This week, we restructured our daily agenda. Prior to this restructuring, the students were quite energetic in the morning and received very little independent reading time. Our new morning procedure provides the students with twenty five minutes of independent reading time and helps them come into the classroom in a much calmer fashion gather themselves. I have noticed that our morning transitions are much smoother with the new structure, and we are able to cover more content throughout the day. Although there was structure in the past, reconfiguring our agenda has been tremendously beneficial.
I believe that student behavior is often a reflection of the classroom temperature. And I have noticed that this classroom environment is overall much more conducive to work. I am now even more aware of the importance of flexibility in one’s teaching schedule.
You might also consider getting the students' input (i.e., do they find that the temperature changes their temperament or mood? If so, what can you collectively do about it?). This creates a joint, collaborative classroom culture, as opposed to requiring you, the teacher, to guess.
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