The classroom of my dreams: Education without boundaries.

As I sit here in my classroom looking out over the desks and chairs, I scan the room and see so much opportunity. There are spaces that are just not currently effective or functional. I see the student's desks stacked so tightly together. We are squeezed in this 20 by 20 room like a can of sardines. Personal space does not exist in my classroom. Grade 8’s are big kids and having as many as 28-32 in a room this size can make for a tight squeeze. Doing group work can be very tricky as you need to find workable space for these kids. Often, they end up working in the hallway. I try my best but some days I just hate my classroom!!!

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The @steemiteducation homework this week asked what our ideal classroom would look like. This is a great assignment and one an exercise that I think every teacher goes through in their own head often. I know that I am always wishing I could have this or that in my classroom. Ultimately, a significant part of this comes down to money. Teachers are only able to control so much about their classrooms. They have to work with what the school gives them as far as funding. With this assignment, I am going to immerse myself in a world where there are no restrictions. For a brief moment, I am going to live in the ideal world where I get everything I want. Money is no object here and I am about to build my perfect classroom.

Space

First of all, I need room for these kids and I don’t just mean fitting them into the space. Rather, I need room for people to move and to be comfortable. A working environment where students are all stacked on top of each other is not conducive to learning. Now, it is hard to put an exact measurement size on this but when I see it in my head it is big enough for a Ster Destroyer to land. Actually, a room equivalent to the very large kindergarten rooms we have at our school would be great. The kindergarten classrooms in our school are massive. They have space for sandbox areas, creative play areas, several round tables and carpet areas. It is at least twice the size of my current classroom. So this would be my starting point.

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Seating

Collaborative learning is a huge part of what I strive to accomplish in my classroom. One of my goals is to prompt ideas and learning through engaging and thoughtful discussion. In my opinion, this is near impossible in a classroom that has desks set up in rows and everyone is staring at the back of someone's head. My ideal set up would be conference room style where everyone is seated around a huge boardroom table. Or a large enough U-shaped design so that all people could sit around a center point. This arrangement would face our smartboard and the opening have enough room for presentations and group work. This would allow all conversations and discussions to be face to face and be more conducive to effective communications skills. It would encourage kids to work on proper speaking techniques as well as being actively engaged in listening. It is easy to tune out when you don’t see the speaker.

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The best way for this to happen in my classroom would be for a cluster of larger tables to be placed together so that they can be pulled apart and used for smaller group work. I would also like to have a variety of alternative seating and workstations available for my students. The reality is we all have a diverse classroom of learners and they all have different styles and needs. I have some kids who have a hard time sitting still. Having some ball seats or some stand-up desks for them to work at would be amazing. I would like to have a few of each of these. I would also like to have a small space in the room where students could sit in a comfy chair and read or collaborate in small groups. **Remember, we are talking about my dreams coming true here.

Technology

I am big on using technology in my classroom. When used properly, access to technology can provide so many learning opportunities and extensions. I would have at least two interactive smart board. I discussed the many benefits of smart boards in a previous post. These smart board would have the accompanying tablets so that people could interact with both the board itself and from their seats. Being able to interact and get more hands-on with the technology enhances the effects of using it.

In this ideal world where money is not an issue, I would have a built-in Chromebook or laptop station. This would be a shelf with slots and the charger mechanism all built in. I would have enough Chromebooks for each of my students to have access to one when needed. We do a lot of research and production work on the computers but currently, there are limitations on the amount of time that we can have access. We are a school of 1000 students and the portable computer pods need to be shared. This would also be accompanied by enough handheld devices for groups to work on documentaries and videos using iMovie or other software.

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Resources

Finally, I would want to have a wall of shelves full of resources for my students. Not an entire library but enough textbooks for subjects so that the students could actually have one each instead of sharing all the time like they are forced to do now. Currently, there is not one subject where I have enough textbooks for all my students to have a copy to work on. I would have a comprehensive reading library. One that has a lot more than what I currently have. If I was to add up the amount of my own money I have spent to have the small library that is in my room now it would be frustrating. It would also be great to have access to an educational assistant. There are so many high needs in every classroom and at times it can feel overwhelming trying to tend to every one of them at once. Having that support in the class would be worth more than any of the other things combined.

If only this fantasy could be real and these things could actually happen. Oh, what a world it would be for teachers. I could take this a whole step further and talk about how much I would like to have access to an outdoor classroom. Something I have been trying to help push for here at our school for years. Fingers crossed, it might actually be possible in the near future.

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In all seriousness though, I just need a place where I can actively engage my students in critical thinking and help teach them to be good learners and good citizens. As nice as it would be to have absolutely everything I want in a class, all I really need is a voice and some determination. Give me their ears and their willingness to be engaged and from there they can achieve greatness. All the rest is just gravy on the potatoes.