The Frugal Teacher: Bookcases

Introducing the first "The Frugal Teacher" post! Close friends and family know about my 6th sense: the sense of sale. Wherever I go, I manage to sniff out a good deal and am all about saving. My classroom is entirely made up of my own personal purchases or hand-me-downs from marvelous teacher colleagues and this year especially I have been on a hunt to make the most of a penny. 

Check out my bookcases. They are made from rain gutters. When I went to Home Depot and asked one of the employees to cut the gutter in half, he looked at me like I had 6 heads. I explained to him my plan to turn them into bookcases and before I knew it, he was paging his boss and 3 other employees to come hear my great idea. Have a look:

Supplies needed: 

• 1 plastic rain gutter (the book cases above are made from 1 gutter cut in half)
• 4 L brackets 
• 4 screws

Cost: ~$10

Check back later for more thrifty ideas for your classroom!