Bring the Light to Your Classroom With These 12 Sunshine Classroom Theme Ideas

Are you ready to start prepping for next year’s classroom? Bring a little sunshine to your students’ daily lives (and yours too!) with a sunshine classroom theme. Bright colors and positive vibes are contagious! So check out these ideas for some decorating inspiration to brighten the day.

(Just a heads up, WeAreTeachers may collect a share of sales from the links on this page. We only recommend items our team loves!)

1. Welcome your students with rainbows

Welcome your students into the classroom with this colorful and inspirational bulletin board. Try a simple, affordable tablecloth as a backdrop for your bulletin board since the color will last and not fade.

Buy it: Welcome Bulletin Board Set at Oriental Trading; Sunshine Bulletin Board Set at Really Good Stuff

2. Make student birthdays a little brighter

Bring a little sunshine to your students’ birthdays with a colorful rainbow-themed bulletin board.

Buy it: Sunshine Birthday Bulletin Board Set at Oriental Trading; Sunshine Birthday Bulletin Board Set at Michaels

Image: Kindergarten Korner

3. Illuminate your ceiling

After the rain stops, out comes the sun! Illuminate your ceiling and wall decor with a little bit of sunshine. First create cloud and sun tissue balls to hang from the ceiling. Then add colorful hanging umbrellas with paper raindrops.

Buy it: Sunshine and Clouds Tissue Balls at Oriental Trading

Image: Education to the Core/Pinterest

4. Hang sunny student artwork

For this student sunshine craft, have students trace their hands and cut them out. Then attach the cutouts to paper plates. Finally, add googly eyes and paper sunglasses. Need another quick 3D option? Use inflatable sunshine mini beach balls.

Buy it: Inflatable 5” Sunshine Mini Beach Balls at Oriental Trading

Image: DLTK

5. Bring rays of light to nameplates

These Hello Sunshine nameplates are a perfect way to brighten any early childhood classroom.

Buy it: Hello Sunshine Nameplates at Amazon

Image: Carson Dellosa

6. Use bright colors for your alphabet line

Incorporate a sunshine classroom theme into your alphabet line with bold and bright colors.

Buy it: Schoolgirl Style Alphabet Cards at Amazon

Image: Kindergarten Korner

7. Create a sunny classroom library

Upgrade your classroom library bins with budget-friendly finds that complement your sunshine classroom theme.

Buy it: Storex Large Plastic Book Bin at Walmart

Image: Achieve the Core

8. Design a light and bright reading nook

If possible, situate your classroom reading nook near windows for plenty of natural reading light. Then add storage containers in bold and bright colors. Finally, add colorful cushions for relaxing in the sun with a good book.

Buy it: Storex Large Plastic Book Bins – Assorted Colors at Walmart

Image: KinderCraze

9. DIY these colorful cubbies

You don’t need to break the bank to have coordinating cubbies in your sunshine-theme classroom—you can DIY with colorful milk crates.

Buy it: Storex Plastic File Crate at Walmart

Image: The Coffee Crafted Teacher

10. Add a pop of color with a classroom rug

Brighten the mood and your room with a new classroom rug in a sunny color like yellow or orange.

Buy it: Woven Yellow Area Rug at Walmart

Image: Schoolgirl Style

11. Include bright-colored flexible seating

Lighten the mood with colorful flexible seating options that coordinate with your sunshine classroom theme.

Buy it: You Are My Sunshine Decorative Pillow at Walmart; Pillow Cushions – 4-Pack at Amazon

Image: Edutopia

12. End the year with a bang

When it’s time to say goodbye, this bright-colored interactive rainbow bulletin board lets students pop a balloon to celebrate the start of summer vacation.

Buy it: Bulletin Board Borders at Amazon

Image source: Carson Dellosa

Do you have more sunshine classroom theme ideas? We’d love to hear about them in our WeAreTeachers HELPLINE group on Facebook.

Plus, check out our favorite ideas for an emoji classroom theme  and a donut classroom theme.