Room 105

I absolutely love my classroom. I imagine myself gripping the doorway with my fingers and toes if they ever tried to move me. I went to my room yesterday morning to set some things up and thought I'd share some pictures of Room 105 and some of the logic behind the setup...or what I think of as logic.

The white board at the front of the room. In the side boxes (labeled by each class), I write a quick summary of what we'll be doing in class that day as well as homework for tomorrow. This saves everyone from the tedious question, "What are we doing today?" After about a week, students get into the habit of looking at the front of the room each day when they come in.

Weekly agenda board at the front/side of the room. This is where I list homework for the week. I put assignments in the space of the day they are assigned so that if students are gone or planning on being gone, they'll have a heads up for what gets assigned. I usually update this board Monday morning before school or Friday afternoon if I'm really on top of things.
Note: This board is old and not really a dry erase board. I've had to use my spray to erase it each week. I'm planning on covering it with dry erase laminate I found at Staples for $3.99. 

I modeled the student desk layout after the classrooms in Lang Hall at UNI, where I had almost all of my English courses. The U shape has always been my favorite, especially because I do a lot of discussion-based lessons. I like that the students can all see me and each other, and I have direct one-on-one access to each student if they need help with something instead of traveling up and down rows.

The front of the room. Sometimes I teach from the podium (which I gave a fresh coat of paint and new wheels this week), but for most discussions, I sit at the extra student desk at the front. Putting myself on their level helps allow for more of a conversation feel rather than me waiting for them to give the "right answers." The big black thing on the floor in front of the white board is my stage. A shop student built it for me during my first year after noticing that I couldn't reach the top of my white board. Standing on it is also a quick way to get everyone's attention.

My desk. It's angled so that I can see both sides of the room. I covered it with contact paper from Target last spring with help from the boys in my Comp class (anything to distract them from the essay they should have been working on). 

The chalk board behind my desk. I don't use it for much except to set things on the ledge. At the top are posters from the spring play/movie and pictures of the junior high volleyball teams I've coached. The file cabinets hold assignments and handouts for each of the classes I teach. I spent a long time organizing them at the beginning of my first year, but I find that I don't have to access them as much since everything I assign and hand out is available and stored on Schoology. 

My counters and sink. My previous practice was to have students grab a textbook off the counter and put it back as needed, but after a couple book shortage days last year, I think I'll have to check them out to students individually on the first day and check them back in at the end of the year like normal. My Keurig is my life line. Our school charges a $20 appliance fee, and it's totally worth it. In the metal cabinet: coffee, sugar cubes, powder creamer, tea, tissues, and hand soap.

I started The Wall of Awesomeness my first year. It's inspired by my grandmother who had a bulletin board in her dining room on which she pinned school pictures, newspaper articles, and anything else celebrating her grandchildren. She never took down old stuff. She just kept adding to it. The students like to look at it when something new goes up, and they love to see how much they've changed from old newspaper pictures.

My classroom library. I did a thorough sifting-through last spring and threw/gave away anything that looked old and I knew wouldn't be checked out by anyone. My collection contains a combination of books I own personally and books that were left behind by my predecessor. I like that the shelves separate the traditional classroom side of the room from the "working" side of the room. 

More of the "working" side of the room. The round table is a blessing and a curse. It's great for students who need to spread out their research, but they sometimes fight over who gets to sit there. The eighth graders consider it an especial privilege to be able to move to this side of the room during free working time (and a deep, deep shame if I make them move back to their desks [evil laugh]).

This bulletin board is just inside my door. I use it to store any notes and mementos from students. No one walks by it close enough to really read it, but it serves as a nice pick-me-up for me.

This was an assignment I gave my Introduction to Literature students one day toward the end of the semester. The class was small, but I was pleased and impressed by their contributions. The Post-It note was put up by an alum who came back to visit over winter break.

A new idea I had last spring. These are pictures of the class of 2016, each holding their words of wisdom which they wrote on a white board. Some used quotes, some used their own words, and some used humor. My favorite words of wisdom: "Read the books!!!" from Dylyn.