Storage Styles
Mobile carts - Carrying large, heavy items around your classroom is not a convenient way to teach. Likewise, when you have several small pieces of equipment that need to stay together, you want an easy way to organize it all. Mobile carts are the perfect Makerspace storage solution! In one space-saving unit you can store a 3D printer with all the filament and replacement parts your students need to bring their projects to life.
File cabinets - Even as more ways of teaching become digital, there are still paper items that need to be organized and readily available. File cabinets can be a life saver for new teachers or substitutes entering your classroom. It can also serve as a great back-up option if your digital files go missing, or for collecting information for students and parents who don’t have computers at home.
Small items storage - A shop class will have hundreds of extra nuts, bolts, nails, screws and more. Art classes will have paints, crayons, brushes, and other small art supplies. Keeping these items tidy and ready-to-use can be a nightmare. Small storage bins attached to a pegboard inside an art storage unit or woodworking tool cabinet are the ideal solution for calming the chaos.
Cubbies - Stepping over students’ personal items while teaching or monitoring their work can be annoying at best, and a safety hazard at worst. Providing a dedicated space for personal belongings keeps them out of the aisles and helps students keep their attention on their work.
Style Options
Even within a given storage style, you may have a few more decisions to make when it comes to the available options of what you’re looking for.
Wood or metal - Different classrooms will have different structural needs and esthetics. A warm classroom with core curriculum instruction may be better suited for wood storage pieces. A CTE classroom may prefer the rugged durability and easy-to-clean surfaces of metal storage units.
Tote trays - Even with an excellent storage solution, small items can still become lost or misplaced, making it harder for the next group of students to get to work. If this sounds like your classroom, tote trays can help corral the mess and make for more efficient and productive lessons.
Mobile or stationary - Plenty of storage cabinets will be stationary; once you set it up, it’s not moving. This is ideal for closets, student cubbies, and documents. Other situations may require a more versatile solution. Hauling out heavy items like a laser cutter, sewing machine, or miter saw may be too cumbersome to do frequently. Keeping these items in a mobile storage unit makes it much easier to move them around the classroom or campus where they’re needed.
