Why does the physical design of classrooms matter? Mark Phillips discusses this question in " A Place for Learning: The Physical Environment of Classrooms" and offers examples of and resources for turning impersonal spaces into student-friendly havens of learning.
Seating arrangement of desks in a classroom can have a big impact on the environment and student behavior. Here is one seating arrangement idea that works great for group learning and instructional time.
I looked out at my room the other day - the same room I started to teach Japanese in when it was a new school in in 1997. The blackboard is now a whiteboard, the screen is there for my computer...and wow - is that the same old TV in the corner for video announcements?
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At my design consultancy, TheThirdTeacher+, we believe that, whether it is a large-scale transformation or a small-scale hack, redesigning your classroom is a fun and empowering adventure. When you involve your students, colleagues and community, you can create a powerful conversation about the role of the environment in the student learning experience.
Editor's Note: Author David Bill is a designer and educator who consulted with The Third Teacher+ on the Remake Your Class project highlighted in the videos below. The tips in this post go along with the companion video. We are excited by the simplicity (and low price tag!) of this great redesign.
What’s the secret to avoiding art messes? How can you make your room orderly without emptying out Office Depot? Here are 100 teacher tips for creating a beautiful, organized, and efficient environment, from no-mess glitter shakers to one-minute dance party transitions. What could be better?
"The classroom environment can work for us or against us, which is why it is first, last, and always among pedagogical concerns." -- John Carroll Does your classroom mirror the rectilinear seating arrangement popular in Sumerian classrooms, circa 2000 BCE? What other options are there? And what does the research on learning spaces tell us?
Veronica Lopez Here to help you save time, gain praise, and reduce stress. There are many elements to consider as you plan for the next school year. You always review critical pieces like standards, curriculum, instructional activities, and testing, but you also think about the classroom space and how to arrange desks, set up bulletin boards, and organize materials.
"The classroom environment can work for us or against us, which is why it is first, last, and always among pedagogical concerns." -- John Carroll Does your classroom mirror the rectilinear seating arrangement popular in Sumerian classrooms, circa 2000 BCE? What other options are there? And what does the research on learning spaces tell us?
I was supervising a teacher who was enrolled in our program at the University of Massachusetts Amherst that focused on developing student self-knowledge, ego strength, trust and community in classrooms. We had created a manual with over 50 classroom lessons. She was teaching at a high school in an economically depressed district in northern Appalachia.
It started as an effort to shine a spotlight on creative schools and teaching practices all over the country and became the inspiration for a new school. Three teachers, Michelle Healy, Brooke Peters and Todd Sutler, started out on a year-long journey they called The Odyssey Initiative to visit a list of schools they'd put together based on recommendations from education professors, journalists, and other teachers.
Editor's Note: Author David Bill is a designer and educator who consulted with The Third Teacher+ on the Remake Your Class project highlighted in the videos below. The tips in this post go along with the companion video. We are excited by the simplicity (and low price tag!) of this great redesign.
A concept originally used in business is being introduced at more schools, including two in North County. Vista Innovation and Design Academy in Vista and Design 39 in the Poway Unified School District will focus on the process known as design thinking when they open this week.
About 200 schools across the country have received a Target Library Makeover since 2007 and, judging by the photos available online, the libraries all look similar to the one at my school. Like those other libraries, The Story of Wal-Mart, The Story of Starbucks, and The Story of McDonald's are shelved with the nonfiction as part of the donated corporate-themed Built for Success series for children.
This series of three videos shows how designers and community volunteers helped a teacher at Roosevelt Middle School in San Francisco transform his crowded classroom into a space that fosters collaboration, creativity, and active student learning. Special Thanks The Remake Your Class project would not have been possible without the generous support and participation of the following organizations and volunteers.
By Therese Jilek As the school year begins, most classrooms across the country will mirror traditional class design: rows of desks with passive children sitting quietly listening to a teacher in the front of the class. But not at Hartland-Lakeside. Across the Hartland-Lakeside school district in Hartland, Wisconsin, teachers have transformed their Industrial Age classrooms into innovative, state-of-the-art learning spaces.
Bright Ideas Blog Hop Welcome to the Bright Ideas Blog Hop! I'm teaming up with the bloggers at the bottom of this post to share bright ideas for the classroom. My teaching tip is super simple, but sometimes the simplest ideas make the best solutions! Who likes to sit in a hard chair all day?
A look into the BCA classroom designed by industry-leading architects along with experienced educators.
School leaders implement new technology initiatives and update teaching and learning goals regularly, but sometimes, the actual physical learning spaces in districts are overlooked. Today, more and more research points to the increased student achievement and engagement resulting from redesigning learning spaces to be more flexible and collaborative.
It started as an effort to shine a spotlight on creative schools and teaching practices all over the country and became the inspiration for a new school. Three teachers, Michelle Healy, Brooke Peters and Todd Sutler, started out on a year-long journey they called The Odyssey Initiative to visit a list of schools they'd put together based on recommendations from education professors, journalists, and other teachers.
When I was a charter school principal, I had an old building in which I selected a room to be a science lab. I mistakenly thought a room was a room, but thank goodness the science teacher knew what she was doing.
Late in 2012, I wrote a blog for the Huffington Post that articulated what I really feel should be and is a role of great teachers. Great teachers are "learning designers" who seek to create a space where all students are empowered to learn.
What happens to school libraries when students find it more natural to turn to a computer screen than a book? That is the question facing schools around the world as they struggle to keep up with the digital revolution while fostering a love of literature.
Take a seat. Please sit down. As students we hear these commands countless times throughout our days at school. Having people sit down has become such a simple and ubiquitous method of maintaining organization in classroom and workplace settings---it’s become part of society in such a way that we don’t even need to think about it anymor
