top 5

Because my experience in the classroom is somewhat less than adequate for addressing my top five ingredients for an active learning environment please consider them to be more than flexible.

ORGANIZED STRUCTURE is something that I find very important throughout my own life and daily routines. I feel like having a clear idea of what is to be expected in the classroom is something that I've always found worked well for me as a student. That isn't to say that I actually do a good job at doing this myself. In fact when I did teach a class to adults I planned each day one day in advance before I was to teach it. I had no syllabus no nothing. I guess in this respect, the students learned to expect that each day would be something new and maybe a surprise. The structure was that it would be on the same subject matter at the same time every week. With kids, maybe your activities would differ each day but as long as you were consistent with the time allotments then things would go smoothly. If the kids know what to expect and how long certain subjects last they will be less likely to ask the teacher when do they get to do something else.

BATHROOM BREAKS OFTEN should be available in a manner so that the kids can go when they need to. This should be obvious unless I am missing some kind of hazard to which this shouldn't be allowed. If you do not like being interrupted or having kids leave in the middle of instruction than make that clear to the students and give them ample opportunities to go when it would not upset your teaching.

VISUAL AIDS I guess what I imagine for my own classroom are plenty of maps and posters of interesting things that should be clearly visible to the students. Maps I think should be available on all sides of the room so that no student should have any difficulty investigating an inquiry comfortably. I remember when I was a child and the maps were all pull-down maps at the front of the class that were only accessed by the teacher whenever they felt like it. Today in Jan's class I wanted to consult a map to figure out which lake it was that was in Uganda but I had no map. At least I have a good visual map of Africa and where Uganda is already because I took an active interest in learning such things. Many people will have an easier time figuring out spatial relations in the world if maps are easily accessible.

ENCOURAGE CRITICAL THINKING As far as I'm concerned the primary value I want to instill into my kids is the active engagement of critical analysis. Who wrote this book? Is this information really accurate? Etc. Of course this is all age dependent, but when I am with a fifth grade class I feel like they are ready to engage the world with a critical eye. As far as world affairs are concerned, having kids at this age examine historical wrongs and rights will not only allow them to see the world differently but also empower them to want to make a difference.

START OFF THE MORNING WITH FOCUS What I mean here is to start off the morning with an extended period of meditation or yoga. This can be done and I have seen it done and when it is implemented the kids come out much more calm and focused and ready to learn and discuss. This could be for just a few minutes to up to 15 or 20 minutes if you are so lucky.

I believe children need to be welcomed.

I believe teachers should make their kids feel important.

I believe schools should drop standardized testing.