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Volume 4, No. 1
6 August, 2004
[To view this newsletter on line:
http://www.emck.net/eline/04_08_06.htm]
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 The E-Line goes database!
There's a
whole new look, power,
and flexibility to the
archives! Access the resource reviews from the
pages of
The E-Line directly!
Take a look! |
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In this issue: Helps on
classroom organization and design, and first-day class exercises! |
 Feng Shui and
your classroom
"Can the shape of a hallway discourage bullying in schools? Can more windows
even out the gap between rich and poor students? Can a simple change of paint
increase test scores, or carpeting make a math whiz out of the class clown?..."
So starts a 2001 New York Times
article by Kate
Zernike (we found it on the University of Wisconsin
College of Engineering's
School Design Research School
site). Designers Debra Keller and Renee Heiss both think so - they have books out
on using the ancient Chinese art of Feng Shui in designing classrooms.
As teachers, of course, we can't move walls and windows,
incorporate water features, and allow for the movements of the solar system
(too many "Trading Spaces" this summer, I'm afraid!). But this edition of The E-Line
gives some helps on how to look at classroom design, and
whether physical arrangement can help with our classroom management and
instructional goals.
Also, look for our annual collection of first-day activities
and resources below. Be sure to check our past issues on this subject,
August 16, 2002 and
August 8, 2003.
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Physical Space |
 Arranging
Your Classroom
http://www.learnnc.org/newlnc/newteach.nsf/doc/arranging?OpenDocument
The
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Education
provides Learn NC, and this
excellent collection of resources on classroom arrangement. There is a
general discussion of the issues with simple, graphic representations of
the various classroom designs. Particularly nice are the specific
classroom examples on several grade levels, with descriptions, ideas,
and illustrative pictures. |
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 Classroom
Organization - the Physical Environment
http://teacher.scholastic.com/professional/futureteachers/classroom_organization.htm
"'Arrange the room so that you can make eye contact with
every student and reach each student with ease,' suggests sixth-grade
teacher Jane Baird...." This and many other excellent ideas and
suggestions are a part of Linda Shalaway's book Learning to Teach . .
. not just for beginners. Scholastic, its publisher, offers this
page of excerpts from the book. |
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 Teachers
as Placemakers: Investigating Teachers' Use of the Physical Learning
Environment in Instructional Design
http://schoolstudio.engr.wisc.edu/placemakers.html
University of Wisconsin's School Design Research Studio
(see above) supplies this scholarly article by UW's Dr. Jeffery A. Lackney and The University of Texas at
San Antonio's Dr. Paul J. Jacobs. The authors draw conclusions from
several case studies. Particularly interesting is their discussion of
"territorial" vs. "functional" classroom arrangement needs, and how both
play out in practice. |
 Do
Seating Arrangements and Assignments = Classroom Management?
http://content.educationworld.com/a_curr/curr330.shtml
This article by Diane Weaver Dunne from Education World's
"Teacher's Lounge" archives quotes liberally from experts and
practitioners. There is even a discussion of the merits of assigned
seats. (Don't forget to look at Education World's
Back to
School Guide for beginning of the year teaching ideas!) |
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First Day Activities and Helps |
 First
Day Checklist
http://www.kinderkorner.com/chklist.html
KinderKorner is a shell for selling children's books and
other teacher resources. This free checklist, appropriate for primary level
teachers, has a lot of things to think about. The site also provides this
collection of first day
activities (there are books for sale spaced throughout, but most are
simple and free ideas). |
 Three
lesson ideas from Teacher Talk
http://www.indiana.edu/%7Ecafs/tt/v1i2/great.html
It's tough to find high school-appropriate first day
activities online! Maintained by Indiana University's
Center for Adolescent and
Family Studies, Teacher Talk (featured in our
August 2, 2002 edition)
offers these ideas. The first is for elementary, but the other two are great
high school first-day activities. One uses a simple electrolysis device, the
other is based on Thoreau. |
 First
Day of School Lesson Plans
http://www.lessonplanspage.com/BeginSchool.htm
This omnibus listing has bunches of ideas. Some are
fleshed-out and printable lessons, some are just brief descriptions, but
there's something for almost everybody - from music to foreign language! |
 Back
to School Printables from Teaching Heart
http://www.teachingheart.net/backtoschoolprintables.html
Specializing in K-3, and buried in cute graphics, Teaching
Heart provides a handful of instructional links and resources, including
this page of printables, for the first day of school. Activities are in Word
format, and there are other printable graphics and bulletin board materials
in a variety of formats. |
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