A Day in My Classroom

Introduction

I found that one of the most helpful experiences for me as a beginning teacher, was when I was afforded the opportunity to observe seasoned teachers at work. There is nothing so clarifying to one's own thoughts on the education process as when observing, first-hand, how others handle that same process. 

Beyond those early days, however, I have found that reflection on my own practices helps me to hone my craft - to make improvements where needed, or to throw out what doesn't work and to head back to the drawing board. A memorable professor of mine recommended the practice of self-reflection, and modeled it so effectively that I couldn't help but adopt the practice myself - much to my own benefit as a teacher.

What follows is a glimpse into a typical day in my classroom, and the culmination of five years of personal reflection and continuous refinement. My methods are not perfect, I know that even in preparing this small glimpse for you I will find a multitude of areas that need improvement, but they are a picture of where I am in my career to date, and hopefully, this "window" into my classroom will help to clarify and strengthen the ideas and beliefs of other educators out there.

Flashback - Day #1

Before proceeding to an explication of classroom instruction, I think it will be beneficial to provide some background into how my classroom is structured - both physically and managerially. This information should help the reader to envision the classroom environment, as well as how classroom instruction is carried out.

The Physical Space

First, let's take a look at how I arrange the classroom environment. I use a theme for my room - "Worlds of Words" - it's incorporated into every aspect of the space - from the sign on the door welcoming students in, to the planets hanging from the ceiling and the decor on the walls. 

The theme, "Worlds of Words," is intended to convey the adventure, possibilities and mystery that are evoked through the written word. It is meant to provide my students with a physical connection to an intangible concept, and to serve as a way to begin what will become a year-long conversation.

As to the physical arrangement of the room, I have designed it so that there are distinctly separate areas within the classroom - each with a unique function within daily instruction. At the front of the room I've arranged my desk and all student seating. I use tables with four students assigned to each. I prefer tables to traditional desks because they offer much more versatility - they automatically accommodate group work and also provide a large workspace for projects and cooperative activities. Each group assignment is arbitrary at first, but can be easily modified throughout the year either to suit the needs of a particular unit, or to aid in classroom management.

NOTE: I have blurred out student faces for their protection, as this is a public format.

The reading corner, conference center (not pictured, this is a group of padded chairs arranged in a square located at the back of the room between the reading corner and the computer stations), and computer stations make up the other areas of the classroom. 

The reading corner 

Computer stations

A description of the physical arrangement of my classroom is also important because it has been designed to serve as an extension of my teaching practices. The classroom arrangement ensures that students always have something to do - that even when the assigned tasks for the day have been completed, students have the means to remain engaged and productive - they are able to move to the reading corner to read their AR books, they can jump on a computer to finish another assignment, or to take an AR quiz, or they can make use of the conference center to meet with their group regarding ongoing projects, etc.

Two other small physical objects that I will touch on before moving on are the bookcase containing all student textbooks, journals, assignments, etc., located at the front of the room, and the reading baskets and supply boxes that have been placed on each student table. These items, while they may not appear to be of any great significance, are really among the most important elements of the whole classroom environment, as will become clear later on when I discuss daily instruction in more depth. 

Classroom Management

On the very first day of school, I prioritize introductions: of myself and my students, of class procedures and expectations, and of the culture of the classroom.

To start things off, and to establish the fact that we will be making technology a regular feature of our classroom, as well as the fact that I (the teacher) am not going to be the center of every activity, I show them the following introduction video.

After the introduction video, and a related activity (using Wordle) that allows students to introduce themselves both to me, and to each other, I then pull up an interactive SmartNotebook presentation on the SmartBoard introducing the procedures and expectations that will guide and direct us for the next nine months. Since SmartBoard files don't load properly for those without access to their software, I have converted the file to a movie, so it can be viewed without difficulty.

This presentation serves not only as an introduction to our classroom expectations and procedures, but the interactive quizzes at the end also work as a nice kick-off to similar activities that will follow for the next one to two weeks of class. Repetition and practice are the key elements that will ensure a smooth-running classroom; without it, students are left to do the best they can in any given situation, and so much class time is taken up with addressing the types of issues that are readily avoided when time is taken at the start of the year to establish a classroom routine. 

Consequences and Rewards

Beyond establishing routines and procedures, the first days of school also focus on reinforcing expected behaviors for the year. In the beginning, I reward my students heavily for correct behaviors, both as a means of reinforcing good habits, but also as a means of acclimating my students to my consequences and rewards system.

Over the years, my classroom management system has evolved a great deal. In fact, it has even changed a bit from that which was highlighted in the above video. I call my system the Brownie Point System. Each class has a tally sheet, and at the front of the room, I keep two clear jars - one that is full of little foam figures (space ships, stars, planets, etc.), and the other with nothing in it. As each period progresses, brownie points are earned or lost, and at the end of the period, those that remain are added to that period's tally sheet.

If, at the end of the marking period, my students have earned thirty brownie points, they are treated to a class party. If they fall below that, they have to forgo the party and try again the next marking period. 

This system, as I mentioned previously, has evolved greatly over the years to what it has become today. It is simple and straight-forward, and it works exceptionally well for me. 

In tangent with brownie points, I use tickets to recognize and reward individual efforts to follow classroom procedures. Tickets are earned when students come prepared to class with their needed materials: pencil, AR book, and agenda. The tickets are of the variety that you buy in a large roll from an office supply store. The way the system works is each day at the start of class, that week's volunteers (more on that later) distribute tickets to each student that has earned one for the day. Students then write their names on each ticket they earn and place them in their period’s box (on the board at the front of the room). At the end of the week, several tickets are drawn, and the winners receive candy or some other prize. This has been one of the most effective measures I have ever found for getting middle schoolers to come to class prepared!

Daily Routines and Procedures

Now to explain some of the previously touched on procedures that were introduced from the very first day of school. Procedures really form the backbone of my students' daily routine, so as I mentioned earlier, they are something that I spend a great deal of time establishing during the first weeks of the school year. Once in place, my students know what they are supposed to be doing at all times, and they know how to properly communicate and handle things like questions, broken or dull pencils, needed bathroom breaks, etc. 

Every single day begins with the agenda (a OneNote file that I have converted into a weekly planner - see picture below for a sample) projected onto the SmartBoard. Students immediately consult this upon entering the room because it informs them what materials will be needed for the day. 

A sample of a typical daily agenda

Once they've consulted the day's agenda, students will head to the bookcase at the front of the room where they grab their textbooks, journals, and any assignment sheets that might be in their period's basket, before they move to their tables, grab an AR book out of their reading baskets and begin reading.

As soon as the bell rings to begin the hour, students begin work on their bellwork activity: a Daily Warm-up that they grabbed on their way in, a journal prompt, or sustained independent reading.

While students are completing their bellwork activity, the classroom volunteers go around and hand out tickets for students who came prepared to class. The classroom volunteers change every week and are selected in rotation so that everyone gets a chance to "volunteer" each marking period. 

The system that I use is simple: I assign each student a number at the beginning of the year - this number is not only their volunteer number, but it also serves as the number they are given when I assign copies from a set of classroom novels, as well as the copy of the textbook that they will use for the year. I write everyone's numbers on individual leaves and place them on a tree at the front of the room. Each week, two new leaves are selected and placed on the volunteer branch on the front board.

Numbers on the tree leaves represent each student in the classroom

The volunteer branch on the front board

Once all students have completed their bellwork activity, volunteers will be called on to share their responses if it was a journal prompt, otherwise, students come up one by one to share a correction or answer to the Daily-Warm up activity. If you look back at the picture of the classroom agenda, you'll notice the blue underlined portions of text throughout - those are hyperlinks to other sections of what is essentially a virtual notebook (with each section containing screen shots, scans, copies, etc., of all of the physical materials that we will encounter), or to the Web - whichever the case may be. 

In the case of the Daily Warm-ups, the link leads to the section of the notebook where scanned copies of the sheets students picked up that day on their way in, and once pulled up on the SmartBoard, each volunteer will be able to simply duplicate their own responses using the SmartBoard markers. After making their corrections, or writing in their answers, each student is expected to share with the class how they came up with their solution before they return to their seats. If their response is wrong, I will discuss it with them before we move on to the next problem. 

Since I allow students to choose which question or problem they wish to respond to, they are generally quite comfortable with their responses, but in those rare cases when a student doesn't know an answer, or is afraid to guess, we'll work on it together as a class and they will simply remain at the board to record our consensus response. 

Instruction

Now, here is where it all comes together. Let's take a look at another typical day's agenda, specifically, that of Monday, October 4th. 

This day begins with a bellwork activity, which normally takes about ten to fifteen minutes to complete, including sharing responses on the board.

Next, students are given a notes sheet "Figurative Language Defined" and after explaining that they will be watching a video and using the information from the video to provide definitions and examples for each of the types of figurative language listed on the sheet, I start the video and students get to work. 

Video notes sheet

This portion of the lesson takes approximately twenty to twenty-five minutes to complete, which leaves us with between twenty and twenty-five minutes to complete the final activity for the day - the Figurative Language Sorting Game.

For the game, students will work with their table-mates to match the phrases on each of twenty slips of paper that they have been given to the correct type of figurative language that they represent. Each group is given a printed piece of card stock with four quadrants - each one labeled with one of the four types of figurative language that was introduced earlier in the period. This is where they will place each slip of paper as it is read and voted on by the group.

After all of the groups have finished sorting (this normally takes fifteen minutes) - the correct answers are given and discussed, and each member of the winning team (the one that properly identified the most examples of figurative language) gets a piece of candy. This process finishes out the hour with only a minute or two left in which students are able to put their materials away and prepare for departure.

I feel that it is important to point out that this particular lesson was not designed as an introduction to brand new terms and concepts, but rather as a review of terms that will figure prominently in the upcoming unit of study. That is the only reason why there is no associated reading - something that would normally be used to provide students practice in identifying the terms as they appear within the context of a story.

And that is it. When the bell rings, I glance over all of the student tables to check that everything is neat and put away, and then I dismiss my students with "Have a great day; I'll see you tomorrow!"