The Dream of a One Room School House

I was once asked, what my ideal classroom would look like as a teacher.

The first things that I would begin to implement are the comforts of home, the things that students enjoy, which are educational, yet they do not do in order to purposely, learn anything specific.

I love books, so the first thing I would include would be a wall of bookshelves in order by subject, a nice fluffy, and comfortable couch to read the books on, as well as a nice cushy chair. In the center of a nice warm and earth tone rug. Color makes a big impact on ones mood, especially in a learning environment. On the rug would be a very sturdy coffee table that has a shelf underneath. This serves as a perfect place to play board games, cards, chess, color, do puzzles and more.

The next thing that I would do is bring in a few computer workstations, about three, and create a simple home office type area, in the room. It would be equipped with so many great tools and resources such as a desktop of course, with the typical keyboard and mouse, headphones and speakers. In addition I would have a blue mic for podcasting and recording, a midi keyboard for the music lovers to record their very own demos.

A three in one, copy, flat bed scanner, fax. A full color laser printer that also does excellent print for digital photos. I would also include a digitizer for those who love doing illustration, and a few SLR cameras, a few flip cam's for video logging, and mini video productions.

One wall of the room would serve as a students art gallery, which will display various art work created by students, and possibly over size, dimensional one from the ceiling as well.

I would also like to have a really long, sturdy table for group projects and crafts. This table could also be used for students during breaks and lunch. A small kitchen with a sink, refrigerator, stove, and microwave would be near by.

It will provide an excellent opportunity for the students who love to cook, to gain some experiences, and possibly cater a few lunches, and make a few dollars. A healthy snack, juice, and water machine would be available as well.

All proceeds would go to the classroom, for more supplies, resources, and trips outside the class.

Of course I could not forget a science/Math lab for my logical students; full of equipment for experiments, models, and manipulative to help solve problem, and great amazing inventions.

Lastly there would be posters of motivational quotes, maps, and other inspirational posters and works of art, scattered throughout the classroom.

Where there aren't any walls there would be floor to ceiling window, that allow students to feel apart of the outdoors, where they often may look outside for inspiration or walk out the sliding door, onto the deck they made themselves where they tend to have lunch or paint on nice warm days.

Some students love to sit by the garden featured with a small water fountain and koi pond/garden that they add last spring.

My ideal one room school house is just that, a little bit of home, that provides endless opportunities to learn based ones natural abilities, and personal goals and objectives.