Learning Environment Plan
An important factor in any classroom is the environment. If students do not feel comfortable and respected in their environment, they will be less likely to participate in class and lose out on the engaging community a classroom can offer. This page offers a vision for creating a positive learning environment for everyone. Check it out!
Classroom Management
The way a teacher fosters positive and productive behavior in a classroom has a huge impact on the learning environment. Take a look at some of the strategies I intend to employ as a teacher.
#1 Attendance
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Instead of wasting class time with calling off every student's name, in my classroom each student will have a laminated piece of construction paper with their name on it. This "name tag" will be attached to a magnet. Every day when students enter class there will be a question on the board, with several options for answers. In order for me to record students as present for the day, they must place their name tag under the option they think is correct. After all of the students have voted, I will know who is absent by the names left remaining in their original position on the board. This adds fun to start of class and allows for us to make the most of every minute, as the question will be related to the content we are learning for the day!
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#3 Beginning Class
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In order to encourage a comfortable environment for my students, every day when students walk into my class there will be some type of music playing quietly that fits the mood of the day. After students walk in and set their backpacks at their desks, they will first place their name tag under the correct option on the board. After doing this, they will have five minutes of free time to do any of the following:
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- turn in your assignment (required)
- use the bathroom
- ask me questions
- finish homework
- respond to the "Journal Jot"
- read a book
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My rationale for this free time is that because students have so many classes to keep track of and tasks to complete during the school day, I want to give them some time to socialize, take care of bodily needs, and interact with me before we start class. This will allow students to release some of their pent-up energy, which will help students better focus on the lesson at hand for the day.
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#5 Absences
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In order for everyone to be on the same page, when students are absent they need to have a procedure to follow to get caught up. If students are absent in my class, they will follow this procedure:
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- Check the hanging pocket folders in the back of the room for the day you were absent.
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- Read the bulleted list of important tasks the class completed and collect any handouts.
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- Review the assignment (if any) and collect any handouts.
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- Complete the assignment within 2 class periods of your absence.
- If you have questions, then come ask me.
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#2 Assigned Seating
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When students first enter a class, they are often nervous because the environment is foreign. Therefore, in my class, I want students to feel welcome right away--something I can accomplish through assigned seating. On the first day of class, students will spend the majority of the hour sitting on the floor in our gathering space (see Environment Map). One of the many tasks we will complete on this first day is take an appropriate selfie that will be displayed on the classroom seating chart as well as on our classroom walls.
I will use these selfies to create a seating chart by the next class period: I will print off each picture and attach velcro to the back. I will then have a poster board of the seating arrangement with spots to attach my velcro pictures. This flexible adhesive will allow me to change up the chart as often as I see fit. The picture cards will make the students feel more at home because the picture is one they took of themselves and they know each picture is important enough to display on the walls to show our classroom community.
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#4 Distribution/Collection Process
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At the beginning of class, students will be expected to turn in their assignments. For each period, I will have a wire basket labeled with the period number. In order to maintain anonymity, students will turn their assignment over and place it in the correct period basket. Students are expected to turn in their assignments within the first five free minutes of class to ensure that the assignment is in on time.
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Distribution of materials will vary upon the material. As mentioned in my Environment Plan, students will have group student bins that contain their classroom supply materials such as pencils, pens, scissors, construction paper, etc. At the beginning of class and during work time, students can grab something from their space since I do not want their movement to distract from a lesson that I may be directly teaching to the class.
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As far as materials I need to distribute to the class, I will already have everything prepped and placed in one of the drawers of their student bins prior to class. Students will only grab from this drawer once I have instructed them to do so. This will prevent us from eating time passing out the required materials for the lesson.
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#6 Bathroom Privileges
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The inevitable question every teacher must face is, "Can I go to the bathroom?" No matter how we try to stifle this bodily need, teachers need to have a procedure for answering the question when it arises. In my classroom, my hope is that this question will arise less often because students have the chance to go to the bathroom at the beginning of class.
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Students will be allowed to go to the bathroom anytime we are doing group work or have individual work time, since I plan on incorporating one or both of these in every lesson. One student of each gender will be allowed to go to the bathroom at one time. To indicate that they are using the bathroom, students will move their name tag from the position at the front of the board to the "bathroom board." Students can then use the bathroom and are expected to return within a reasonable amount of time.
If a student is gone for an inappropriate amount of time, I will send another student to the bathroom (of the same gender) to check on him or her and this student will report back to me. I will respond to the situation according to the specifics of the particular bathroom behavior.
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