Budgeting to Equip Learning Centers

[dave4him]

Help me out with this ladies

You have $1000.00 to spend on equipping learning centers for your classroom. Your goal is to equip a well-balanced room with multiple centers. Develop a shopping list.
My age group will be 2-4 year olds. I want centers for reading, blocks, music, possibly some others.

I need some ideas of what i would need for this.

[ksmith]

Is this to equip an entire classroom from scratch? That may be tight, depending on the number of kids, with only $1,000. Definitely a lot of items will have to be second hand. I just did a budget on equipping my house from scratch. I did it for 12 preschoolers, everything new, and I think I'm up to $7,000!

[dave4him]

Just the learning center

[Sugar Magnolia]

Blocks are going to bust that budget. But reading center....you can get a bunch of books at yard sales, craigslist, used book stores, a basket will hold them. And you can make a dramatic play center with clothes, purses, hats and accessories from Goodwill, a few pegs in the wall will hold them. You COULD make unit blocks by wrapping things like shoe boxes with brown paper. Music stuff can be expensive, but I bet you can make your own stuff with a bit of googling for inspiration.

[MamaBearCanada]

Dollar store (at least here):

Wooden blocks - get a few sets
Stationery: note pads, stamps, pencils, envelopes for a writing/mailing centre
Wooden puzzles
Animals
Books
Playdoh
Bins/containers to store stuff in
Hats, scarves, bags for dress up sometimes they have costume stuff too
Plastic/wooden dishes & cooking utensils, sponges, dust pan & broom for a kitchen
Fake flowers, cotton balls, sandpaper, sponges etc for texture sensory box
Scrapbooking & art items
Chalk
Balls
Any nice toys they have

Second hand store:
Mega blocks, waffle blocks other blocks
Little People
Dolls
Ride on toys
Easel
Magnadoodle
Play food

[SilverSabre25]

You'll probably want a sensory or manipulative-type center, too.

Reading: comfy seating (the poang chairs from Ikea seem to be great ), and a sturdy shelf (something like this shelf probably) as well as books to stock it (go for mostly board books, but this will be very pricey. secondhand is good. $300 probably, for everything.

Blocks: You could do cardboard blocks, or the small size blocks instead of a full collection of unit blocks, or a couple sets of the Mellisa and Doug unit blocks. Maybe plan to spend $200 on blocks.

Music: not sure what you mean, like for making music or listening to it? A listening station will be really pricey, and a permanent music making station will be LOUD. Music is better handled in structured, defined, group times, imo.

Dramatic play: babies, kitchen, play food, baby care stuff, dress up clothes.

Manipulatives: counting bears, tongs, discovery bottles, things like that.

Sensory: this is a very important part of child development, though often over looked. You can do a sensory table with a lid, and something like rice for a filler, with scoops and cups and things in it.

Science: magnifying glasses, binoculars, a set of scales (the balance kind), rulers, notebooks for making observations.

Art/creative: standard art supplies (paper, crayons, markers, paints, brushes, hole punches, glue, glitter glue, scissors)

[dave4him]

Thanks

[Crystal]

Reading area _ Area Rug ($25 at Target) two wicker baskets ($15.00), books ($50) 4-5 pillows with pillow cases ($30)

Blocks - 2 starter sets Melissa and Doug Blocks (amazon $140.00) Find a small tree that can be cut down or already is and cut into "chunks" (free) Hot wheels ($20) animals ($20) People figures ($20) Area rug ($25) baskets/containers ($50)

Music instruments ($50) cd's or itunes ($40)

Art- Paint ($50) paper/variety ($20) collage supplies ($30) glue ($10) scissors ($10) playdough or clay and tools ($10) chalk/markers/colored pencils, etc. (($20)

Science - mag glasses ($10) kaleidoscopes ($10) containers for collections ($10) rocks/pinecones/driftwood/shells/ etc. (FREE) sand and a bin for sensory table ($10) magnets ($20) tornado tube set ($10)

That comes to $705 and gives you wiggle room for the extras you will find

[MarinaVanessa]

If I had $1,000 to spend on centers and I was starting from scratch (assuming that I already had the large furniture and pieces like play kitchen/table and chair set, bookshelf and pillows for reading area etc.) I would focus on these centers first and buy everything second hand (from thrift stores or garage sales) and from dollar stores first before buying new from stores and this is what I would get:

Block Center

• 2-3 Large unit block sets (if you can make them that will save you tons of money)
• 2-3 small unit block sets
• Plastic animals/dinosaurs
• Toy cars
• People
• Mega blocks
• Large cardboard blocks

Art Center

• Easels
• Watercolor/Tempera/Finger paints
• Paint brushes
• Cups for rinsing
• Large paper for drawing/painting (roll of butcher paper for example)
• Crayons/colored pencils/markers
• Playdough
• Clay
• School glue & glue sticks
• Safety scissors
• Colored construction paper
• Clean junk (scraps, scratch paper, egg cartons etc)

* I'd wait until the Back to School sales are going on before buying anything school related (Crayola crayons $.25-$.50 for a 24 pack, Crayola watercolors for $1 etc).

Dramatic Play Center

• Community helper costumes
• Ethnic costumes
• Family costumes (men's shirts, womens skirts/dresses, purses, briefcase, apron etc)
• Play cash register
• Play food and cooking utensils

Quiet Center/Reading Center

• Books of different types (that show different ages, families, ethnicities etc)
• Soft plush cuddle toys

Manipulatives

• Puzzles of different difficulties (12 piece, 24 piece, peg puzzles, wood puzzles, cardboard puzzles etc)
• Duplos
• Brush blocks
• Peg boards
• Counting bears
• Wood tool kit (large screws and bolts)
• Snap cubes/unifix cubes
• Stacking/nesting toys

I'd also buy musical instruments and music.

I LOVE LOVE LOVE yard sales. I just went to one and bought a ton of sensory balls, wooden puzzles (8), costumes (5), board books (6), hardback books (6), Duplos, a small bin of small metal cars (about 40 cars in it), finger puppets (10), wooden farm set with animals and greenery to add to my block area, link counters, a tub of 200 unifix cubes (Lakeshore brand) and wooden dominoes ALL FOR $35!!! The unifix cubes by themselves would have cost me $24 brand new.

[just_peachy]

If I had $1,000 to spend on centers and I was starting from scratch (assuming that I already had the large furniture and pieces like play kitchen/table and chair set, bookshelf and pillows for reading area etc.) I would focus on these centers first and buy everything second hand (from thrift stores or garage sales) and from dollar stores first before buying new from stores and this is what I would get:

Block Center

• 2-3 Large unit block sets (if you can make them that will save you tons of money)
• 2-3 small unit block sets
• Plastic animals/dinosaurs
• Toy cars
• People
• Mega blocks
• Large cardboard blocks

Art Center

• Easels
• Watercolor/Tempera/Finger paints
• Paint brushes
• Cups for rinsing
• Large paper for drawing/painting (roll of butcher paper for example)
• Crayons/colored pencils/markers
• Playdough
• Clay
• School glue & glue sticks
• Safety scissors
• Colored construction paper
• Clean junk (scraps, scratch paper, egg cartons etc)

* I'd wait until the Back to School sales are going on before buying anything school related (Crayola crayons $.25-$.50 for a 24 pack, Crayola watercolors for $1 etc).

Dramatic Play Center

• Community helper costumes
• Ethnic costumes
• Family costumes (men's shirts, womens skirts/dresses, purses, briefcase, apron etc)
• Play cash register
• Play food and cooking utensils

Quiet Center/Reading Center

• Books of different types (that show different ages, families, ethnicities etc)
• Soft plush cuddle toys

Manipulatives

• Puzzles of different difficulties (12 piece, 24 piece, peg puzzles, wood puzzles, cardboard puzzles etc)
• Duplos
• Brush blocks
• Peg boards
• Counting bears
• Wood tool kit (large screws and bolts)
• Snap cubes/unifix cubes
• Stacking/nesting toys

I'd also buy musical instruments and music.

I LOVE LOVE LOVE yard sales. I just went to one and bought a ton of sensory balls, wooden puzzles (8), costumes (5), board books (6), hardback books (6), Duplos, a small bin of small metal cars (about 40 cars in it), finger puppets (10), wooden farm set with animals and greenery to add to my block area, link counters, a tub of 200 unifix cubes (Lakeshore brand) and wooden dominoes ALL FOR $35!!! The unifix cubes by themselves would have cost me $24 brand new.

Love this list!! Saving it to bring with me on yard sale hunts. I'm such a flounder-er at those things!