WHAT MAKES THE IDEAL CLASSROOM?

BY MIKE SHEPPARD

BELIEVE IT OR NOT, THE SETUP AND ARRANGEMENT OF YOUR CLASSROOM CAN HELP

ENSURE HOW EFFECTIVELY AND EFF IC IENTLY YOUR STUDENTS WORK EACH AND EVERYDAY.

TO EFFECTIVELY ALTER THE DESIGN OF YOUR CLASSROOM, I HAVE PROVIDED E IGHT CORE CATEGORIES THAT YOU SHOULD BE THINKING AND REFINING

FOR THE BETTERMENT OF YOUR CLASS .

THIS TYPE OF LAYOUT CAN HELP YOU OPTIMIZE THE SPACE AND THE

OVERALL LOGISTICS SO THAT YOUR SCHOLARS CAN CONTINUE LEARNING

EACH AND EVERY DAY.

THE E IGHT T IPS FOR THE IDEAL CLASSROOM

TIP 1 : IT ALL STARTS WITH THE TEACHER

ONE THING TO KEEP IN MIND, AN AESTHETICALLY PLEASING CLASSROOM IS BY NO MEANS AN IDEAL CLASSROOM.

FOR A CLASSROOM TO BE EFFECTIVE AND EFF IC IENT IN ITS OPERATIONS, IT

ALL NEEDS TO START WITH THE FOUNDATION, MANAGEMENT, AND

CULTURE OF THE TEACHER.

AS THE TEACHER, YOU NEED TO MAKE SURE YOUR PRESENCE IS KNOWN THROUGH YOUR MANAGEMENT.

TIP 2 : ARRANGEMENT OF DESK

SEATING IS BY FAR ONE OF THE MOST CRUCIAL POINTS IN

SHAPING YOUR CLASSROOM TO ITS FULLEST.

TRY A MORE COLLABORATIVE GROUP SEATING ARRANGEMENT.

TO HELP YOU WITH THIS , MAKE SURE YOU HAVE GROUPS OF F IVE WITH NO MORE THAN F IVE OR S IX

AT ONE GROUP.

HAVING THIS TYPE OF GROUP SETTING WILL ALLOW YOU TO PROVIDE YOUR

STUDENTS THE OPPORTUNITY TO WORK AND ENGAGE WITH ONE ANOTHER.

MAKE SURE YOU ARE ABLE TO WALK FREELY AND OPENLY AROUND THE

ROOM WALL TO WALL WITH OUT ANY OBSTRUCTIONS IN YOUR WAY.

3 . TRACKING SYSTEM

IN ANY CLASS , IT IS ABSOLUTELY IMPORTANT THAT YOUR STUDENTS CAN INTERNALIZE THEIR OWN PERSONAL

SUCCESS AND GOALS FOR THE ACADEMIC YEAR.

TO HELP WITH THIS , MAKE SURE YOU HAVE A TRACKING SYSTEM WHERE YOUR STUDENTS CAN UNDERSTAND WHERE THEY ARE AND WHERE YOU

WANT THEM TO BE .

TRY EVEN CHALLENGING THEM. ONE WAY TO DO THIS IS TO MAKE IT INTO A

COMPETIT ION AMONGST YOUR CLASSES .

THE MORE THEY ARE INVESTED IN THIS SYSTEM, THE MORE

YOUR SCHOLARS WILL BE MOTIVATED FOR SUCCESS .

4 . A+ WORK

THIS IS SOMETHING THAT IS INCREDIBLY COMMON IN ALL CLASSES . BUT TO TRULY SHOWCASE GREAT WORK, YOU WANT

TO MAKE SURE THAT YOU ARE PERSONIFYING INDIV IDUALS WHO ARE GOING ABOVE AND BEYOND WHAT YOU ARE EXPECTING .

NOW DO NOT PLAY FAVORITES . YES , IT IS ALWAYS GREAT TO SHOWCASE JULIE

AND ADAM’S WORK EVERY T IME , BUT YOU ALSO WANT TO DELIVER HOPE .

I F YOU SEE THAT THERE IS A STUDENT WHO HAS INVESTED IN THE WORK AND HAS

HIT THE STANDARDS FOR EXCELLENCE, MAKE SURE YOU NOT JUST PUT THEIR

WORK ON THE BOARD, BUT HIGHLIGHT IT WITH A SHOUT OUT IN THE CLASSROOM.

5 . ACADEMIC RESOURCES

ALWAYS MAKE SURE THERE ARE RESOURCES L IKE A WORD WALL OR AN EQUATIONS BOARD THAT YOUR

STUDENTS CAN REFER TO.

THIS CAN PLAY A LARGE ROLE IN THEM NOTING IMPORTANT

POINTS FOR HOMEWORK, QUIZZES , AND EXAMS.

6 . OPERATIONAL LOGISTICS

THE LOGISTICS WITHIN YOUR CLASSROOM NEED TO BE SOUND. QUESTIONS L IKE

‘WHERE DO WE PUT OUR HOMEWORK? ’ OR ‘WHERE CAN I F IND MY TEXTBOOK? ’ NEED

TO ALREADY BE INGRAINED IN YOUR STUDENTS BY WEEK ONE.

I F YOU WANT TO ADD A NEW ELEMENT TO YOUR CLASS , MAKE SURE YOU NOTE AND REHEARSE

THIS WITH THEM. EVENTUALLY THIS WILL BECOME SECOND NATURE.

7 . INSPIRATIONAL QUOTES

WHILE IT MAY SEEM L IKE AN AESTHETIC CHARM TO THE CLASS ,

INSPIRATIONAL QUOTES CAN BE GREAT SOURCE TO CAPTURE THE ATTENTION OF YOUR STUDENTS.

8 . TEACHER ’S PERSONALITY

TO TRULY CAPTURE THE PERSONALITY OF YOUR CLASS , TRY ADDING YOUR OWN FLAIR BY SHOWCASING YOUR

PERSONAL INTEREST.

FOR SOME TEACHERS THIS CAN BE THEIR ALMA MATER. FOR OTHERS,

THIS CAN BE A PARTICULAR SPORTS TEAM. WHATEVER IS THE CASE ,

THROW IT UP ON THE WALL .

IT WILL PROVIDE AN OPPORTUNITY FOR YOUR

STUDENTS TO LEARN MORE ABOUT YOU THAN JUST

BEING MR. XYZ .

T O L E A R N M O R E A B O U T M I K E S H E P PA R D P L E A S E V I S I T T H E F O L L O W I N G S I T E S

H T T P : / / M I C H A E L G S H E PA R R D . C O M H T T P : / / M I C H A E L G S H E P PA R D . N E T

H T T P : / / M I C H A E L G S H E P PA R D . W O R D P R E S S . C O M