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INSTRUCTIONAL MENTORS
INSTRUCTIONAL MENTORS
Creating an Optimal Learning Environment in Your Classroom
Creating an Optimal Learning Environment in Your Classroom
How an Optimal Learning Environment Works:
Educators prioritize kind, caring, and respectful relationships that cultivate a sense of belonging and foster academic, social, and emotional skills. An ever-present attention to equity and continuous academic, social, and emotional growth is central to help all students achieve high standards.
Effective teaching and learning can only happen when an Optimal Learning Environment is in place. In an Optimal Learning Environment, the social and emotional elements of learning are prioritized and understood to be the foundation of academic success and personal well-being.
Optimal Learning Environments begin with a positive, productive school climate and provide intellectually and emotionally safe, stimulating classroom communities that are personalized and co-constructed by adults and students. They are characterized by kind, caring, and respectful adult, adult-student, and peer relationships that cultivate a sense of belonging and foster academic, social, and emotional skills.
Optimal Learning Environments reflect a belief that every student can achieve high standards. In Early Learning, teachers support Optimal Learning Environments through play and thoughtfully planned lessons. Within an Optimal Learning Environment, the diverse needs of each learner are addressed with an ever-present attention to equity and continuous academic, social, and emotional growth.
Create Emotionally, Intellectually, and Physically Safe Environments
Create Emotionally, Intellectually, and Physically Safe Environments
Teachers and students focus more on instruction and lessons and less on student behavioral issues. Students engage in discussions and thought processes they previously never had.
Create positive relationships that are kind, caring, and respectful
Nurture self-awareness, identity development, and sense of purpose
Emphasize effort, supported risk-taking, and strategies for academic, social, and emotional growth
Support safe and engaged interactions with co-created procedures, routines, and classroom design
Encourage developmentally appropriate and culturally relevant strategies for expression of emotions and conflict resolution
Implement Equitable, Culturally Responsive, & Standards-Aligned Curriculum & Instruction
Implement Equitable, Culturally Responsive, & Standards-Aligned Curriculum & Instruction
Teachers are better equipped to cater their instruction and reach their students by integrating relevant, respectful content. Students expand their view and understanding of lessons and the world.
Provide relevant, challenging content aligned to grade-level standards through curriculum that is adapted and supplemented, if necessary
Create an inclusive community where all aspects of diversity and learner variability are understood, expected, and welcomed
Engage learners in productive struggle to support perseverance and agency for meeting high expectations of grade-level standards
Foster cultural competence and curiosity to seek others’ perspectives
Facilitate expression of reasoned, evidence-based arguments, thoughts, and ideas
Meet the Diverse Needs of Every Learner
Meet the Diverse Needs of Every Learner
Teachers cater their instruction to meet the unique needs, skills, and interests of their students. All students learn more.
Leverage individual strengths to support academic, social, and emotional growth
Create multiple pathways to learn and demonstrate learning
Promote learner agency with immediate, goal-oriented feedback and opportunities for self-directed learning
Scaffold instruction for every learner to meet expectations of the standards through practices such as modeling, strategic grouping, sequenced questioning, timely feedback, and practice opportunities
Optimal Learning Environment with Descriptions.pdfPage updated
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