Linking with {6th Grade} All-Stars

I'm beginning to realise that I'm very interested in what other teachers are doing and a great way to find out is through blogs. I recently stumbled across {6th Grade} All-Stars. It's always helpful to see what others teachers are experiencing and share the wonderful things that happen in classrooms across the world. I thought I would impart my (limited!) wisdom...

1. I teach in a very isolated outback Australian community. Our school has about 160 students enrolled from prep to grade 10. I teach in the secondary department. I teach grade 9 English, grade 8 English, grade 7 English, Study of Society & Environment and Science. However, for the past two years I have taught grade 6 (all key learning areas).

2. The best advice I received in my first year of teaching is "Don't be afraid to get it wrong". As teachers we often seem to think we have all the answers but (while we do have most of the answers!!) we do get stuff wrong. The most important thing is to learn from whatever mistakes you make and don't be afraid to acknowledge that things aren't working and be brave enough to try something different to fix it! 

3. #1 - your planning - obviously you need to know what you are doing!  

#2 student desks - I start off with a bit of variety of rows, groups and single desks just until I get an idea of the students (I also explain to them on the first day that they can choose their own desk but it may change)

#3 my desk - this is a surprisingly important area and must be managed to suit your needs to avoid a paper avalanche 5 weeks into the semester. If you have a filing cabinet - USE IT! Have lots of basic stationery and sticky notes. Sometimes an "inbox" can be helpful for anything important (which you will find is most things!)

#4 digital resources - make sure your laptops/computers/interactive whiteboard etc is all hooked up and ready to go

#5 environmental print - posters, classroom rules, curriculum materials - spend the time to make your classroom look the way you want it to look...but you MUST leave space for things that you and your students create together!

4. I think it is important to have "a nice spot"! This might include a rug, some beanbags, a pot plant, fish tank...it's just a place to sit and read or listen to quiet music or talk. I've only just realised how important a spot like this is. Other imperative things are reading materials that kids actually enjoy (a nice mix of books, magazines, comics, newspapers etc). 

5. Classroom rules display- it is so important to set expectations. Being clear from the first moment means that everything else flows easily. It's about establishing transparent guidelines so that nobody is confused about what they are doing. Displaying the rules gives you the opportunity to refer to them as necessary and also gives you an opportunity to introduce the rules and expectations easily on the first day. A good way to do this is with WWH (what are we doing, why are we doing it, how are we doing it).