Classroom Environment

The classroom needs to have both physical and affective attributes. The classroom environment needs to be set day one. The students need that comfort zone set in place early. There needs to be a clear line of communication between the teacher to student, student to student and student to teacher.  There is a huge difference between the three

Teacher to Student

• Teacher respects students readiness to learn
• Teacher understands student and students needs
• Teacher appropriately plans for individual students

Student to Student

• Feel safe learning differently
• Feeling safe to ask questions and not have to be "judged"
• Respect each others property
• Importance of finding friends 

Student to Teacher

• Knowing when to go to the teacher for extra help
• Feeling safe to come to school
• Willing to help each other out in learning 

The classroom environment is the beginning to a successful learning style, the people make up part of that but the classroom itself plays a role as well. What is put on the walls, bulletin boards, the way the positive and negative rewards are put in place all needs to be established to make the environment of the classroom be successful. 

The way I want my classroom environment to be is that everyone RESPECTS everyone in all aspects, learning, playing games, lining up to go to lunch, walking in the hall to go to P.E. and all parts of the day. I have seen the importance of a good classroom environment, while I was at field I had the opportunity to witness how different styles work for some teachers and some students. During center time the class spread out their desks any where in the classroom but could not be touching another students desk and they do their work. The teacher said that this is the only year she has done this in her 10 years of teaching. 

I also have had the chance to see where certain aspects of the "classroom environment" needed to be improved to help students learning. I have also learned that what is one the walls the students only notice if they see it being put up. So involve the students to make the environment work for all. 

Teacher Responds

Invitation

• Respect for you and who you can be come
• Want to get to know you
• Unique and valuable
• Time for you
• We need you here

Opportunity 

• Important things for you to do
• Things are important and open new doors for you to continue to learn 
• Specific role that make you effective

Investment

• I will work to help work for you
• I love to find new paths for my students
• Partner in growth
• Help you help yourself to get to the top

Persistence

• Your growing in learning but not finished yet
• Lets find more then one way to get to the end
• Support is what you will find here
• No end in learning

Reflection

• I watch and listen to you carefully
• I will help you learn to the best of your ability 
• I will ask questions always to make sure your on board

The Student Seeks

Affirmation

• Accepted and acceptable here
• Safe here as I am 
• People listen to me
• People care how I am doing
• Interestes are acknowledged and acted on
• People believe in me 

Contribution 

• I make a difference in this place
• My perspectives are unique
• Help others and the class succeed
• Connections with others through goals 

Power 

• What I learn is useful
• My choices contribute to my success
• I know what is expected of me
• I am dependable 

Purpose

• I understand what I do and why
• I see the importance

Challenge

• I am able to do the work
• The work tests me
• I work hard
• I can accomplish things I didn't know I could 

I think that if teachers we remember that the student needs each of these 5 elements but acknowledge that each section has subsections as well and they are also important.  I really like that they are all I CAN or I WILL or I SEE statements that makes it really personal and realistic for students of all ages to grasp and really and truly understand. I really liked this section of the reading and I hope that I can be the teacher that can give my students academically what they are seeking. 

COGS

  Students Seek

• Challenge
• Affirmation
• Contribution
• Power
• Purpose

  Teacher Responds 

• Investment
• Persistence
• Opportunity
• Reflection
• Invitation

   Curriculum and Instruction 

   are the Vehicle

• Important 
• Scaffold
• Demanding
• Engaging 
• Focused 

Just like any cog in any machine if all the pieces are not working together something will fail or break. Each part of all three cogs are extremely important and are what makes that connecting link so strong. If the teacher and the student are not on the same page space will come between the cogs and stop working. I have seen this in the classroom where the students "cog" has stopped going the same speed as the teacher and eventually the student steps back and the teacher is still going with the curriculum and instruction and the student has no idea what is going on. I like the idea of how each section on the cog has its own individual importance but they will are a killing when used all together. 

In respons to learners

As teachers we can differentiate by responding to a students interest, learning profile or readiness.  We can do this by tiering.

Interest
     

Learning profile

Readiness 

Interest- is a feeling of wanting to learn more about something

Learning Profile- is the way the student learns best 

Readiness- is the students feeling ready to move on and understanding the material

I think as teachers if we can help all of our students feel that readiness in every subject and to feel that they are a master of some sort they will have more self-confidence and they are more likely to succeed in the atmosphere of learning.  I think these three steps seem so simple and yet so important. 

All about ABC's

A Anchor to any learning unit

B Books books books 

C Centers are extremely important and helpful

D Different leaners have different levels but the same needs to learn 

E Exploration in different books to find new words 

F "Free time" for the teacher to have one on one instructional time with individual students 

G Group 1 (lower readiness) Group 2 (higher readiness) Group 3 (highest readiness) 

H Have appropriate time for centers and each student

I Increase students knowledge about each letter 

J Jump in don't be afraid to start exploring 

K Kinesthetic, auditory, visual learners 

L Level 1 and Level 2 

M Materials must be changed often 

N Next step is what is in sight 

O Opening exercises to get students excited  

P Peer, teacher feed back is so important to help get students to that next step

Q Questions to look for or ask 

R Riddles, songs, games 

S Size of the group can be single, paired, or whole class 

T Teach the students to be teachers and let them make a center and teach it to the class

U Unit focuses on each section in the alphabet 

V Vowels and Consonants 

W Writing sentences, writing each letter

X Make the centers eXciting 

Y Young or old the alphabet is important to learn and understand 

Z Zero students should be left out

This section of the reading was really interesting I think that the ABC's centers are so important and how that they can be used for the most basic from learning the sounds, writing to more complex and making sentences and then even more making sense of the correct meanings. With this I really liked that the levels should be there but not leveled and that students can be moving in and out of levels constantly so they are continually learning and improving their knowledge. I also really like that there were a ton of ideas on how each level can be intertwined to get students up and above their previous levels. I also really like how there was focus on feedback on this learning. 

Different Learners Different Lessons

    Putting all students in a one time curriculum to not leave students behind is not what is really going on in the classrooms. All students are on different levels and so in the classroom there should be different levels and lessons for each child. Each child should be in competition with themselves to make more of an effort to continue to learn and to push themselves.  Each child should be able to get a years worth of learning within the school year.
     The curriculum is like a "road map"  each student is their own "road" and they should connect, intersect, and ride along the curriculum so the students get a section of the curriculum in each lesson.
     As long as the child comes away from each lesson learning one section from the lesson being taught the teacher has done their job. As teachers it is our responsibility to learn new ways to teach the information so the students can get the full experience in the lesson.
   I think that this an amazing article and if I as a teacher can get the students excited about the lesson and to teach the information. I am excited to get to learn different ways to teach different lessons so that all the students I have in my classroom.