My classroom environment will be
one of mutual respect, consideration, and appreciation. My goal is to communicate to my students the
importance of supporting and lifting each other up, especially in a performance
based class like choir. Some of the strongest
friendships I’ve known have come from making music together because there has
to be such respect and trust in an ensemble for it to be successful. That respect and support will be my highest
expectation that I set of my students, and if they can master that, that will
take care of a lot of the behavioral problems that may arise. Research has been shown that expectations (of
the teacher or students) can make or break a classroom. If a teacher comes in to class with negative
expectations of herself and her students, then the chance of success is
dramatically lowered. But, if the teacher has high expectations of herself as
an educator, has high expectations of her students, and communicates those
expectations from a place of support and confidence, then the chance of success
in her classroom goes way up (Wong, 2009, pg. 42). As a teacher, I plan to make my expectations
high, clear, and positive to assure that my students have the best chance at
success that I can give.
On the first day of class, I will
go over the classroom rules and routines and let them know a brief outline of
what they will be doing for the year. I
will start implementing my classroom management on that very first day to set
the tone and make sure no student thinks they will just get by and be
disruptive in my class. But because I
don’t want to just be strict, I will also plan some get-to-know-you activities
for the first week so that we can all start connecting and supporting each
other.
For the first week of class, every day will have a different
temporary seating chart that I will use to observe how students interact with
each other. At the end of the first week, I will use my notes to create a
final, official seating chart that keeps disruptive students surrounded by
students who are not easily distracted and that puts advanced students near
somewhat shy, underachieving students to make sure that the students who might
fall behind have someone next to them who is up to speed. My lessons will be concise
and active, my lectures brief (10 min or less) ensuring that we get to spend as
much time as possible making music and as little time as possible just
listening to me talk.
Most importantly, every day I will
make an effort to connect with at least one student. I will give them reflection sheets at the end
of the week to get feedback on the classroom structure, lesson content, student
experience, and overall wellbeing of each student. I want each of my students to know that their
voices are valued and that I am here to help them succeed in any way that I
can.
Wong, H. K., & Wong, R. T. (1991). The first
days of school. Sunnyvale, Calif.: Harry K. Wong Publications.