How Do You Put Things On Walls?

[Daycare_Mama]

I'm in the process of getting licensed, so I don't have a lot of stuff up on my walls yet. I bought a few things that I laminated and I want to put up (an alphabet line, reading corner poster, etc.).

I want things to be at eye level for kids, so they can enjoy them (especially the alphabet line) but I don't know what to put them up with so that they will stay up, but not be too dangerous if they got it down.

For example, push pins would probably be easy for them to get out and thumb tacks would be harder for them to get out, but if they did, could be dangerous.

My daughter's early intervention teacher (my daughter was a preemie) said she uses a putty type thing to stick posters up in her class, but she said the kids can take them down easily.

Just wondering what other providers use to put (and hopefully keep) things up?

My daughter is 2 and my daycare boy is 19 months, so they will take whatever I put up down if they can.

[Crystal]

If it is something that is going to stay in one place long term, I use extra strength velcro. Otherwise, I use staples, then use clear packing tape over them, all the way around the border of the poster, and onto the wall.

[kidkair]

Velcro! I love using velcro for my posters! They stay up very nicely and if the little ones tear them down they come off unharmed and go right back up. Plus it makes it really easy to change them around.

[BentleysBands]

i use either double sided tape or the putty stuff. but i have never had a kid take anything off my walls either....

[Luna]

Hmm...I used velcro for alphabet letters and it didn't work very well. When the kids pulled the letters off it either tore away from the letter or tore away from the wall...not once did the velcro come apart Maybe I need better quality velcro?

[Blackcat31]

I use the long skinny poster frames and hang them sideways on the wall. You can put 4-5 pieces of regular size paper art pieces in the frame. I am also lucky enough not to live in my daycare home so my DH put giant sheets (8'x4') of Homasote (corkboard material) on the walls. I have tons of things hung on them using staples. I have one sheet hung on at least two walls per room. One board is for art work, one has shapes and letters, one is for our Star of the Month, one is in entryway for announcements and notes for parents and one is for whatever theme bulletin board collection we feel like displaying. You can paint the homasote whatever color you want and when there gets to be too many holes from tacks and staple in it, you just repaint it. They are awesome! Here's a link if anyone is interested in what homasote is: http://www.hstech.org/howto/material/homosote.htm

[kidkair]

Hmm...I used velcro for alphabet letters and it didn't work very well. When the kids pulled the letters off it either tore away from the letter or tore away from the wall...not once did the velcro come apart Maybe I need better quality velcro?

I had to use pliers to get the velcro back off the wall when I wanted to change where I had it. I had a 9 month old who loved to rip the posters down his first month and it always broke away. I use velcro brand sticky back general purpose.

[Preschool/daycare teacher]

My personal favorite is Blue painter's tape. It sticks really well, and stays put a looong time. If the kids pull it off, you can usually just stick it back up there a couple times without having to replace the tape. I fold it back over itself so that it's like double sided tape. That way noone sees the blue tape . Plus it doesn't leave residue on the wall, and it will not take the paint off walls, no matter how forcefully they rip it off the wall. It has to be 3M blue painter's tape though. The generic cheaper stuff from dollar stores won't work. I've tried velcro, but sometimes the kids not only pull the poster down as easily as they do with tape, but sometimes the sticky part that holds it to the wall gets ripped off the wall too, taking paint off with it.

[Daycare_Mama]

Thanks you guys! These are all great ideas. I hadn't even thought about velcro. I also think the staples and clear packing tape would work! Thanks again!!

[melskids]

i laminate EVERYTHING and then use clear paking tape all the way around the edges, that way they cant pull it up at all. it would take awhile for them to pick at the tape to get it up, and hopefully, i'm on to then by then.

[QualiTcare]

clear contact paper. if you put it far enough away from the edges, they usually can't see where it starts or ends, but stare at it like hmmm.