Managing a classroom is like being a captain of a ship. Like the wind, each day in the classroom can be unpredictable. A PowerPoint presentation could refuse to load, or a student forgets to charge their Chromebook or device and is unable to complete an assignment. Many distractions and interruptions can occur but my job as captain of my ship is to make sure we make it to our final destination. In regular terms, my job as a teacher is to make sure that my classroom runs smoothly, which means accounting for any disruptions and anticipating student needs so they do not miss out on any important instructional time. It is important for me as a teacher to be approachable and understanding to my students.
I plan to provide regular check-ins where students can answer general questions about their feelings towards school and what I as their teacher can do to help. This will be unrelated to class content but relevant to a sympathetic classroom environment. Each student has their own life and extenuating circumstances that might become evident in the classroom. Marzano et al. (2003) confirmed that between 12 and 22%of students are dealing with mental health issues that sometimes go untreated. With this in mind, I plan to be respectful and understanding of all students and their “bad days.” This allows me to build a relationship with my students and become approachable.
An important part of being approachable to students is having my teacher’s desk where everyone can see me, and I can see them. If students have questions during classroom activities, I will encourage them to approach me at my desk or even wave me over. This is important because it ensures that I can maintain the agreed-upon classroom environment (Marzano et al., 2003). If my classroom has desks with separate chairs, that will allow me to put the desks in pairs to allow
for students to work in pairs on certain assignments. This setup will allow students to quickly turn their chairs around to participate in larger group activities (see Figure 1).
Figure 1
Classroom Seating Arrangement: Pairs
Note. A potential set up for a classroom where students sit in pairs with the teachers desk at the front of the room.
I plan to integrate movement into many of my lessons to keep students engaged during class and the arrangement of my classroom will hopefully allow for that necessary movement. The arrangement also allows for individual assignments as there are fewer distractions in their personal space (Himmele & Himmele, 2017). My goal is to provide a space where students are so engrossed in the class content and activities that there is no room for distractions.
References
Himmele, P., & Himmele, W. (2017). Total participation techniques: making every student an active learner (2nd ed.). ASCD
Marzano, R. J., Marzano, J. S., & Pickering, D. J. (2003). Classroom management that works: Research-based strategies for every teacher. Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.
Renard, L. (2019, December 19). 19 classroom seating arrangements fit for your teaching. BookWidgets. Retrieved from https://www.bookwidgets.com/blog/2019/12/19-classroom-seating-arrangements-fit-for-your-teaching