Building a Classroom Community
Give Me Structure
Building a Classroom Community feels like...
Children learn best when they feel they are part of a community in which everyone feels accepted and individuality is encouraged. Creating this kind of classroom community requires planning and practice. Below is one of the 5 elements of building that community.
Give me Structure for students involves routines and procedures, classroom management, and classroom design.
Routines & Procedures
Routines are the backbone of daily classroom life. They facilitate teaching and learning. Routines don't just make your life easier, they save valuable classroom time. And what's most important, efficient routines make it easier for students to learn and achieve more.
Consult the drop-down list below or view this video.
A copy of this planning tool may be used to guide your reflections. CQSB email needed to access.
What routines or procedures do you want to put use and model this year? See Harry Wong's list below
____Entering the classroom
____Getting to work immediately
____When you are tardy
____Listening to and responding to questions
____End of the day dismissal
____Participating in class discussions
____When you need paper or pencil
____Sharpening pencils
____Bathroom or water fountain
____When you need help
____Keeping your desk orderly
____Checking out class materials
____Indicating whether you understand
____Coming to attention
____When you are absent
____Working cooperatively
____Changing groups or centers
____Keeping your notebook
____Going to the office (Buddy System)
____The schedule for the day
____Grades and progress reports
____Finding directions for each assignment
____Morning routine
____Passing in papers
____Exchanging papers
____Returning student work
____Getting materials ready without disturbing others
____Transitioning
____Handing out playground equipment
____Moving about the room
____Going to specials and lunch
____Using class library books
____Heading on papers
____When you finish early
____Returning to a task after an interruption
____Asking a question
____When a school wide announcement is made
____Walking in the hall
____Responding to a fire drills (fire, evacuation, safety)
____When visitors are in the classroom
____If the teacher is out of the classroom
____What to do with unfinished assignments
____If the phone should ring
____When someone calls on the intercom
____If you are suddenly ill (Student)
____Writing homework assignments in agenda
____ Cafeteria Procedures (Entering, Waiting, Selecting, Eating First, Table Etiquette, Dismissing From Table, Dismissal Line, Exiting)
____ Classroom Meetings
____ Indoor/Outdoor Recess
____ New Students (How Will They Learn Procedures?)
____ Reflection Q’s & Essays
Going further...
Classroom Management
“The gardener does not
make a plant grow.
The job of a gardener is to
create optimal conditions.”
—Sir Ken Robinson
Visit or revisit practices here on the Centre of Excellence Site, that support attachment, where...
contracts become individual interventions
consequences become preventive interventions
and time outs are time away with someone!
Do behaviour systems do more harm than good?
Read what using smiley faces or frowns can do to brain development here in this article by Eva de Gosztonyi
Classroom Design
How can you organize the space in the classroom to optimize a healthy learning environment?
Explore some of the ideas on the webpage, Creating an Effective Learning Environment, and reflect.
Contribute your reflections to the Collaborative Mindmap below.
Click on the Mindmap image to brainstorm ideas for effective classroom design!
Use the buttons below to head on over to a different section!
