Monet

Nielsen

Room Arrangement Rationale: Prior Experience and Kidney Bean Tables

I designed my classroom for fifth grade. I have a main rug to meet at for our morning

routine such as going over our schedules, doing our daily question, and possibly our language

and content objectives for a lesson. I positioned my objective board close to our meeting area. I

like having a daily question to go with the unit as a bell ringer. No matter the unit topic there is

always fun and easy questions to ask students. I also like the idea of putting essential question(s)

up on the same board as the objectives.

Leading up to the board and class rug I put groups of student desks because I like using

table groupings as a classroom management strategy. I would have table captains to get supplies

from the storage units in front of the desks. I like having desks instead of table because students

gain more independence and I have more formations options.

I put my desk as a kidney shaped table with some kind of shelving behind it because I

like having a more open space where students can come talk to me. I also can work with more

students at once from my desk and use it for small group work. I have my kidney bean table in

the corner so I can always see my students. I can easily see into my reading library and have low

bookshelves so I can see into the literacy circle couch area. I am facing the student desks and can

easily walk to the board to add directions or move the agenda.

At the entry way to my classroom I want take home trays in the form of cubbies to make

sure students dont miss what they need to put in their backpacks. I have my Where About Board

or Student Location Board by the door so they are less likely to forget moving their stick. I

would prefer my Where About board to be magnetic and include bathroom, nurse, library, office,

and an extra space depending on what my students need that year. This organizational tool helps

keep track of where students are and creates a consistent system for going to the bathroom. The
 Monet Nielsen

what stuck with you today board on the door would not happen every day just heavy content,

field trip, assembly, or assessment days. On a board I put post-it notes where students can put

what they did and didnt like about that day to help me develop better lesson plans in the future.

At the back of my classroom I want a tables for guided activities and instruction. I love

having tables for reading groups or group inquiry projects. I also want carpet area for individual

work time. On my bulletin boards I would also like to have a question board, class rules, and job

chart. A question board is pre-made generic questions and answers you can put up on the board.

Questions could include What can I use? and the answer could be glue, scissors, pencil, colored

pencils. At the beginning of the year my class would create a list of rules with some suggestions

from me and all sign.

All parts of a childs development and learning is important including, cognitive,

emotional, social, and physical are interconnected and influence each other. I believe that a

classroom needs to focus on developing many skills beyond what will be assessed on high stakes

testing. It is also important for my curriculum to cater to my students interests and be culturally

relevant. Every classroom has a social dynamic and a teacher needs to understand it, manipulate

it, and create a positive outcome which is why I believe in assigned seating. Assigned seating can

help students create new social circles (although sitting together does make you friends) and can

break up unhealthy habits students might bring out in each other that can affect other students

learning environment. Seating assignments can also help create groups that will gain a lot from

each others perspectives and learning styles.

A teacher must use their knowledge of child development to recognize patterns in

their own students and plan accordingly with diversification. I will add onto all of the students
 Monet Nielsen

prior knowledge along with build onto their current mastery level with developmental

appropriate practices.

All students vary in the way they develop and learn so it is important to create a space

where it is easy to differentiate between learners and adapt student learning styles. My table in

the back and my kidney bean desk can help me separate students into small groups to get more

individualized attention.

I believe that all students develop best when having safe, positive, consistent

relationships with adults and peers I like bucket fillers and warm fuzzies. Students learn from

each other and are influenced by social and cultural contexts. I like this developmentally

appropriate principle because I think it is extremely important for students to respect each other

cultural and social values in the classroom because we can all learn from each other. A teacher

must also be able to adapt to different students because their learning tendencies will depend on

their funds of knowledge and so will their communication dispositions. Culturally relevant

pedagogy is extremely important to keeping children engaged and motivated as wells as

empowering the children to confront social inequalities and to fight for what they believe in. I

like the idea of allowing students to bring in pictures of their families, safe spaces, or comforting

objects to put in frames around the classroom.

Students learn from each other and are influenced by social and cultural contexts. I like

this developmentally appropriate principle because I think it is extremely important for students

to respect each other cultural and social values in the classroom because we can all learn from

each other. A teacher must also be able to adapt to different students because their learning

tendencies will depend on their funds of knowledge and so will their communication

dispositions. Culturally relevant pedagogy is extremely important to keeping children engaged

 Monet Nielsen

and motivated as wells as empowering the children to confront social inequalities and to fight for

what they believe in.

I agree that children must be challenged to work just beyond their current mastery level. I

will check through little assessments such as hands up to check for understanding. I plan to do

exit tickets to help me go over what was not understood and move on when students have

gained mastery. My what stuck with you today board can be used to check for content

knowledge as well as how well a particular activity worked. I will give students plenty of time to

practice skills through small amounts of already learned homework, assessment, and small group

work.
 Monet Nielsen

References

Evertson, C., & Emmer, E. (2012). Classroom Management for Elementary Teachers (9 edition
ed.). Pearson.

National Association for Early Childhood Education (2009). Developmentally

Appropriate Practice in Early Childhood Programs Serving Children from Birth

through Age 8. Retrieved from http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/

position%20statement%20Web.pdf.

Room Arrangements
Monet Nielsen