I think it’s safe to say that I’m slowly transitioning into school mode. It’s inevitable and happens every year, but the month of August seems to fly by as a new school year approaches. Over the past few weeks I’ve bought items for my classroom and have started some planning here and there. Next week I’m planning on dropping by my room and start the unpacking process (I changed classrooms). That is unless HGTV decides to makeover my classroom over the weekend. So right now I’m drinking coffee and being a bit reflective. I’ve opened up my planbook and am starting to ink in the first couple days. While doing this a few questions have crossed my mind.
Will students be receptive to the beginning of the year tasks/activities? Are the activities related to my content area and does that matter? Will the activities be remembered one day, five days, or even five months from now? How will the activities impact the rest of the year and how will students remember them?
Many students get excited about new tasks or activities. I find this happens quite frequently at the elementary level. The beginning of the year often yields plenty of classroom community building activities. These may or may not be associated with the content that’s taught. The emphasis is on building a positive classroom environment and often helps set the stage for the rest of the school year. During this time students often work in groups and there’s generally a reflective piece near the end where a consensus is made. Sometimes the classes develop norms and touch on the idea of growth mindset. Usually these activities end after the first few days of school. As the community building time ends students know what’s going to happen next.
A shift is approaching and then it comes. Kids know this and so do the adults. All of a sudden homework starts being assigned and lesson sequences arrive. It’s no longer “community building time” and we’re now in (insert your content area) time. It’s often expected that the norms that were established and community building will last throughout the year. It’s been established, right?
Not so much. I find that teachers have to revisit the community building, norms and other themes periodically – not just after a long break. Otherwise those themes become like the posters on classroom walls – ignored after a certain amount of time. Students are used to playing the game of school. Having novel beginning of the year activities and building a classroom community aren’t mutually exclusive. Students and teachers are often reminded that the culture of the classroom is always evolving.
There’s often a perception that teachers need to dive into curriculum as fast as possible. This is often perpetuated with scope-and-sequence guidelines and expectations. Why not blend the community building activities and your content area? That’s why I’m a fan of having math as part of the community building process. Blending in content and community building can happen and I think it helps the sudden transition that sometimes becomes apparent. I think also revisiting some of these community building activities throughout the year can give perspective and remind everyone of the importance.
Educational Aspirations 