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Classroom Learning Environment

Plan
Samantha Hartman
EDE 4504
Tracy Wulf

Table of Contents
Philosophy of Management Statement3
Philosophy of Beliefs..3-5
Classroom
Profile
..5
Classroom
Map
..6
Physical Environment
Rationale..6-11
Beliefs (Letter to Parents)
..12-13
Community
Building
..14-16
Routines and
Strategies
..17-20

My Morning
Routine.1819
Culturally Responsive
Teaching.20-22
Bibliography
23

Philosophy of Management Statement

I believe that classroom management should combine the efforts of the students
and the teacher to create a cooperative learning environment where ideas are shared
openly and reflected on through interactive discussions. Students are aware of their
expectations and are responsible for their actions so that when misbehavior does arise, they
can collaborate with the teacher to find the best way to resolve an issue.
Philosophy of Management
I believe that classroom management should combine the efforts of the students and the
teacher to create a cooperative learning environment where ideas are shared openly and reflected
on through interactive discussions. Students are aware of their expectations and are responsible
for their actions so that when misbehavior does arise, they can collaborate with the teacher to
find the best way to resolve an issue.
Every aspect of my classroom is built upon the concept of teamwork; there is plenty of
group work when it comes to discussing the content, the norms of the classroom are created by

the teacher and the student, and the overall success of the school day is based upon how
productive and motivated the students were, not only as an individual, but also as a partner to
their other classmates. When students are in class, they need to participate and establish their
voice in the classroom each and every day. I want to make sure that my classroom has an
environment that seems open and inviting so that students will recite all the different ideas they
have and share those with one another.
I support the idea that, Established student-teacher-parent cooperation is key to positive
classroom behavior, stated in Linda Alberts article Cooperative Discipline. A student may not
feel like they belong if they dont contribute any of the Cs of this method, which are capable,
connect, and contribute. Any misbehavior that arrives will be turned into an attempt to help
students learn how to behave better. When my students misbehave I want to be able to shut off
the conflict and control the situation, but I dont want to come off as controlling because,
Teachers can only influence student behavior; they cannot directly control it, as stated by
Linda Albert (pg. 69). When students decide to break away from discussion and pave their own
path of distraction during my lesson I will have the students step away and take a moment for
self-reflection so that they can change and improve their behavior before I have to do it by
calling their parents.
Leading into the subject of parents and their role in the classroom is another huge
philosophy for me because I feel that its vital to have their cooperation. Once that student leaves
my classroom I have no way to ensure that they complete their homework, read silently, or
partake in stimulating activities, so by building relationships with the parents they are aware of
the expectations as well as the student. I read this in a part of Cooperative Discipline where she
says that, Teachers should remember that in order to develop a good system of discipline, they

require the cooperation of students and parents. Both should be valued as partners and their
contributions brought meaningfully into cooperative discipline (pg. 69). If there isnt a
relationship between the parent and the teacher there will be a barrier of communication.

Overall, my goal for classroom management is to lead my students to choose the

responsible behavior in all situations. To do this, I will make mistakes be seen in a light that is
not intimidating by discussing with students that everyone makes mistakes, but its what they do
with those mistakes that truly matter. I will build confidence by acknowledging improvement and
refrain from comparing growth to other students. Lastly, I will also make my classroom a lifesize portfolio, hanging student work on the walls so they can see their growth and map out their
journey to success.
Classroom Profile
My classroom has 20 students equally split up into 10 girls and 10 boys. Out of the 20
students, 6 students are classroom leaders during discussions and are self-sufficient when it
comes to independent work. Five students are for the most part quiet and shy, but can change
demeanor and act out when nonconformists decide to create a scene. Six students are
nonconformists and cannot remain quiet or focus during classwork. These students are constantly
getting pulled for guided reading to assist them in finishing their work. One student always
attempts to read his independent reading book during all forms of instruction. No students are
diagnosed as ADHD/ADD, however, one student exhibits behaviors of autism. Many of the
students are in need of strong emotional support due to traumatic experiences, such as parents
going in and out of jail. As far as reading scores, 13 students are reading on level, while 8
students are reading at one to two grades below level. Also, 2 of those 8 students have been held

back for 2-3 years. Half of the class has Spanish as their first language while the others have
English as their first language. Overall, the classroom is instructed in a Title 1 School.

Physical Environment:

Physical Environment Rationale:

Coat Rack/Personal Space Cubbies- One of the things I will emphasize most in my
classroom is that students will always have a designated place to store their belongings.
According to Levin and Nolan in the Principals of Classroom Management (2011),
humans must be physically comfortable before their attention is voluntarily given to

learning (pg. 153). By having students hang up their coats and put their backpacks away,
it will keep them from distracting themselves and others by digging into these belongings
in the middle of class. There will be bins on each table that include textbooks, pencils,

and the students notebooks needed for that days instruction.

Guided reading table and storage unit- To keep organized, I need to make sure that I have
a shelf where I keep all the guided reading supplies including different level books and
activities for the students. The guided reading table is U-shaped that way, as the teacher, I
can have equal proximity to each student. On the wall by this table there will also be an
anchor chart filled with student made norms of How can I make this guided reading
group run smoothly? This way, if any child breaks a rule it is right above me to point out

and the group can work together to solve their mistake.

Desks- I wanted to refrain from using circular desks in my classroom because I feel it
keeps the students from having personal space. With individual square desks, students
have individual storage possibilities while still working in a group setting. Also, I want to
make sure to seat four students per table. Five students feels like too many and three
students does not seem like enough for group discussions. With four to a table that allows
me to have two pairs of turn-and-talk partners per table and no one feels left out. This can
be proven when Levin and Nolan (2011) state that, If a teachers primary instructional
strategy involves a lot of group work, the teacher may put three or four desks together to
facilitate these activities. (pg. 153) I also want to make sure that I mix up the reading
levels of students at each table because by grouping more advanced readers with those
students who could use more assistance, mass improvement can be achieved when it
comes to reading scores. Also, I want to have nonconformists sit next to those students

who are quiet and easy to get along with so that I can avoid behavior issues that I would

have if I grouped nonconformists together.

White Board/Elmo/Teachers Desk- I grouped these three together because they are all in
the same area! I have the elmo and white board at the front of the classroom so that all
the art/science/library/computer centers are behind them and arent able to distract them
from instruction. I will mostly use the white board for instruction as well as having
students come up and write on the white board themselves to teach other students their
ideas. For moments like morning work or displaying student work, the elmo will come in
handy because I can leave it up for five to ten minutes to either copy down words or
reflect on student work that I am showing. I do not plan at sitting at my teachers desk for
most of the day. In the case that I do sit at my desk, I made sure that it is right behind the
groups of desks and right in front of the different learning centers so that I have
immediate access to any student in the class as well as being aware of everything that is
going on. Levin and Nolan support this idea by saying that, An effective seating

arrangement allows the teacher to be in close proximity to all students. (153).

Learning Centers- I have three different learning centers towards the back of the
classroom. The first is the math center which will have a plethora of white boards for
students to practice equations on as well as manipulatives that can help them get to the
answer easier. Next is the science center which will also have the supplies to help them
experiment along with procedure worksheets already on the table so that they can just
gather their equipment and begin their experiments. The art center is back towards the
window. I did this so that students could look outside the window for inspiration when
they see the bright blue sky, the trees swaying with the wind, the birds flying, or cars
driving by.

The art center will have a shelf with markers, paints, and miscellaneous supplies such as

pipe cleaners to give their artworks a unique touch.

Morning Meeting Area- I want to start each day off with a morning meeting. By having a
designated spot for this on my circle rug, students will know the drill to come in, put their
belongings in the cubbies and come right to the circle to sit down while they wait for me
to begin. I wanted ample space for them to be able to stand up and move around with our
activities without cluttering walking space or running into the shelves of the learning
centers. I also like that it is in the center of the room because it leaves an open space in

the middle of the room and they have equal view to everything in the classroom.
Group Time Rug- When I think of carpet time I think of a section of the room where
students come together to sit, with a main goal of interacting with each other, with a
book, or anything related to word work/vocabulary games. I love carpet time, so here we
are again with another interactive rug. This rug will be for read aloud/vocabulary
games/anything that involves interaction. There is plenty of room for each student to sit
comfortably as well as plenty of space for students to get up and act out a scene if
instructed. This gives students a chance to move around and be in a different setting than
in their desk during a read aloud where they may be tempted to dig into materials in the

book bin on their desk.

Library/Interactive Word Wall- I plan on having a two shelf library filled with a multitude
of books to choose from. Also in the library will be comfortable bean bag chairs and body
pillows so that students can be relaxed when they read. On top of the shelf there will be
fun worksheets asking them to either illustrate what they read during independent reading
or something of that sort to make sure they are comprehending and not pretend reading.

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There will also be an interactive word wall on the wall beside the library. The way this
will differ from a regular word wall is instead of just the teacher picking out the words
that go on the wall, while they are reading if they come across an interesting/unfamiliar
word, they can write it on the white board next to the word wall and the next day I can

add that word to the wall.

Windows- It is important to me to have a classroom with windows because it will keep
my students from feeling cooped up! By having windows, I am letting natural light flow
in and it will allow my room to have a special energy that will get my students ready for
the day. I made sure to put the desks facing away from the window because it will keep
them from gazing away while I am trying to teach my lesson. Instead, when they go to art
rather than being a distraction, the windows will be a resource to help them gain

inspiration.
Television- Most elementary schools have a morning show and even conduct pep rallies
over the television during rainy days so it is vital that I have a working television that is
viewable to each student in the room. Some students facing away from the TV may have
to adjust themselves, but all the have to do is turn their chair around and they will be able
to see everything put on the screen. This will keep myself and the students up to date with

whatever announcements are given for that day.

Counters/sink- The counters will have napkins, tissues, and a pencil sharpener on it. By
having the pencil sharpener at the very front of the room, students will be able to use it
without disturbing those students who are working in the library. The sink will be very
important for hygiene purposes when my students come back from the bathroom. I want
the bathroom to be outside of the classroom because I feel the constant flushing and door
closing might be too much of an interruption. I will make sure students know to use the
bathroom during lunch, or before a lesson begins/after it ends.

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Bulletin Boards/Student Work Displays- There will be two big bulletin boards on the
inside of the classroom next to their cubby stations. I love to imagine a classroom where
students walk in, put their things away, and see that their work has been displayed for the
class to see. For this reason, there will be both a bulletin board on the inside of the class
and the outside that displays student work. On the outside of class I will also post pictures
of the students of the month, shining citizen, or reader of the month. On the second
bulletin board that is on the inside is where all objectives/interest learning points of each
subject will be posted. This way, if at any point students get lost in the purpose of the
lesson, they can refer to the bulletin board and see what they are supposed to be focused

on.
Computer Station- The computer station has five computers for students to read or due
activities on. Five students is enough to where I will not be missing a huge chunk of
students if I send them away for FAIR testing or comprehension tasks. Each student can
go to computer stations once or twice a week, maybe more if time permits, and it is close
access to their desk so that they will not make much of a commotion when going back
and forth.

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Beliefs (Letter to Parents)

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Community Building

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In order for my classroom to feel like a community, I need all students to feel comfortable with
expressing who they are and any ideas they have about what we are learning. Some learning
environments can become very judgmental places where students are afraid to speak their mind,
but there are some things that I can do to avoid becoming one of those places. Before the school
year even begins I want to make sure that students and their parents are aware of my teaching
beliefs and classroom philosophy, so I will send home a letter to parents to make sure they know
what to expect before the year begins. I will also tell parents to send students to school with a
picture of themselves to use for an activity for the first day.
When students walk in on the first day I will be wearing a name tag with my name and an
adjective that has the same letter as my last name, for example, Hugging Hartman. I will ask
students to create their own nametag with their name and an action so that we can act out
everyones name every day in class. By doing this the next couple of weeks, our class will
remember each others name while also breaking the ice. I will ask students to give me their
picture that their parents sent with them and have them tape it on the wall. I will let them know
that each day before they leave they will have a post-it under their picture, one from a teacher
and one from a classmate, that has something positive they did written down on it. Every week I
will take the post-its down and keep them for a project towards the end of the year.
At the beginning of the year I will establish norms and guidelines through a role playing
activity. Each student will have an index card with one side saying good and the other side
saying bad. I will act out with a student different situations, such as shouting during class, or
raising their hand if they have a question. The students will raise their index card and signal to

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me whether that action is good or bad. After this, students will have learned what is acceptable
and unacceptable in the classroom through a fun and interactive activity.
I will then hone in on our morning meeting, which is the main community builder in my
classroom. On the first day of our morning meeting, each student will have 15 seconds of
Fame, which is where they have to shout out interesting facts about them as fast as they can
before the fifteen seconds are up. At the end of the meeting, I will go around the circle and have
each student shout out a fact about another person. For the first few weeks our morning meeting
will contain a greeting, sharing, and activity, but towards the middle and end of the year, I will
combine the greeting and sharing, and then move on to the activity. For example, for the first few
weeks I might do a greeting to learn names, such as acting out the verb that matches their name
before I move on to sharing their favorite color or holiday. However, as the weeks go on,
students will remember each others name so rather than focusing on names I want to focus on
activities that will create a stronger bond, such as building a human knot, or telephone.
Towards the middle of the year I would love to have students take over morning meeting and
pick different activities and sharing ideas that they would like to lead. The class will refer to
these individuals as our Morning Meeting Presidents and must give them their full attention and
only ask them for directions. Letting my students lead morning meeting will allow them to feel
like they have a voice in the classroom. My main goal is to have students look forward to
morning meeting every day as a chance to share news with their classmates and accomplish
activities as a team. Every day at the close of morning meeting, the circle will huddle together
and chant, Before you speak, think and be smart. Its hard to fix a wrinkled heart. This will set

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the tone of our day throughout the year and let students know that bullying in our community is
unacceptable.
As far as seating arrangements go, I want each student to get to sit next to each other, so
every other week our seats will change. I will have students pick a category such as favorite
color, holiday, animal, food, etc. and it is their job to find a person with the same answer and sit
next to that person. I will make sure to tell them that they cannot pick a person that they have
already sat with. This way, each student is in control of mingling and choosing the seating
arrangement. As the teacher, if problems arise I will step in and change the seating for the benefit
of instruction.
At the end of the year, when students walk into class there will be a red carpet in the
middle of the room. At the end of the red carpet there will be a big sign that displays the number
of the next grade. For example, for first graders the sign at the end of the carpet will be 2nd grade,
signifying to them that they made it on their journey to the next grade. Students will surround the
carpet and clap for each student as they strut down the runway. When they reach the end, I will
ask students if they remember their 15 Seconds of Fame from the beginning of the year. Instead
of shouting out facts about themselves, I will instruct them to shout out their favorite things
about the class or specific classmates. After doing so, I will hand them a collage that I made out
of the post-its from myself and other students throughout the year. I feel this is a perfect way to
end the school year because it shows students that all the positive and creative things that they
did that school year were meaningful and appreciated.

Routines and Strategies

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People say that breakfast is the most important part of the day and a smoothly running morning
routine is no different. The morning routine is the breakfast of the school day because if the day
does not start off organized/stimulating, then the rest of the day will continue to fall downhill.
Because of this, as a teacher I want my morning routine to get students excited for the day and
aware of their expectations for learning and behaving. Paula Denton states that, as children
become increasingly familiar with expectations for behavior within the classroom, we can take
advantage of opportunities for learning beyond the classroom walls. What this says to me is that
routines and strategies are what keeps the student and teacher on the same page emotionally and
educationally. Without routines and strategies, a day in a classroom would most likely feel like
complete and utter chaos. Without structure, students start to stray away from tasks at hand and
attempt to build their own structure of what they think the classroom should be like.
My Morning Routine:
Every morning I will be standing at the door to greet each student. I make sure to talk to every
student even if its just to say good morning, that way right when they come in they already feel
included for the day. Once they come in the classroom they are expected to put their book
bags/coats away in their personal cubbies. Students should take out the notebook that they need
and place it on their table bin so that they are not going to their backpack in the middle of the
day. After settling their personal belongings, students head over to the morning meeting area and
find their place on the rug. Before they start on morning work, its important that as a class we sit
down, get acquainted, and share any news we have in order for our class to feel more like a unit.
When morning meeting is over, students will go back to their seats and complete whatever is
instructed on the board for morning work. If they finish before time is up, students can go to the
front of the room to the mason jar filled with popsicle sticks. On each stick is an activity for them

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to complete such as drawing a picture using only shapes, practice writing numbers, make a
picture book, draw and label a picture, read silently, make up silly sentences, practice
spelling/vocab, or write a letter to the teacher. If the whole class finishes ahead of time I can do a
read aloud to them because it is always nice to fit in as many read-alouds as I can every day.
Before the morning ends we will go over morning work as a class.
How I Plan on Implementing My Morning Routine:
On the first day as I greet each student that comes in, I will be handing them a cutout of a
Disney character. In order for the student to find their assigned seat, they will have to search for
their matching Disney character among the desks in the room. For example, if I give Sally
Princess Ariel, she then has to go around the room and find the desk with Prince Eric taped too it.
After all students are seated I will have them stand up and we will take a walking tour of our
classroom with the first stop being the personal cubbies where they will store their book bags.
We will end our tour at the morning meeting rug where we will get to know each other through a
game or activity, such as stating our name and something we love that starts with the same letter.
After this meeting is over the last thing I want the students to do is work with me to create the
classroom rules. When they come in the next day the rules will be displayed by the bulletin board
as well as taped to their desk as a smaller version.
On the second day, I will greet students and remind them to place their book bags in the
cubbies before sitting down. On this day I will not have them do morning work, but rather
introduce them to the concept of the popsicle sticks in the mason jar. Each student will pick out a
popsicle stick while I tell them that this is what they will do if they finish their work early. After
they finish their activity we will share and also go over the classroom rules we set before moving
on for the day.

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On the third and fourth day I will again remind students about book bags and expect them
to find their seat on the morning meeting rug. We will play more name strategy games and focus
on getting to know each other. On these two days I will have morning work displayed on the
elmo for the students. I will go over instructions as well as go over their final product of work.
For the next two weeks, I expect to have some confusion with remembering schedules, but I will
be more than willing to clarify any steps that the students are confused about. If my clarification
does not seem to improve the problem, I will definitely modify my morning routine to better fit
my students.
Strategies:
My first strategy has to do with helping students keep from disrupting others while in
line. To do this, I will have students make a bubble with their mouth by puffing out their cheeks.
Ill explain to them that it is very important to keep quiet in the hallways so that we dont disrupt
the other lovely learners in the school. I will go on to tell them that if they talk they will pop their
bubbles and that we will need all bubbles intact to make our day wonderful. This strategy will
help students to see how important their contribution of staying quiet in line really is. Its
important to stress to them that we should not disturb others while they are learning because they
wouldnt want someone to shout through the halls and disturb their learning.
My second strategy is something that will use to help me with transitions. I plan on
buying a little disco ball that lights up with vibrant colors and plays music for the front of the
classroom. Whenever the students finish an activity I will start the disco ball and tell them that
they have three minutes until the disco ball will stop and by that time they should be in their
assigned seats, with their materials on their desk, and eyes towards the front ready to learn. If the
time runs out and there are some students left standing up or unprepared then those individuals

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will have to explain to me why they were not prepared on time and what he or she can do to
make sure they pass the time test the next time. It would also be great to see if students can
improve their time and eventually go from three to two to one minute, or maybe even seconds to
being ready. This will be a fun way to get students up and ready for the next lesson planned and
it puts students in charge of starting class on time.
Culturally Responsive Teaching
All of my English Language Learners (ELL) that I will have in my classroom all have
traditions and values that are constructed differently than my own. Not only do they have to learn
a new language, but they also have the challenge of adjusting to new social norms and a cultural
setting that they have never seen before. I will put myself in their shoes and imagine what it
would be like to be thrust into an environment where I dont understand the rules or the
expectations of my teacher. I hope to use these culturally responsive strategies to help clarify any
confusion the ELLs will experience with learning their new mainstream culture.
First off, its important to learn their names and pronounce them correctly. A student can
start to feel self-conscious about themselves if their teacher and classmates are constantly
mispronouncing their name. In hopes of avoiding this, I will ask my student to say their name
multiple times while I repeat it back to them to make sure I have it correct. Then, I will have the
students recite their name the correct way so that other classmates have clarification on the
pronunciation. For the first week I will have name tags for each of the students that spells out the
pronunciation of their name. For example Sacagawea would be (SACK-UH-JUH-WAY-UH).
I plan on seating my ELL learners close to my desk to allow for one on one assistance.
Whenever I give my instructions to the class, I will then go over to my ELLs and reiterate the

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instructions to verify that they understand the directions and objectives. A lot of the times, they
may smile and nod during whole class discussions, but that does not show full understanding. By
offering friendly coaching to only them, it will allow to see themselves as a priority to the
teacher. In addition to, they will also be assigned a peer partner that they can work on
assignments with and ask questions to if I am ever unavailable. Not only are they getting more
clarification on assignments, but also experience with socializing.
The biggest thing for me that would throw me off if I were an ELL would be
sitting in a classroom and not knowing where anything is. I can post signs throughout the room
that label objects in both languages. For example, book/libro, chair/silla, and bathroom/bano.
Students will then feel comfortable with their immediate surroundings because they know how to
identify everything.
Lastly, one of the biggest things I plan to do for my ELLs is to invite their culture into
every school day. Every day I will talk to them in their first language, whether I am saying,
Muy Bueno! when they get something right, or, Buenos Dias! when we are leaving each
other. This shows to them that I am making an effort to understand their language. At the
beginning of each week, we will have a show and tell, where the ELL learners can bring in an
object or a story from their culture to share with the class. I want to make sure to include my non
ELL learners as well, so when it is their turn they can either bring in something from their
culture, or questions about a culture they want to learn about. As a class, we can look at those
questions and learn about the culture as a group. On my side, I will invite culture by providing
books that represent main characters or settings from different cultures. Children seem to
comprehend better when learning about things that are familiar and relatable, so it is important to
bring those types of book into our library.

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All in all, I want my ELL learners and other students to learn about each other and feel
comfortable with their surroundings. As the teacher, I want to be fair to each student and
consistent in holding students accountable for their actions once they are clear of the
expectations of the class.

References

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Charles, C. M. (2002). Linda Albers Cooperative Discipline. In Building classroom discipline. (pp. 6784). Boston: Allyn and Bacon.
Denton, P., & Kriete, R. (2000). The first six weeks of school. Turners Falls, MA: Northeast Foundation
for Children, Inc.
Levin, J. Nolan. J. (2010). The principals of classroom management: a professional decision making
model. Boston. Pearson.