FOR EDUCATORS OF CATTARAUGUS AND ALLEGANY COUNTIES.
  • Innovative Teaching
  • About
  • Contact
  • CABOCES.ORG/iss
  • Calendar of Events
  • AdvancingSTEM

Innovative Teaching

For Educators of Cattaraugus and Allegany Counties
We've Moved!

Our CA BOCES Innovative Teaching Blog has moved to a new location as of July 1, 2024. Please access the same great stories from around the Cattaraugus-Allegany BOCES region at our new location: CA BOCES Success Stories,
 https://casuccessstories.weebly.com

transforming classroom spaces

3/1/2018

1 Comment

 
Picture
Picture
Picture
​“I wanted my students to feel more relaxed and comfortable while they were working on tasks in my classroom.”  These words were spoken by Hinsdale 3rd Grade teacher Christine Goodling when asked about the recent transformation that has occurred in her classroom involving new seating choices and a more flexible furniture arrangement.  Mrs. Goodling continued, “I wanted to create a classroom that was more visually welcoming and engaging, while promoting more collaboration and freedom for the students to work anywhere they pleased.”
 
This might not sound groundbreaking, but there has been an influx of recent research centered around learning space design and school classrooms.  Beyond just making classrooms look appealing or eye-catching, educators around the world have started looking holistically at how schools, classrooms, and other learning spaces can be transformed for optimal student engagement.  A well-designed and thought out classroom space can provide care for students and teachers alike.  These spaces can alleviate outside stressors on students and allow them to focus on learning, while other spaces can be arranged to promote collaboration, creativity, or places for quiet, pensive thinking.
 
Using the book, The Space: A Guide for Educators by Rebecca Louise Hare and Dr. Robert Dillon, Mrs. Goodling and I set about on our journey to transform her classroom into something more learning-centered and student-friendly.  We started with a few guiding questions:
 
  • What is the purpose of the learning space?
  • Who are the spaces for?
  • What kind of behaviors do we want to encourage in these spaces?
  • What implications will come from changing these spaces?
 
First, we identified a variety of seating options for each space we were going to create using wobble stools, exercise balls, camping and gaming chairs, as well as keeping a few traditional chairs in the room should a student still prefer one of those to use.  We next identified what we thought each space in the room should be and removed items that were a hindrance to creating an open, flowing, and flexible arrangement in the classroom furniture.  Around the room, places for students to work were created on flat surfaces by applying whiteboard surface film to areas like columns between windows, on the front of the teacher’s desk, and on the sides of carts and other furniture around the room.  A few tables were brought in and replaced student desks, while pillows and beanbag chairs were added to the reading carpet area for comfort. 
 
To make these changes more meaningful and lasting, the final step in the first phase of our classroom transformation process was to sit with the students and review all of the new areas, seating choices, and classroom arrangement opportunities there were now.  The students worked as a class to identify names for each station, like the Chat Café.  They also collaborated to come up with expectations and norms regarding what was acceptable at each location around the room, and this helped to foster a sense of involvement and ownership in these new classroom spaces.  The students have welcomed this change, saying that the new arrangements and options make them feel “more comfortable,” “able to focus on our work better,” and “gives us choices for where to work and how to work around the room.”
 
By Ryan McGinnis, CA BOCES Professional Development
1 Comment
Amy Jordan
3/1/2018 12:59:46 pm

Great job Ryan and Christine!!

Reply

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    Follow us on
    ​social media

    Want to attend a professional development session offered by Instructional Support Services?  Click here to review our catalog of professional development offerings.  
    Need 24/7 access to digital classroom resources?
    Click here to access "no charge" digital resources for you and your students.

    Categories

    All
    1:1
    3d Modeling
    7 Habits
    AdvancingSTEM
    Akom
    Allegany County
    Allegany Limestone
    Alternate Assessment
    Andover
    Angela Stockman
    Anti Bullying
    Anti-bullying
    Anxiety
    APPR
    Art
    Artificial Intelligence
    Arts
    Arts In Education
    Artspower
    Arts Power
    Assessments
    Audiobooks
    Belfast
    Benchmarks
    Blended Learning
    Bolivar Richburg
    Book Study
    BPO
    Brain Based
    Breakout EDU
    Ca Boces
    Canva
    Career Day
    Career Resources
    Castle Learning
    CA Today
    Cattaraugus Little Valley
    CBT
    Clc
    CLC (collaborative Learning Community)
    Climate
    Coding
    Collaborative Project
    Common Core
    Community And Schools Together
    Community Schools
    Community Schools Service Showcase
    Community & Schools Together Conference
    Cooperative Learning
    COSER 506
    Co-teaching
    Covey
    Credit Recovery
    CRSE
    Cte
    Cuba Rushford
    Cuba-Rushford
    Curriculum Modules
    Dasa
    Data
    Dave Ruch
    Delevan Elementary
    Distance
    Distance Learning
    Diversity
    Driver Education
    Drone
    Drones
    Dyslexia
    Early Childhood
    Ebooks
    Ela
    ELA CLC
    ELA Learning Standards
    Ellicottville
    Environmental Education
    Environmental Science
    Eresources
    Esl
    Esports
    Executive Function
    Family Engagement
    Field Trips
    Field Trip Zoom
    Fillmore
    Film Festival
    Flipgrid
    Fossils
    Franklinville
    French
    Friendship
    Game Based Learning
    Game-based Learning
    Genesee Valley
    Global History
    Global Studies
    Grit
    Growth Mindset
    Health
    Hinsdale
    Houghton College
    Innovation
    Instruction
    Ipad
    Jcc
    Khan Academy
    Kimberly Morrow
    Kits
    Language Line
    Leadership
    Learning Resources
    Lego League
    Libraries
    Library
    Literacy
    Maker
    Math
    Math Clc
    Math Modules
    Matt Miller
    Media
    Mental Health
    Microsoft
    Microsoft 365
    Microsoft Teams
    Minecraft Education
    Model Schools
    Moodle
    Moodle/Mahara
    Music
    Nerdle
    Newsbank
    New Teacher Academy
    Next Generation Science
    Odyssey Of The Mind
    Olean
    Online Class
    Osmo
    Osmos
    Overdrive
    Padlet
    Parents
    Parent University
    PBL
    PE
    Physical Education
    Pioneer
    Pioneer Central School
    Pixar In A Box
    Play
    Portville
    Poverty Simulation
    Power Apps
    Power Automate
    Power Teaching
    Pre K
    Pre-K
    Professional Development
    Professional Development]
    Randolph
    Randolph Academy
    Reading
    Regents
    Regents Exam
    Remote Learning
    Resilience
    Restorative Circles
    Restorative Practice
    Re-write
    Rocket League
    Salamanca
    Scdn Social Studies
    Scholastic Challenge
    School Library
    Schoology
    Science
    Science Investigations
    Science Of Reading
    Scio
    Seesaw
    Sel
    Self Care
    Sharepoint
    SLO's
    SNAP
    Social Emotional
    Social Emotional Learning
    Social-emotional Learning
    Social Studies
    Sora
    Spanish
    Special Education
    Standards
    Star Lab
    Stem
    STEM Challenge
    Student
    Student Competitions
    Student Programming
    Student Programs
    Summer School
    Summer Tech Camp
    Tcif
    Teacher Academy
    Teaching
    TeachingBooks
    Teach Like A Champion
    Technology
    Theaterworks
    TheaterWorks USA
    Theatre
    The Mailbox
    Tier 1
    TITC
    Trauma
    TRLE
    Universal Design For Learning
    US History
    VEX
    Video Conferencing
    Virtual Field Trip
    Virtual Scholastic Challenge
    Wellsville
    West Valley
    Whitesville
    Why Try
    Writing
    Zoom
    Zulama

    Archives

    May 2024
    April 2024
    March 2024
    January 2024
    December 2023
    November 2023
    October 2023
    September 2023
    August 2023
    July 2023
    June 2023
    May 2023
    April 2023
    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    November 2016
    October 2016
    August 2016
    June 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    November 2015
    October 2015
    August 2015
    June 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    November 2013

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.
  • Innovative Teaching
  • About
  • Contact
  • CABOCES.ORG/iss
  • Calendar of Events
  • AdvancingSTEM