Classroom Management

I am reflecting upon the classrooms on this website:
http://www.netc.org/classrooms@work/index.html

I teach third grade, so I was focusing on the classroom of Jane Krauss. To keep students working well in groups she has every student keep a Daily Effort Diary. They record how well they participated and group accomplishments. I really like this idea because it keeps them accountable and makes them aware of their own actions. In my room we have a lot of discussions of accountability and good character, but nothing quite so tangible. I also put a lot of thought into groupings of my students. Sometimes they are mixed groups and sometimes ability groups. I always take behavior issues students have into account when I place them in groups as well. I think having a good combination of students in a group sets it up to be successful. Students do need to eventually learn how to work well with all their peers, but I am still scaffolding that skill.

In Ms. Krauss’ classroom she divides her class in half and schedules computer time simultaneously with classroom work time. This way, only half the number of students will be working in each room. She also has computer software that alerts her if students get off task while researching. Halfway through the period her students switch. She always allows them time to switch and get settled and figure out what they are doing. This is a very efficient use of time and space on her part. She wouldn’t have room otherwise to get her entire class in the computer lab at once. The only time my students get to use the computer lab is when they are in technology special every Tuesday. When we need to do research we use iPads in our mainstream classroom. Because of iPad availability we usually do this research in small groups.

Some disadvantages in this school include tables instead of desks so students do not have their supplies with them at their work space. Another is that the computer lab is small and only has 9 computers and it is several rooms away. The teacher is unable to monitor both sets of students. The advantages include that having smaller spaces means forcing the class to split, and therefore be less distractions for students and easier to manage.  Because our school was just built we have a lot of building advantages. We have two full computer labs in addition to our classroom iPads. 

	What strategies does this teacher use to keep students organized and managing their group work?	How are computers and non-computer activities scheduled in this classroom?  How do students rotate or move from activity to activity?	What are the advantages and disadvantages of the workspace arrangements in this classroom and school?	In what ways do these teachers optimize available technology, time, and space?	In what ways do these strategies offer learning that is interactive and productive?
Animal Research Report	-Checklists of all required steps in the project -Research folders -Color coding -Differentiation for ability level	-Daily 90 minute literacy centers -Time in the computer lab -Printing websites for research	-Must schedule computer lab time around standardized testing + Gives the students an opportunity to use printed resources	-Literacy centers to see as many students in small group setting as possible -Having students print internet articles when the lab is not available	-Students can find info immediately      -Lesson in value of technology               -The product is easy to view and easy to preserve
Travel USA	-Daily effort diary to self monitor behavior -Group jobs like paper clip person	-Simultaneous scheduling of classroom work and computer lab work with a switch in the middle	-Small student lab with not enough computer for a whole class + Allows for centers and smaller groups	-Splitting the class in half -Scheduling blocks of time to work	-Teaches using the Internet with a specific purpose
It’s a Wild Ride	-Step by step directions -Red books of tasks -Group progress reports	-Everyone starts in their assigned room and moves according to what they are working on	-Confusing continually changing schedules -Technology in many different places + Lots of tech resources	-Daily schedules posted for students to see -Utilizing lots of different technology resources	-Technology helps the students explore new concepts on their own
Global Challenge	-Small groups -Rotation through activities -Graphic organizers	-Classroom contains both work space and computer space -Project split into three phases -Rotate through different work environments	-Cannot monitor both sides of the room at once + Have computers in the room + Students don’t get as distracted because of divider wall	-Great use of space, divided in two work areas -Divide project into three phases -Rotate through centers	-Build trust with technology in the classroom -Work on life skills like working in groups
My classroom	-Keep centers short -Explicit written directions for each center -Discussions of good character and responsibility	-Rotate through centers every 15 minutes when my timer goes off -Bring iPads into the classroom, half the students on iPads and half not. Then switch -Technology specific time incorporated into content areas when needed	-Never enough technology for every student + Don’t have to share facilities with other classes	-Schedules posted -Centers for teacher to work with small groups daily -Borrows technology from other teachers when needed	-Centers puts responsibility on the students to be accountable for their own learning -Can accomplish many small tasks in one class period