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Classroom Design Archives
Classrooms don't have to be dark and dreary places--in fact, teachers are discovering that more inviting classrooms create more opportunities for learning. Join us here as we discover how to create beauty in classrooms and how these creative spaces may help transform your room into the space you have always hoped for, something that is... Simply Beautiful. All videos are in Flash format, optimized for viewing on computers with high-speed internet access. If you are having trouble viewing a video, you can download a free Flash player for your computer here:
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[Two videos on Classroom Design are available for purchase. For more information, click here.]
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A Focus on Comfort
One of the best ways to help kids build stamina is to provide comfortable seating. We sure love these chairs in Beth's room! . . .
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Check In Clipboards That are Never Lost
The only thing we love more than a beautiful Pensieve is a beautiful clipboard for checking in with student choices. Trish Prentice has an idea to not only beautify our clipboards, but make them easy to find in our rooms. How does she know us so well? . . .
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Extreme Closet Makeover - Part 1 (PHOTOS)
School is out, so why is Trish still working? Because after teaching and accumulating supplies for thirteen years, she has decided to tackle her storage closet. Oh my! This we've got to see! . . .
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Designing the Learning Space to Support the CAFE™ System (PHOTOS)
Learn how Pam Suszczynski, from New York, uses classroom design to help her students learn the CAFE™ system at the beginning of the school year. Pam created a CAFE™ corner where she conducts individual conferences, complete with all necessary supplies. Pam also shares a strategy to help students record new vocabulary on the Expanding Vocabulary chart. . . .
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Design - A Welcoming School Entrance (PHOTO)
Just like the cover of a book can draw you in, so too can the entryway of a school or classroom. It really is true that first impressions are important! This photo was taken in the entryway to Gail's school . . .
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Design - Bookshelf Using Encyclopedias PART III OF IV (VIDEO)
There is a sacredness to books that prohibits us from ever throwing them away. But what do we do with texts that are so out of date that they've lost their value as anything but dust collectors and paper weights? Jenny, a new teacher at Gail's school, asked her grandfather to turn some prehistoric encyclopedias into a unique bookshelf. We were so excited by this idea that we just had to share it with you! Maybe you can . . .
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Design - Book Displays Part II of IV (Video)
We all want books in our rooms that our students will browse, explore, and "fall into". Ron, a 5/6 grade teacher at Gail's school uses an old traveling trunk as a book shelf, filling it neatly full of chapter books and travel books that will take students on journeys and adventures to far off places. . . .
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Design - Comfortable Seating (VIDEO)
Comfortable seating is sometimes synonymous with upholstered furniture, but it doesn't have to be. Gail's district does not allow comfy upholstered couches and pillows, so Pam has found creative alternatives. We are in her room in this video to get a peek at the table she brought from home and the inexpensive plastic chairs . . .
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Whoever Controls the Stapler Owns the Power in the Room (VIDEO)
We once heard, "Whoever controls the stapler in a classroom, owns the power in the room" and it really made us think! The stapler, tape, paper clips, and other assorted school supplies students might need were neatly organized within the safe confines of our teacher desks. Students had to ask for permission to use any of them…and, if the need was deemed worthy, they would be granted short term use of the needed item. This resulted in countless interruptions, questions, and a loss of time that could have been better spent. So, we dove into community supplies and have never looked back! . . .
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Design - Consider the Walls
"The quality of the classroom environment is one of the key non-verbal messages students receive in their schooling. Classrooms that are warm, bright, attractive, stimulating, and cared for send children a powerful message that the teacher values them as individuals and is committed to their learning and achievement. High-quality classrooms convey a sense of comfort, respect, and stability within which positive behaviors and learning skills can be developed." John Visser (May 2001) . . .
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Design - Making Classroom Walls Work (SLIDESHOW)
When we were beginning teachers our classroom walls looked very different than today. We used to have a different colored paper on each wall, with a variety of borders. We realize now having each bulletin board a different color; each border a different pattern creates high visual noise in our rooms. This noise can elevate the level of distraction for our at-risk kids as well as turn the focus to the bulletin boards themselves rather than the thinking placed on them. Below is a slideshow of the boards in Joan's classroom showing how we can make our classroom walls work for us. . . .
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DESIGN - Conferring Locations (SLIDESHOW)
Where do you meet with small groups of children or confer one on one with your students? Envisioning how to set up a classroom in a way that will accommodate the diverse needs of our students can be easy, once you've seen examples you like. This slide show will give you a tour of how Joan's room is set up to lead cozy small-group instruction as well as individual conferences. . . .
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FAQ - Thoughtful Seating Options (slideshow)
Our friend Lori said she knows summer is over when she lays in bed at night and mentally moves furniture around her classroom. Thoughtful seating options have the power to make our classrooms work more efficiently and productively. So, if you are mentally or physically setting up your classroom for a new school year, you may want to look at the variety of seating options shown in this slideshow. . . .
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Design - Establishing an Environment for Learning
(DOWNLOAD)
A few years ago we started teaching classroom design courses, which have been very well attended. We all spend so much time in our classrooms that it isn't surprising we want them to be and feel beautiful. So, how can teachers get started when thinking through a new classroom design? This is the first tool we share when teaching our "Trading Spaces" classroom design courses, the strategies for working through a new design step by step . . .
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Design - Reflecting On Classroom Environments (DOWNLOAD)
Thinking back on our first years of teaching, the environment we created in our classrooms then looked very different than it does now. Yet at that time the space reflected what we believed; the teacher needed to have complete control over the classroom, curriculum, and childrens' behavior. The room was set up for quiet since our teaching was evaluated on the amount of noise that was produced in our rooms; little noise...great teacher; lots of noise...teacher had poor classroom management. At one time in our teaching history we even had student desks in rows with our teacher desk looming in the front of the classroom facing the students. . . .
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Design - Layers of Classroom Design (DOWNLOAD)
Have you ever thought of redesigning your classroom environment but didn't know where to begin? Setting up a classroom at the beginning of a new school year can be overwhelming. There is so much to think about...where do the student desks go? How about the paper on the wall? What about the teacher desk? With so many questions swirling in our heads, we needed a systematic way to reconstruct our rooms. This system really works for us, and we think it will help you as well. In fact, we follow these steps every time . . .
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Design - Seven Steps to Designing Physical Space (DOWNLOAD)
Once the reflecting process and planning for your classroom environment is complete (or you are just tired of thinking about it and want your room changed RIGHT NOW) - these 7 steps may be just what you need to get started. When reconfiguring a classroom or moving into a new one, it can be tricky to see the space through new eyes. Some of the phrases that we hear or have used ourselves that interfere with change are, "I have to have the room set up this way because it's how I always do it." Or "My desk has to go over there." To begin with a clear head we move . . .
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