Explore my Classroom
Welcome to the Jungle
Snack time and reading and math... oh my! When I moved into a new classroom at the beginning of the 2021-2022 school year, I coincidentally was also moving into a new house. Packing up items from my childhood home allowed me the chance to find ALL the decorations from my jungle-themed childhood bedroom... and thus the "Jungle Classroom" was born.
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Teaching Kindergarten Readiness in a rural district of Macomb County can lead to plenty of experiences with nature due to the local farming community, but not every student gets that immersion in nature. Especially teaching 20 four and five-year-old students, it's a necessity to create a learning environment that fosters the enjoyment of learning.
Repurposing my items has created a cozy and fun space for me and the students in and out of my class.
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My room is most often referred to as "The Jungle Classroom" and I have visitors of all grades come to visit our wild space!
The Chill Zone
My classroom has a Chill Zone which includes social-emotional learning tools and strategies for students to go when they are feeling some BIG feelings. This space is open to any student at any time during the day. When students need some "chill time," they are able to visit this space and utilize the materials there for 3 or 5 minutes.
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There are a few different Chill Zone spaces in the classroom ranging in privacy where students are able to bring the items as long as they show responsibility by respecting the time limit and return the items to the original zone. Additionally, we have "Chill Times" in the classroom where the lighting is changed to reflect a calmer atmosphere. During these times, the whole class completed a mindfulness activity.
Exploration Centers
We have eight different exploration centers around the classroom. Each center serves a unique purpose for learning such as collaborative learning, math and literacy skill building, technological skill building, and STEAM opportunities. My students have a free choice of visiting any of these centers at the beginning and end of each day.
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The centers are as follows: pretend play center, library center, technology center, block center, car center, writing center, art center, and math and literacy center.
Incorporating these centers into our day encourage creative learning by play and social skill building with peers
Classroom Seating
Flexible seating is prominent in our classroom. This is preferred because my students have the choice of three different seating options if they are at a table: a typical classroom chair, a wobble stool, or a log stool. All three of these seat choices provide different levels of comfort and ability.
Different areas of the classroom have different seating styles. For example, the library center has a couch, a tent with squish spots, and animal stools to sit on.
By choosing their own seat and having the opportunity to move and explore various types of seating throughout the day, students are better able to have their comfort needs met.
Sparks of Independence
Because I am preparing my students at the beginning of their school experience, fostering independence is a large part of our routines. To assist this scaffolding of independence, pieces of responsibility are introduced over the first month of school.
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These "sparks of independence" help students become confident in their routine and allow them to have leadership roles. Our current sparks include an attendance board where students check-in each morning, a classroom job chart tracking each students weekly job, a visual calendar so students are prepared for the school day, and line spots so students have a sense of spatial awareness when they are getting ready to leave the classroom.
