Our 'Teaching with Technology' course began yesterday and I will admit, I was a little nervous that I wouldn't have all of the technology necessary to meet the class requirements. Ironically, the technology first used was a pencil and paper. In yesterday's post you see a picture of a faint drawing of my "ideal" classroom. But is it? The more I reflect upon the assignment to create my ideal classroom, the more I wonder what happened to my sense of imagination and creativity. One of my classmates drew a room with barn doors and a glass ceiling, another's included huge garage doors, both with the intention to bring the outdoors into the classroom. I barely gave my room windows, they were an afterthought. When I think about my ideal classroom and the kind of space that would benefit my students, is this the best I can do?
Certainly not.
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| Is it possible to make this my ideal classroom? |
I agree with the afterthought of the windows. I did not draw them either, or a classroom door. So apparently my room is a dungeon. Moving on, I think having a garden or huge outdoor space that can be incorporated into the classroom dynamic is a fantastic idea. I have heard of inner-city projects like the one you were a part of and they are so cool. Also, Michigan State University has a botanical garden called Hidden Lake Gardens (http://hiddenlakegardens.msu.edu/) and they hold summer camps with children, I think. I also included a link a page I had bookmarked titled "The Benefits of Outdoor Learning." Its quite interesting. Or even getting a group of teachers from the district/city/county together and create a huge garden or something. It would be great to teach children how to grow their own healthy food and learn about the earth, soil, and everything else at the same time. Michelle Obama also has a guide to building a community garden on the Let's Move campaigns website.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.letsmove.gov/community-garden-checklist
http://www.englishoutdoorcouncil.org/benefits.of.outdoor.learning.html
Thanks for the links, D, I'm going to check them out! Have you heard of Growing Hope in Ypsi? http://www.growinghope.net/
ReplyDeleteI think that could be your ideal classroom Eliza, just as Rachel's husband had a classroom with a barn door, and David had been in a classroom with a glass ceiling connecting the inside of his classroom with the outside. I don't know that I could say anything's possible, but definitely many things are possible. Thinking back to the class discussion, I also admired how Destiney had the character to deviate from what one might expect technology to look like, with her idea of a French classroom with typewriters as her main form of technology. She mentioned how this would really make her students think about what they're writing, the finality of punching in each key, and the necessary effort that'd be required to check their own spelling and grammar. Thanks for the point you make of pencil and paper being tools as well. A lot has been brought to the table, and there's so much to think about.
ReplyDeleteIt seems my previous post didn't actually go through...so here's it again:
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It seems that we're right on the same page. While practical considerations of an entirely outside classroom are generally a concern, it is possible to bring elements in. Growing Hope is a great organization. I think they'd be a great resource for incorporating urban ecology into the curriculum.
In Detroit, the urban farming community has exploded in recent years. A simple search for "Detroit Urban Farming" brings up a slew of resources for reclaiming space. Kids in highly urbanized environments need access to the "great outdoors" just as much as the rest of us.