A place for Learning: The physical environment for the students

Welcome back from your Christmas holidays! In this article I will be talking about classroom environment. In my previous articles, I have always stressed the importance of the environment for learning.

I always think as a teacher that the classroom should be based on the needs of the students. I always set-up my classroom after meeting my students and knowing what they actually need help with most.

Classroom environment is the first teacher, it encompasses a broad range of educational concepts, including the physical setting, the psychological environment created through social contexts, numerous instructional components related to teacher characteristics and behaviors.

Then it’s a whole sketch in my mind grouping students with learning areas. My learning areas also include the activities that provide more differentiation within the whole group of students.

Classroom environment is based on quality and not quantity, as teachers we have this mindset about having loads of resources in the classroom, because it looks very presentable. But do we know the purpose of each item we have in our classroom? The answer is mostly “NO”

Your classroom is “HOME AWAY FROM HOME” for you and your students. Make it attractive and functional. Consider grade/age level appropriateness, the type of classroom activities you will be implementing, and your particular style. For example, consider the various areas of the classroom and design those areas for use with a variety of activities.

The physical aspects of your room include room arrangement, seating, bulletin boards and black/white board displays and physical climate. Each of these should be carefully considered with both individual student’s needs and instructional goal in mind.

While you consider how to arrange your classroom, several things are important to remember. Make sure the room has only the amount of furniture that is functional and does not contain useless or non-essential furnishings.

My next article will focus more on classroom design strategies that motivate students. See you until next time.