An overlooked aspect of the classroom dynamic is the physical space you and your students occupy. We all know kids don’t like school as they get older, seeing it as a prison they are forced to go to each day. To be fair, school is mandatory and most are built from concrete blocks with people patrolling the grounds and monitoring their movements, but that doesn’t mean our classrooms should feel like a jail cell. Adding simple touches to your classroom could go a long way into building relationships with your students as they start to see your room as a place of comfort or even refuge. Even if they don’t love the subject matter, having an inviting classroom gets them excited to be there. 

In addition to helping your students, this simple act helps YOU! When you make your space your own, it brings you comfort. Regardless of how much we may love our job, there are times we will be stressed, anxious, angry, or sad. Adding trinkets from your travels, silly items from your favorite shows/movies, or pictures of your family will help your workplace become more pleasant to be in. 

Things to Consider Adding to Your Classroom:

• Personal items and collectibles  - they need to see you as human (ex. FunkoPop figures, diplomas, books)

• Squishmallows & Stuffed Animals

• Blankets & Pillows

• Alternate lighting - the overhead lights are known to trigger unease and even cause headaches, so consider dimming them with covers or using standing lamps instead

• Positive posters

• Non-school related furniture, like bean bag chairs

• Oil diffusers or other items to give room a pleasant but not overpowering scent

• Subject related items - show your passion! (I teach US history so I have an Uncle Sam nutcracker and toy soldiers. I also teach psychology so there are mental health posters and brain models scattered around.)

If they do amazing work, or maybe work that is amazing for them, display it. Take a moment and think - When was the last time someone said “I’m proud of you”? Maybe you don’t remember, or maybe you do but it has been some time. With all the pressure our students are under, how often do you think they’re told someone is proud of them? You don’t have to make a big deal of it, but when they see you putting up their work, they get the same feeling a kid gets when they’re Jackson Pollock style art gets put up on the fridge. 

Don't have student work to display? Have each student bring in a quote or picture that they like and create a collage in one section of your classroom. That way the room feels more like it is a place for them if they have contributed to its decoration.

Although we are pressured to teach bell-to-bell, it’s important to give students a moment to catch their breath. If they’re overwhelmed or have been sitting awhile, do a quick wellness walk lap around your hall. Have a cart, shelf, or box for students to pick up supplies as needed as many might be too intimidated to ask, including basics like hand sanitizer, tissues, lotion, band-aids. Play instrumental pop in the background during independent work and exams; music they know without the distractions and without words we can’t play. Periodically have candy, stickers, or other little trinkets available. Practice mindfulness techniques before assessments and have resources available to them, like a breathing ball. Offer squishmallows, calming strips, fidget toys, etc to anyone who wants or needs them. Help them see your classroom as a safe space.

Give them a chance to talk to you. Many of our students crave positive adult interaction. Someone who will listen to them nerd out about their current obsession or ask irrelevant questions out of curiosity. Maybe they need a chance to socialize with their peers. Let them talk during independent work or provide discussion prompts as warm-ups. Your students are too quiet? Tell irrelevant or silly stories. I have been known to go on random rants, discussing everything from the insane life of Hemingway (because our notes listed him among those of the Lost Generation) to singing the TikTok song “come with me and you’ll be in a world of OSHA violations” when we talked about Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle. Speaking of TikTok, use teachers on there for inspiration for attendance check-ins and call back responses. 

As teachers, we have a spotlight on us at all times. Sometimes it may feel more like a target. But we are human. We will make mistakes. We will have bad days. We will be stressed or tired or overwhelmed or hungry or sad. Own your feelings and tell them. Verbalize your thoughts and feelings so they know you are, in fact, human and just because you're older, doesn’t mean you have it all figured out. 

Personally, I struggle with anxiety and depression. I teach 5 AP classes, sponsor three clubs, coach a sport, and am going through the process of IVF. When I get behind on grading, I tell them why and apologize. When I’m overwhelmed because they all crowd around me to answer last minute questions before an exam, I practice breathing techniques to stay calm. When I’m having a bad day, I say so. I try not to make degrading comments about my intelligence, appearance, or weight. 

When you yourself  are having such feelings, recognize your limits, give yourself grace, and lean on your tribe. Show them that even when it feels like the world is falling apart, there are things you can do until everything is back to being okay. 

In the summer of 2022, I decided to jump on the bandwagon and join the squishmallow craze. I went on Amazon and searched through options until I came across this adorable shark. It just made me smile, so I bought it and brought it in on the first day.

One of my students was immediately enamored with the shark. They would have it sit on their desk each day and take pictures with it. At first, I was surprised. Why would a teenager be so attached to a stuffed animal? They weren’t the only one. Other students would ask if they could have the shark or other items from my collection accompany them during class. During tests, they would hold them and hug them. I know that I’m a child at heart who still loves stuffed animals, but I was shocked that so many students - high school students - found excitement and comfort in these items. The psychology teacher in me wants to connect it to the studies of Harry Harlow and the importance of contact comfort, but for ethical reasons, I’ll just take this knowledge and run with it. 

Through gifts and random purchases, I started getting quite the collection. With each new addition, students would rush to stake their claim on the one they wanted before class started and argue over what I should name them. By Fall Break, the shark was popular enough to have its own social media page and Mx. Sharky was shared with the world. Now random students I don’t have will come to my room and say “Oh you’re the one that has the shark!”. 

Now several of my coworkers have built their own little collections and students seem to love it. You can think it childish or immature or coddling, but we all need comfort from time to time. Remember rule #32 from Zombieland - “Enjoy the little things.”