A classroom should be dedicated to each and every student. Because children learn in very different ways, are at different levels developmentally, have very different personalities and backgrounds, an important question we need to ask as teachers is: How can we make classrooms more accommodating and stimulating to children’s differing learning styles and behaviors? I think Ayers offers a great example of what we should be striving for in our own classrooms, creating areas that encourage creativity, discovery and surprise; areas that cater to children’s different needs and interests. A classroom should offer endless ways to succeed, should encompass students’ personal lives, and be a place where everyone feels safe, comfortable and eager to learn.
Although some of the ideas we discussed in our last Wednesday night class seemed amazing but a bit far-fetched, like building forts and lofts in your own classroom, many ideas seem entirely reasonable. We should be providing children with chairs that rock and bounce just as they do, with quiet spaces filled with pillows or stuffed animals, and desks at differing heights around the classroom.
It was so refreshing to learn how the author of “Choices, Choices, Choices,” is implementing ideas such as these in her own classroom. Realizing that children need choices throughout their day, that they learn best in many different ways and they find comfort in different spaces, this particular teacher utilized the space in her room to fulfill some of those needs in exciting, very feasible ways. I think having desks at varying heights around the classroom and allowing students more opportunities to choose by letting them decide where to sit are great. It’s clear that her students were excited about and benefiting from having more choices and it’s great to think about how these different work places are creating opportunities for more effective learning. It was also interesting to see how the change she made in her classroom encouraged her students to adopt other areas of the classroom as well. This change has given her and her students the opportunity for community building as well, she reflects, “It seems that the classroom is ours rather than mine already.” That is just so cool!
