Classroom Environment Think Sheet

Jeni Freiburger Organize Physical Space

Room Arrangement = I will have baskets in the back of my classroom. One basket will have supplies or handouts that students may need for the class, while the other one is for the students to hand in their assignments. I will bring in floor lamps to enhance the lighting for learning. Also, my desks will be in groups facing one another, while my desk is placed at the side of the room.

Displaying Content = I will have their writing assignments and projects hung up on the wall. I will also have positive posters, that have the basic educational information that the students should learn in class hanging up on the wall.

Manage Student Behavior

Positive Reinforcement = My classroom will be a positive environment, as I will come to class with a positive attitude and expect nothing less of my students. I will give them praise, and a smile or a nod of agreement when they have answered a question, gave their opinion on a subject, or have completed a task I asked them to do. I will have an incentive if everyone completes their homework on a certain day, then we will do a fun activity that has to do with the material I am teaching for that day. I will also give them an opportunity to be captain of an activity or first in line. I will use phrases such as fantastic job or awesome way to look at that situation.

Zero-tolerance for Inappropriate Behavior = In my classroom there will be a zero-tolerance policy in effect for disrespect, racism, putdowns, and bullying. If any of these are addressed in my classroom there will be consequences for their actions such as detention, staying after with me for a discussion on why these are against the rules, extra homework, a note home to the parent or guardian, a parent/guardian meeting/phone call with me, getting sent to the principle, and a meeting with the principle.

Consistency of Enforcement = Consistency in my classroom will be every day. I will give positive reinforcement and enforce my zero-tolerance policy. I will treat everyone as an equal, this including everyone will receive the same disciplinary action if needed.

Establish a Culture for Learning

Teach the students how to follow directions / rules =

Classroom Environment Think Sheet

Jeni Freiburger
How do we treat the content I will encourage my students to take the content seriously. The students will need to realize that the content is important, need to respect the content, and realize that they will be using this content throughout their lifetime.

How do we treat our own feelings I believe that our own feelings are very important, and we need to treat them with respect and honesty. We need to be confident in who we are and realize that we are different from other people. While being confident we need to realize that other people are different from us also. We need to be confident not cocky. How do we treat each others feelings Other peoples feelings are just as important as our own. We must respect other peoples feelings and realize that we are all different in our own beliefs and traditions. As the saying goes no one snowflake is the same as, no one person is the same. We must realize that no one is better than the other one and no culture is less important than the other culture.

Manage Classroom Procedures

Academic Activities
Homework= In the educational setting homework is very important. Homework helps us review what we have learned and for me to see developmentally where the student is at. My policy for homework will be there are no late assignments unless excused by me, for example if you are sick and cannot come to school that day or if there was a family emergency. I understand things happen so please come talk to me and we will figure something out. If you do not have an excused reason for not handing in your homework you can still hand it in, but you will lose 10 points for each day it is late. You will also get a 1 point deduction if you do not have your name on the assignment.

Classroom worksheets = For my in class worksheets, I will state before I hand them out if I want the students to work alone or in groups on it. I will give the students time to work on it in class, if it is not finished by the end of class or my time frame they can take it home and finish it, have class time tomorrow to finish it, or I will just take what they have completed and give them participation points for it. I will also walk around the classroom to make sure they are understanding the material and answer any questions they may have.
Classroom discussion = For my classroom discussions I will have the class get into a circle formation, and go around the circle to discuss that topic. I will have a sheet to mark off who

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Jeni Freiburger
participated and who did not. If the student does not want to participate on a certain topic for any reason they may use the phrase pass or skip to the next person. Eventually the student will have to participate on a certain question or they may do additional work to get their participation points.

Classroom Routines Tardy/late policy = As a teacher I will want my students to get as much learning time as they can, in order to do this I feel like the students need to get to class in a timely manner. If the student can give me a legitimate funny reason why they are late they will be free of a mark up that day. For example if they use an excuse like sorry I ran into a camel and he would not let me pass him it will be a freebie. Now there is a limit to these excuses, after 3 tardies the student must do some additional work outside of class to make up for his/her tardy. Restroom/hall pass = I understand that there is not enough time in between classes to get everything done that needs to be done, so therefore I will allow 3 hall/restroom passes. If you are legit not feeling well please let me know and you may go to the nurses office to get excused from school. Turning in student work = For many teachers turning in student work can be difficult. I will have a policy where the students will get 3 minutes before class to go over it and ask me any questions they may have. If they have no questions they will turn it in upside down, put it in the designated basket in the back of the classroom. Special Events Field trips = I believe that field trips can be very educational to students. I will have the permission slips in a basket in the back of the classroom, for the students to get 6 days in advance. I will want the permission slips handed in 3 days prior the trip. If it is not handed in by that assigned time I will assign you additional work to do. If for some reason you cannot go on the field trip I will assign an alternate assignment. The day of the field trip we will have a designated place to meet and a time that you will need to be there by. We will discuss the guidelines for the trip one or two days prior. School assemblies = School assemblies can be very hard for teachers to handle, so we will have a specific procedure if one were to occur. We will line up in an orderly fashion at the door and walk to where the assembly will be held. There will be no going to your locker or anywhere else unless addressed by me. At the assembly we will sit as a class. We will be respectful as we attend the assembly.

Classroom Environment Think Sheet

Jeni Freiburger
Substitute Teacher file = I will have an itinerary in the desk for the substitute, if I know I am going to be gone I will have the day planned out for them, so they can follow that. In a case of emergency where I do not know I will be gone I will either call the substitute or email them what I had planned for that specific day. I will expect my students to treat the substitute with the same respect as they give me. I will have the substitute address me if there are any issues and will enforce a consequence if there was any trouble.

Create an Environment of Respect & Rapport

Teach the students how to follow directions / rules = I will have a plan to discuss the rules and directions of my classroom. The first 2 days we will go over what I expect out of the students and how they should behave in the classroom. We will practice it in class and role play on what the proper following of directions and rules look like. No pass byes after these 2 days will be given.

CONSEQUENCES discipline hierarchy= -Level One- I will give a warning in class -Level Two- I will have a meeting with the student after class to discuss their behavior with them -Level Three- I will assign a detention for the student -Level Four-I will send an email home to the parent or guardian -Level Five- I will set up a parent or guardian/student meeting with me -Level Six- I will set up a principle/parent or guardian/student meeting with me

Resources
Classroom e-Tools Pecentral- http://www.pecentral.org/

Classroom Environment Think Sheet

Jeni Freiburger
Substitute Teacher File - http://www.timesaversforteachers.com/freeforms/substitutesample.pdf Ten Tips for Classroom Management