Classroom design

Nira Dale's youTube video about classroom design is such a great reminder that using new technology is not always a student's first choice.

Creating with and without technology
In my first year of teaching K-8 computers, I also found that students needed art supplies for the creative process.  The markers and colored pencils on the right shelf were used often.

Initially I stocked these supplies for my K-2 students as I did not want them on the computer for the whole period.  However I quickly noticed that older students were drawn to anything on the shelf -  straws, construction paper, big dice, funny pointers, etc.  In my focus on teaching tech skills, I can forget that creative play is fun and necessary for any age, and even the newest technology can't compete with a jar of Playdoh.

Low tech decor

I wanted the lab to feel like any other classroom with seasonal decor, student work displayed, and fun posters so students would feel at ease.  I captioned the retro VW poster, "Be an original..." to remind students to always cite online sources and also to create, not copy.   Colorful, older mismatched chairs were a fun way to brighten up the room.

This room had some great windows.  I brought in live plants to make the classroom feel more like a house, less like a lab.  (During class, these were spread around the room.) As you can imagine, it was quite crowded so unless it was raining, I left windows open as much as possible to "air out" the room.

These were simple ways I tried to make the computer lab less daunting and more comfortable for students.  If I had a choice, I would have preferred a different room layout but this one was already in place and did fit 33 workstations into a very small room, complete with an ethernet connection for each station and a ceiling projector/whiteboard for the teacher.

What do you think?   Too cluttered?  What does your classroom look like?