Classroom Space

     Until I started this blog, this class, I never really thought about what my classroom should look like. I certainly didn't think about how it would look in addition to how it would function for a learning environment. Then I start talking with classmates, I start reading Debbie Miller's book: Teaching with Intention and I discover I not only have a lot to learn but I am eager to learn it. Miller has so many things I didn't think about and I'm going to try to touch on as many as possible that relate to my beliefs. I believe that every student can learn.
     A classroom should be set up to have different areas for every student. Even working in Special Education exclusively there can be areas that each student can excel in. Carpet work areas, team areas, soft bean bag chairs, and rocking chairs. There should be music if a student chooses so a place for headphones and selections of music. Technology should be in play so there should be communication aids in terms of visual and talking.  There should be a variety of ways that students can have hands on activities through the course of their learning day.
     When doing some research on classroom environments for this blog and by the suggestion of my teacher I looked up Reggio environments.  I came up with this quote, "The learning environment is itself a teacher. It communicates to children and adults many possibilities and invites multiple responses."  What an amazing thing to think about.  If we think of the environment as an extension of our teaching tools, an extension of our curriculum and an extension of ourselves, then we can come up with the best place ever for students to learn and grow as human beings.  Even at the high school level we can find that students will thrive if their environment is one that they can be creative in.  We should be concise about what we are using in terms of lighting, organizational tools and just about anything else. 
     I believe that students can learn better when they have a relationship with their teachers.  Having the students help in the planning can really help this considerably.  Planning the classroom is important, how it is going to look and what the ideals are but it is important that students know they have say in the process as well. 
    Waldorf education is a completely different aspect and yet has some similarities when looking at how the environment is critical in helping kids to learn and teachers to teach.  The ideas behind this philosophy came in 1919 and was incredibly forward moving.  It had four main parts to it: 1) that the school be open to all children; 2) that it be coeducational; 3) that it be a unified twelve-year school; 4) that the teachers, those individuals actually in contact with the children, have primary control of the school, with minimum interference from the state or from economic sources. While some of these have become more structured over time they stand strong with what I believe in. 
    I'm excited to continue to explore what can be used in my future classroom and how it is going to look.  I'm excited to learned what I have in just a short amount of time.  Now to start accumulating all of those things that will hold over time and won't be superficial and will help make the learning environment exactly what it should be.