Classroom Environment Plan
A classroom is more than just a physical space filled with books, chairs, and desks. It exists for a greater purpose than housing students and a teacher. A classroom is an environment that has the possibility of encouraging academic success and personal growth, of creating future generations of learners, thinkers, and leaders. I plan to create the kind of classroom environment that promotes thinking, sharing, and life-long learning. My classroom will be a culturally responsive classroom, an environment based on relationships. I will build an environment of questioning, creativity, and supportive community by example and through behavioral expectations, classroom procedures, an organized physical space, and creating a culture of learning through positive expectations and with the use of technology.
Behavioral Expectations
A respectful classroom environment begins with the teacher, but is created in a cooperative relationship with students. This begins on the first day of class when students are greeted at the door, and together the students and teacher create a social contract for the year. The idea for creating a social contract and greeting students at the door comes from The Flippen Group, and is a part of the Capturing Kids’ Hearts program. Creating a social contract with students shows them that they are equal partners whose needs are valued in the classroom. A social contract shows that as members of the same community all will be expected to behave in a manner that benefits the greater good of the class. Beyond the social contract, there is only one rule necessary for the successful operation of the class: Respect the teacher’s right to teach and each student’s right to learn. This rule tells students that the focus of the class is not rules but learning, and the only thing they can do wrong in the classroom is to disrupt the teaching and learning process.
Classroom Procedures
Once the rule is understood by students, procedures and routines for the classroom must be clearly established. I plan to have one place to turn in work, pick up work, and find work missed when students are absent. Every routine in place means there is one less decision for either the teacher or the student to make; this, in turn, leaves more time and energy for learning. Another tool for creating helpful routines in the classroom is to have student helpers. After getting to know my students I plan to have revolving positions for attendance takers, paperwork distributers, and student helpers for absent students. Allowing the students to play an active role in class procedures helps enable them to be responsible members of the classroom community who help not only the teacher, but one another. Having student helper roles either helps build on already present strengths in students or helps build valuable new ones.
Opening activities are another important piece of classroom procedures that communicate class time as learning time. Along with weekly and daily schedules posted on the board, I plan to have opening activities displayed at the beginning of each class. In The First Days of School, Wong and Wong (2009) state, “Your very first priority when the class starts is to get the students to work”(123). By ensuring students know what lies ahead academically I can remove uncertainty when they enter the classroom, and by displaying an opening activity at the beginning of the hour, whether it be a journal prompt, a grammar exercise, or an admit slip, I am implicitly stating that learning begins when you walk through the door. My late work, hall pass, and tardy policies will comply with the school-wide policies in my building. By following school-wide policies I will communicate to students that the school administrators and I are on the same team, and this too will eliminate the need to make decisions that take away from my energy to educate.
Physical Space
The organization of the physical space within a classroom is one of the first ways students draw conclusions about their teacher. Weinstein and Weber (2011) note, “…the physical design of the classroom also affects the atmosphere of the classroom”(p. 222). It is important to balance displays on the wall with clean space, to have plants, to have ideas and images that speak to the content area, and to arrange seats in ways that work with, rather than against, the goals of instruction. I plan to use color in a calming way, to maintain a clean classroom, and to have plants in the room because I enjoy caring for living things and helping them flourish. I want to share my love for living things with my students and demonstrate the joy that comes from helping something reach its fullest potential. I plan to leave space on my walls for student work, because my walls will be one of the first places their work can be published. I also prefer having a changing seating arrangement based on the focus of a unit or lesson, but the majority of time I will use a horseshoe arraignment that encourages group and pair work, but also ensures face-to-face interaction during instruction time. Weinstein and Weber (2011) emphasize that the amenities in a classroom “…communicate the message that you care enough about students to make the space appealing and comfortable”(p.222) and that’s exactly what I hope to do.
Positive Expectations
From personal experience, I know the difference positive expectations make. When a teacher knows my name, is interested in my opinions, and implicitly or explicitly tells me they expect quality, thoughtful work from me that is what they get. Most secondary students are not yet aware of their motivations, yet they respond from expectations none-the-less. McConnell and Elliot (2003), as quoted in Miller and Pedro’s (2006) article, Creating Respectful Classroom Environments, affirm, “There is a positive relationship between teacher expectation and student achievement, and teachers must be mindful that all students are entitled to their help, attention and feedback.” Knowing that my expectations alone have such power, I have added impetus to explicitly state my high expectations in behavior, respectful peer relationships, and academic achievement to all my students.
Technology
Knowing that young people are tech-savvy and internet literate, I believe using technology in the classroom is one of the best tools I have to engage my students. Rozema and Webb (2008) point out, “…the Web has given us a new set of tools for teaching literature, including digital archives, electronic discussions, blogs, podcasts, virtual realities, and more”(p. xii), and “…a 2005 survey conducted by the Pew Internet and American Life Project” shows that “87 percent of American teenagers ages twelve to seventeen use the Internet”(p. xx). These tools and these percentages are surely increasing daily; therefore it is imperative to build a classroom environment around and through the use of technology.
Without question I will use a coursesite or moodle to organize projects and materials for my classes. Having a coursesite will allow me and my students to access all necessary resources in one space, whether at school, home, or somewhere in-between. A coursesite also allows open access to parents and administrators, so there are no questions about the content or activities in my course. On my coursesite I will not only have my course expectations, classroom procedures, announcements, and documents, but links to class blogs, wikis, and other Web 2.0 resources. I hope for my coursesite to be like a second, portable classroom so class content is only a click away.
An environment plan is a fluid idea that can and should change with the latest research and through experience. Though I expect my classroom environment plan to change as I grow as a teacher, I expect certain tenants to remain intact. Holding high, positive expectations for my students will remain a hallmark of my teaching. Creating an atmosphere that is clean, organized, and welcoming will be a daily project for me and for my students. Treating my students with respect and demonstrating my deep care in their well-being, academic success, and growth as human beings will be a part of everything I do in the classroom, and I hope my leadership through example will influence my students in class and in life.
Resources
Wong, H. K., & Wong, R. T. (2009). The first days of school: How to be an effective teacher (4th ed., p. 123). Mountain View, CA: Harry K. Wong Publications, Inc.
Cooper, J. M., TenBrink, T. D., Morine-Dershimer, G., Shostak, R., Sadker, M., Sadker, D.,… Leighton, M.S. (Eds.). (2011). Classroom teaching skills (Ninth ed., p. 222). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.
Miller, R., & Pedro, J. (2006, April). Creating Respectful Classroom Environments. Early Childhood Education Journal, 33(5), 293-299. doi:10.1007/s10643-006-0091-1
Rozema, R., & Webb, A. (2008). Literature and the web: Reading and responding with new technologies (pp. xii-xx). Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
Behavioral Expectations
A respectful classroom environment begins with the teacher, but is created in a cooperative relationship with students. This begins on the first day of class when students are greeted at the door, and together the students and teacher create a social contract for the year. The idea for creating a social contract and greeting students at the door comes from The Flippen Group, and is a part of the Capturing Kids’ Hearts program. Creating a social contract with students shows them that they are equal partners whose needs are valued in the classroom. A social contract shows that as members of the same community all will be expected to behave in a manner that benefits the greater good of the class. Beyond the social contract, there is only one rule necessary for the successful operation of the class: Respect the teacher’s right to teach and each student’s right to learn. This rule tells students that the focus of the class is not rules but learning, and the only thing they can do wrong in the classroom is to disrupt the teaching and learning process.
Classroom Procedures
Once the rule is understood by students, procedures and routines for the classroom must be clearly established. I plan to have one place to turn in work, pick up work, and find work missed when students are absent. Every routine in place means there is one less decision for either the teacher or the student to make; this, in turn, leaves more time and energy for learning. Another tool for creating helpful routines in the classroom is to have student helpers. After getting to know my students I plan to have revolving positions for attendance takers, paperwork distributers, and student helpers for absent students. Allowing the students to play an active role in class procedures helps enable them to be responsible members of the classroom community who help not only the teacher, but one another. Having student helper roles either helps build on already present strengths in students or helps build valuable new ones.
Opening activities are another important piece of classroom procedures that communicate class time as learning time. Along with weekly and daily schedules posted on the board, I plan to have opening activities displayed at the beginning of each class. In The First Days of School, Wong and Wong (2009) state, “Your very first priority when the class starts is to get the students to work”(123). By ensuring students know what lies ahead academically I can remove uncertainty when they enter the classroom, and by displaying an opening activity at the beginning of the hour, whether it be a journal prompt, a grammar exercise, or an admit slip, I am implicitly stating that learning begins when you walk through the door. My late work, hall pass, and tardy policies will comply with the school-wide policies in my building. By following school-wide policies I will communicate to students that the school administrators and I are on the same team, and this too will eliminate the need to make decisions that take away from my energy to educate.
Physical Space
The organization of the physical space within a classroom is one of the first ways students draw conclusions about their teacher. Weinstein and Weber (2011) note, “…the physical design of the classroom also affects the atmosphere of the classroom”(p. 222). It is important to balance displays on the wall with clean space, to have plants, to have ideas and images that speak to the content area, and to arrange seats in ways that work with, rather than against, the goals of instruction. I plan to use color in a calming way, to maintain a clean classroom, and to have plants in the room because I enjoy caring for living things and helping them flourish. I want to share my love for living things with my students and demonstrate the joy that comes from helping something reach its fullest potential. I plan to leave space on my walls for student work, because my walls will be one of the first places their work can be published. I also prefer having a changing seating arrangement based on the focus of a unit or lesson, but the majority of time I will use a horseshoe arraignment that encourages group and pair work, but also ensures face-to-face interaction during instruction time. Weinstein and Weber (2011) emphasize that the amenities in a classroom “…communicate the message that you care enough about students to make the space appealing and comfortable”(p.222) and that’s exactly what I hope to do.
Positive Expectations
From personal experience, I know the difference positive expectations make. When a teacher knows my name, is interested in my opinions, and implicitly or explicitly tells me they expect quality, thoughtful work from me that is what they get. Most secondary students are not yet aware of their motivations, yet they respond from expectations none-the-less. McConnell and Elliot (2003), as quoted in Miller and Pedro’s (2006) article, Creating Respectful Classroom Environments, affirm, “There is a positive relationship between teacher expectation and student achievement, and teachers must be mindful that all students are entitled to their help, attention and feedback.” Knowing that my expectations alone have such power, I have added impetus to explicitly state my high expectations in behavior, respectful peer relationships, and academic achievement to all my students.
Technology
Knowing that young people are tech-savvy and internet literate, I believe using technology in the classroom is one of the best tools I have to engage my students. Rozema and Webb (2008) point out, “…the Web has given us a new set of tools for teaching literature, including digital archives, electronic discussions, blogs, podcasts, virtual realities, and more”(p. xii), and “…a 2005 survey conducted by the Pew Internet and American Life Project” shows that “87 percent of American teenagers ages twelve to seventeen use the Internet”(p. xx). These tools and these percentages are surely increasing daily; therefore it is imperative to build a classroom environment around and through the use of technology.
Without question I will use a coursesite or moodle to organize projects and materials for my classes. Having a coursesite will allow me and my students to access all necessary resources in one space, whether at school, home, or somewhere in-between. A coursesite also allows open access to parents and administrators, so there are no questions about the content or activities in my course. On my coursesite I will not only have my course expectations, classroom procedures, announcements, and documents, but links to class blogs, wikis, and other Web 2.0 resources. I hope for my coursesite to be like a second, portable classroom so class content is only a click away.
An environment plan is a fluid idea that can and should change with the latest research and through experience. Though I expect my classroom environment plan to change as I grow as a teacher, I expect certain tenants to remain intact. Holding high, positive expectations for my students will remain a hallmark of my teaching. Creating an atmosphere that is clean, organized, and welcoming will be a daily project for me and for my students. Treating my students with respect and demonstrating my deep care in their well-being, academic success, and growth as human beings will be a part of everything I do in the classroom, and I hope my leadership through example will influence my students in class and in life.
Resources
Wong, H. K., & Wong, R. T. (2009). The first days of school: How to be an effective teacher (4th ed., p. 123). Mountain View, CA: Harry K. Wong Publications, Inc.
Cooper, J. M., TenBrink, T. D., Morine-Dershimer, G., Shostak, R., Sadker, M., Sadker, D.,… Leighton, M.S. (Eds.). (2011). Classroom teaching skills (Ninth ed., p. 222). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.
Miller, R., & Pedro, J. (2006, April). Creating Respectful Classroom Environments. Early Childhood Education Journal, 33(5), 293-299. doi:10.1007/s10643-006-0091-1
Rozema, R., & Webb, A. (2008). Literature and the web: Reading and responding with new technologies (pp. xii-xx). Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.