Learning Space Redesign

My Space

My current classroom has gone through a lot of redesign in my short 2.5 years teaching. It started looking like a very typical lower elementary classroom, with tables taking up the majority of the room, focused on the front where my large teacher desk sat. My tables were large kidney tables that were poorly designed and only fit 3 kids comfortably, 4 if we squeezed in. At the beginning of my second year, I was purchased new tables by my building to fit more students more comfortably as well as take up less space, but it was still very teacher centered and typically functioning with assigned seats.

 

My first year

My second year (beginning)

 

Last spring, I did a Donor’s Choose project to fund flexible seating in my classroom and it has totally transformed my classroom and teaching philosophy. My students now have no seating chart or assigned seats, and have freedom to choose where they want to sit for each activity. My classroom is small and has several build in cabinets which cause a big restraint on how I can set up, but changing to flexible seating has shifted my focus to my students instead of me as a teacher.

My Redesign

I kept my classroom the same size as it currently is, which is definitely my biggest restraint when configuring my classroom. Flexible seating was very important to me to keep in a classroom redesign. I decided to take out the cupboards that are built into my room and the shelving that is currently in my classroom and minimize it to reduce clutter. I added in build in shelves on the wall that are like a bar that students can sit and work at with a white board above. The white board would give me the ability to add instructional tips or hints for them to use (ex. reading strategies or word families) that not only students sitting in that area could see but students in the whole classroom. I also put a lower one in the front so students who may want to sit on the floor could also sit and work at that type of seating.

I kept my tables and flexible seating because it gives me the option to group students in any way I need so they can collaborate and work together. It also gives them many different spaces to work in to promote project based learning. It could easily give way to personalized learning with projects and potentially partners if they choose to work together. Flexible seating gives students power and voice in the classroom which are both aspects of personalized learning.

For big changes, I added more open windows than I currently have, taking up the whole wall. This would allow tons of natural light which is listed by Barrett, Zhang, Moffat and Kobbacy as a factor for student success. I also added many lamps on tables and the floor and string lights on the wall so that even on gloomy days, the fluorescent lights will not need to be turned on. I also changed the flooring from tiling to carpet. This would reduce the noise of chairs and feet on the floor and give students the ability to sit more comfortably anywhere in the room, not just in a chair. My current classroom is equipped with a class set of clipboards, so students can sit wherever they choose but they always gravitate towards the carpet because it is softer. By adding carpet everywhere, it will open up even more options to them.

Implementation

I have a unique situation in my district where we have just passed a bond and are building a new wing for kindergarten so in the next 2-3 years, I will have a brand new classroom. While the likelihood of the big changes I made happening in my current classroom are slim to none, the chances of some of these ideas being built into our new wing are much more likely so I dreamed a little big! Changing a classroom in the ways I’ve detailed would cost thousands, but since we are building from scratch I’m hoping to take my current furniture to keep with my design and have some unique characteristics that will lead to a more personalized learning, maker centered classroom.

References

Barrett, P., Zhang, Y., Moffat, J., & Kobbacy, K. (2013). A holistic, multi-level analysis identifying the impact of classroom design on on pupils’ learning. Building and Environment, 59, 678-689. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.buildenv.2012.09.016