How to Set up an Awesome Classroom Writing Center. Simple and Fun!

When I was a little one, I loved anything to do with paper. Cutting, gluing, folding. My poor mom always had tons of paper creations. Somehow they always magically disappeared, unless they could be hung on the refrigerator, then they generally became part of the fridge museum. There are probably a few still there now! That being said, my favorite (and the students’ favorite) part of my classroom was always the classroom writing center! It doesn’t have to be anything big or elaborate! Here are some simple classroom writing center setups that are simple and effective, and will be a favorite in your classroom in no time! This post does contain Amazon affiliate links. If you purchase anything through these links I will receive a small commission at no cost to you.

Ultra Super Simple Classroom Writing Center

Really all you need for a writing center is paper. Students should have their own pencils and crayons ect. A space to put paper that your students can use at their own discretion is all you really need. Use a box ( a copy paper box would be perfect. If you have to close the writing center for whatever reason, you could just put on the lid…but I digress), put a sticker or write the words “Writing Center” and you are good to go! You can add lined and blank paper (if you are okay with your students “digging”. I used to always put copies that I messed up into my writing center as well (if they were one-sided)

Another way to make an ultra super simple classroom writing center would be to get a file box (Amazon Link). Take out all but 3 of the hanging file folders. Put lined paper in one, blank paper in the next, and “special” paper in the third! Easy-Peasy!

Super Simple Classroom Writing Center Set Up

This one could require some items, but you probably already have some of these in your classroom. You need a small table (Amazon Link) or desk. You also need a way to store paper (like the file box, or some plastic drawers.) Try to clearly label (you can grab some free writing center labels in my free resource library) all of the parts of your writing center (whatever setup you use) so your students know where to find things and put things away.

One way that we made sure our classroom writing center stayed stocked was an easy classroom management tip: On one piece of each type of paper had a sticky note on it. It said, “We are almost out of paper, put this page on Mrs. Gard’s desk.” Then, I would know what we needed more of what kind of paper.

I always had plastic drawers (Amazon Link). These had 3 drawers. I had lined paper in one, blank paper in one, and “Special Paper” in one.

Writing Utensils. You could add markers, colored pencils, special pens…or not. The students should have pencils and crayons that they could use. You could get a special holder for these, or you could use plastic cups, or even covered soup cans (cute, customized, and sustainable!) Put the drawers or paper holder on the table, put paper in the drawers, put the writing utensils on the table next to the paper holder, and voila! Writing center. The students get what they want/need and take it back to their seats or a special spot in the room.

Simple Classroom Writing Center Set-Up

So, for this setup, you will be adding in a bit more. For this setup, I used the pieces from the last setup and added a set of rainbow drawers (Affiliate Link). You have more space, so you have more options. You can fill all of the rainbow drawers with different types of “special paper”, you could do some paper and some with other writing materials such as magazines to cut pictures out of, tape, staplers, sticky notes, ect.

One of the nice things about the rainbow drawers is that your students can pull them out and move them. You could make each drawer a different type of writing activity that the students can pull out and use. You could have a comic-making center, a handwriting practice center, a writing prompt center, and a friendly letter and envelope center.

You could have each drawer be a different genre. Have an informative writing center with anchor charts of informative writing and graphic organizers for writing an informative piece. There really are a lot of different ways that you could organize this little writing center.

The top of the rainbow drawers could be containers of writing implements in cups or caddies. It could be a special box where students could “share” their writing. They could put their “Published” pieces in here if they take their writing through the whole writing process. You could have writing anchor charts, drawing books, and other writing helpers.

If You WANT to be a “Little Extra…”

You could have a special place in the classroom where the students go to write. You would need space, some tables, or other seating options (Amazon affiliate link). You would have the same basic setup as above, but it would take up more space because your students would go there to do their writing.

You could get this super fun caddy (Amazon affiliate link). The different sections can be removed, so your students could take a piece to their writing spot. You could assign a color to each of your tables, you could have different things in each section: pens, markers, colored pencils, stickers, ect.

Here is a list of fun “extras” to put your writing center over the top:

1. Tablecloth for the table.
2. Gel Pens
3. Highlighter markers
4. Staplers
5. Tape (washi and Scotch)
6. Stickers
7. Stampers
8. Stencils
9. Colored Masking Tape
10. Drawing books or directed drawing pages
11. “Space Men”
12. Story Dice or Magnetic Poetry
13. Fancy Scissors
14. Envelopes

You can find examples of all of these ideas in my Amazon Storefront! Yup, it’s an affiliate link. Go and check it out for ideas! I always asked parents for donations and usually got at least a few items for my classroom writing center.

The more you put into your writing center the more instruction you will need to make sure your students are using it correctly. I suggest that you start small, and add to it as you go. If there is a problem, close it up for a day or two, then try again after going over the rules and procedures for your classroom writing center.

What is “Special Paper”?

I wanted to keep my classroom writing center fun and engaging, so each month I would try to change up the paper in the bottom drawer. You could do coloring pages, construction paper, extra or mistake copies. You could put mini-books, comic strip writing paper, or fancy stationary paper. You could add “Social Media” templates. If you are looking to jazz up your writing center (Simple or Extra) I have some super fun “Special Paper”! You can check these out by clicking the pictures here:

You can find some FREE “special paper” in my Free Resource Library! Sign up for my e-mail list to get tips, teachery ideas, and access to my Free Resource Library. Hit the button below to sign up and get your freebies!

Thanks so much for stopping by! I hope that you found some inspiration for your classroom writing center. Pin the image below to keep all of these ideas safe or for future use!

Happy Teaching and Learning,