
3. Next you will glue a clothespin to the end of each hand. I found it best to glue the clothespin on the side that has markings from where you traced.
4. Next print off clothes clip art or an image from the Internet. For this post I used Whimsy Clips, but there are many options to pick from. When teaching, my classroom had a jungle theme. I found a cute zookeeper outfit online using only the shirt and shorts. Print out the clothes and laminate for extra durability.
Find what works with your taste and classroom theme. If you use the clipart above or something similar here are the exact dimensions that I used: Make the pink shirt dimensions 6.6 height by 8.18 width. Make the green shirt dimensions 8.54 height by 8.22 width. Make all shorts 4.93 height by 6.2 width. After you get the clothes printed, attached the shirt and shorts together and laminate for extra durability.
5. Glue hands to the clothes. You will want the clothespin to be hidden behind the hands once the display is all set up so glue accordingly.
When teaching, I preferred displaying student work in the hallway. Before the school year began, I had the kids set up in the hallway (like picture above). When spacing the first few, I made sure that I had enough room to clip a large piece of construction paper sideways. Obviously, you may not have that much space. Just do what works for you and your classroom.
I found the best way to attaching the kids to the wall was using Removable Mounting Squares. They can withstand the weight and last throughout the school year, and longer if you are allowed to keep things hanging up through the summer. They can also easily be removed without making a mess and/or tearing up paint from the surface it was attached to.
When teaching, I took head shots of all my kids during the first week of school. You will want them to be quite large so adjust using PowerPoint or something similar, then print them out and laminate. I usually make the faces huge and have them fill the entire page. I think it makes it look more funny, but do what works best for you.
Once the heads are cut out, attach them to the bodies and everyone is ready to go.
And then once they have completed work you can have them hang it up for the school to see. I would try and change my student’s work at least once a week. Obviously, that did not always happen (and sometimes we changed it more), but it was a manageable goal.
The preparation getting this display set up is all up-front. Since this project can be reused year after year, it is definitely worth it!
Once work is completed, kids can hang up their work for everyone to see! A manageable goal is to try and change students’ work at least once a week.
Download Your Student Display Template Below!
Can you not find a resource that you would LOVE to have for your classroom? Contact me and I would be happy to make it for you.
Click the picture below to download. You will immediately be redirected to the freebie.
I hope that you and your students enjoy this fun way to display their hard work this year!
Jennifer
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I am very challenged when it comes to artistic details. How large did you print the clothes. Also can you make a template for the hands/arms?
Please let me know if you need anything else! I hope my email provided you with everything that you needed. 🙂
I would also love to know what how large the made the outfits, and the arms template would be great as well.
I just added the dimensions and the template to the blog post. Please let me know if you have any other questions. Thanks!
I absolutely love this!! Could you send me the templates also? I’d love to use it for my nursery and kindergarten classes!!
I just added the dimensions and the template to the blog post. Please let me know if you have any other questions. Thanks!
Absolutely adorable! Did you print the photo heads at home or at the photo lab? They turned out perfectly! I love the little girl’s expression. Thanks for all the details! I have myself a fun project!
Thank you so much! I printed them at home and then laminated them. It turned out fine doing that, but I’m sure they would look even better if printed out at a photo lab. Please let me know if you have any other questions!