How to Paint Your Classroom Bulletin Board

Wondering how to create perfect bulletin boards for back to school? Keep reading…

I can sum up the past few days in one picture from my Instagram (@thepinspiredteacher):

 

With that being said, I took a big deep breath and headed into my classroom. Day 1 was yesterday and I went in with one goal in mind- add a fresh coat of paint to my bulletin boards. I took over a retired teacher’s room last year and all the bulletin boards were painted black and I kept it that way when I moved in. I LOVE having black bulletin boards, especially paired with my neon color obsession. Black makes the colors pop! I used chalkboard black paint so that I could write in chalk on them.

 

We did this last year for our word wall (even though it wasn’t chalkboard paint) and the chalk came off fairly easy.

 

THE BEFORE:

 

 

Changes for this year: I’m moving the word wall area to the front of my classroom and using my longer wall to house anchor charts.

 

 

 

 

THE AFTER:

 

 

Here is a photo of what they look like WITH anchor charts. Click the picture to read more about these anchor charts.

 

how to PAINT YOUR BULLETIN BOARD

1. Choose a chalkboard paint color. Here is the one I used:

My best advice for painting your bulletin board wall is to choose a neutral color. I chose black chalkboard paint so that it would pop against my white anchor charts that would be going up throughout the year.

2. Use painter’s tape to have sharp, clean paint lines.

Tips for painting your bulletin board

1. Make it the first thing you do when you returen to your classroom. This should be one of the first things you do when you start setting up your classroom, because you want to have time to let the paint dry.

2. Create a defined space. Once your bulletin board is finished, I recommend defining the area. As you can see with mine, I had a very long spacious bulletin board. I split it into sections using the following bulletin board borders:

The Benefits of Painting Your Bulletin Boards vs Using Paper:

Painting your bulletin board is cheaper long term. As I said, I took this classroom over from a retired teacher who had these walls painted for many, many years. When you paint your bulletin boards, you won’t have to keep buying new paper or fabric for your bulletin boards every year- which can add up! If you paint your bulletin boards, you can just touch them up as needed, which will save you time and money in the long run.

But, if you do decide you want a change, you can easily put up paper over the painted bulletin board, and you’ll still have the gorgeously painted classroom bulletin board underneath, ready for you whenever you’d like!

Classroom Aesthetic: The best benefit? Painted bulletin boards just look so much nicer than paper or fabric ones! They add a level of sophistication and polish to your classroom that paper or fabric bulletin boards just can’t match. Plus, they’re really easy to keep clean- just wipe them down with a damp cloth when needed.

Paint once, and enjoy the time-saving benefits year after year. I cannot tell you how nice it was having painted bulletin boards. Before I had painted classroom bulletin boards, I would spend so much time measuring, cutting, and stapling. Going back to school and setting up your classroom is already a big time investment, and truly, this one tweak of having painted bulletin boards has shaved off at least a half of a day in classroom set up time. Making more time for the tedious organizational things that help my classroom run more effectively throughout the year.

Fire-hazards? Now, this one may or may not help someone, because I haven’t cleared it with a fire safety professional. but I know some of my teacher friends in other school districts aren’t allowed to use paper or fabric. So if that’s you, maybe painting would be a good option- but check with your school to see!

So there you have it! Classrooms that have painted bulletin boards as opposed to those with paper or fabric tend to look more crisp. Not only is this visually appealing, but it can also save time and money in the long run. Painting your bulletin boards is a one-time investment that will last for many years; you won’t need to keep purchasing new paper or fabric every year. In addition, they’re easy to clean. So will you try painting your classroom bulletin boards? Let me know in the comments.