A Classroom Tour

The key to success in any classroom is consistency. When students are provided with structure, routines, clear expectations, and an organized learning environment the classroom quite often runs itself!

I spent hours planning my classroom before I moved a single piece of furniture!  I started by determining what I would need to make my room fit my needs and the needs of my students.  I jotted down some ideas and ended up creating a list of all the areas in the classroom I thought I might need.

A weeks worth of work (and A LOT of friends/family helping along the way)… and I present you with Room 125.

The Meeting Area:  The meeting area is the hub of the classroom. It is where everyone comes together as a community to learn, share and celebrate! I am lucky enough to have a SMARTBoard here, so this area will serve as our morning meeting area, sensory break area and work with SMARTBoard area.

Schedule Area:  Visual schedules are extremely important in my classroom.  I have my individual schedules posted along our wall of cupboards.

Student Seating:  Each student has their own space to work, as well as their own set of drawers to help them keep organized.  Students in my classroom will be completing their desk work here individually with the support of one of the staff.

Computers/iPads:  We are lucky enough to have two sets of classroom computers and 5 classroom iPads!!

Listening Centre:  While listening centers are common in primary classrooms, they are also very beneficial with the intermediate grades as well.

Work with Teacher Table:  This is an area where I can work one-to-one with my students.  I have one drawer for each student behind the table to keep organized.

Table Time:  These are my independent work stations… but that’s a whole other post in itself!  Stay tuned!!

White boards/Bulletin Boards:  Each board has a very specific purpose in my classroom.  A small tip:  Create a more organized look and make it easier for students to locate the information they need by sectioning off your white board.

Home-School Communication Books:  In any classroom, especially an Autism Community Class, establishing a consistent means of daily home-school communication is so incredibly important.  These mailboxes and communication binders have helped establish a systematic and organized method of communication (and my students are involved in the process too!)

Group Area:  The group table will serve two purposes:  an area to have snack/lunch, and an area for our special activities (social skills, cooking, board game competitions, etc.

Staff Area:  When it comes to a Community Classroom, there’s a lot of team members who come and go (EAs, OTs, supply EAs, etc).  I wanted to dedicate a board solely for the staff of the room to make sure all the information needed to be successful in our classroom was readily available!

That wraps up my classroom tour!  I will leave you with some tips that I've jotted down along the way:

- put centers that require plugs near outlets

- use shelves, dividers, or tables to divide centers

- create physical visual boundaries for all areas of the classroom (using furniture, book shelves, tape on the floor, desks, room dividers, etc.)

- put chairs of the same color & size at the same tables

- ensure that there is sufficient space and chairs for all groups at each classroom center

- use bookshelves as dividers near classroom centers that will need materials during the school day

- limit clutter by storing all materials in bins with covers

- label all material bins

- leave space for students to wait in line when entering & leaving the room

- ensure that all furniture is age appropriate in size and appearance

- leave space for schedules and communication devices that can accessed easily throughout the day without disruption to other centers

- store items that are not commonly used out of the way

- remove or hide all distracting items

- designate a safe space to be used when students need to calm down and/or regulate behaviour

**Special thanks to:  My Mommabear and Daddio, Angela D, Jessica K, Chris S, Kennedy C, Jessica L, Skylar L and Kylie L for all your help laminating, cutting and velcroing! 

Keep clam and teach on!
- S