Before the kids come, I need to turn a bare space into an environment that will encourage exploration, wonder, creativity, critical thinking, collaboration and a desire to learn no matter where they choose to go! I need to create an environment where they will want to use the reading, writing, and math skills we learn in whole group lessons in natural and authentic ways. Where the kids use those 21st Century skills and academic skills without knowing they are actually practicing the skills they have been learning! It is no small task but one of my favorite challenges!
I divide the room into different areas. That does not mean all materials have to stay in those areas though! Everything is very fluid as so much of literacy, math, science, art, engineering and building are all connected!
Here is our Art Area! Sir Ken Robinson once said, “Creativity is as important as literacy.” He also said, “We don’t grow into creativity, we grow out of it. Or rather, we are educated out of it.” Creative thinking is a very important skill that NEEDS to be fostered in our schools at all ages! This area of our room is always a favorite! We also mix science and art together a lot here! They will learn to use and take care of tempura paints, water colors, paint sticks, clay, oil pastels and sharpies in many different ways here! All of these not only foster creativity, but clay and painting on a vertical surface are very good ways to develop much needed fine motor skills to hold a pencil and write!
This is our science area! Here the kids learn to slow down, look closer, wonder, notice and document what they see, think and wonder through writing and observational drawings, paintings and sculpture! We learn that our art materials can be used for both creative art and realistic art! Here they use them to create what they see and show their learning.
Our Building and our Engineering Areas are where they use a lot of creative AND critical thinking skills! They have to problem solve when things don’t work out, deal with disappointment when things don’t work out, and collaborate together to come up with ideas for their structures and problem solve! I love listening to the conversations here as they use all of these skills! A lot of math shows up in this area along with a lot of story creating (literacy) and physics. They often use spelling and writing skills as they create plans, signs and stories for this area! Some also like to document the structures they made and label the parts or write about it!
The Dramatic Play Area starts out as a home. It usually soon becomes a restaurant or a school. So much writing happens in this area as they create menus and take orders! They make signs and magazines! Sometimes they choose to turn this area into a Vet Clinic or Beauty Parlor, Bakery or Pizza Place! It has been a Fancy Restaurant and a toy factory! Each gives more opportunities to foster creative thinking and also use their writing skills authentically and purposefully!
This is our Math Area. The kids learn that we see math everywhere we look and we use it all of the time! But we do have a special area where we keep materials to help foster their learning of math concepts taught in whole group. We start out with simple items that they can use to freely explore counting, measurement, numbers, shapes and patterns.
This is our Literacy Area. Here they can freely explore the materials and use them to make connections to what we are learning about literacy in whole group!
This is our Light Table! It is an area that, depending on the materials I put out, they can practice literacy, math or science concepts. Or sometimes they can use it to foster creativity!
This is my small group area! Here I pull kids out for Reading and Math skill practice, but I also use it for small groups to work on inquiry projects! I hang up a lot of their creative work on the wooden fence against the wall.
This is our Whole Group Learning Area. Here we learn about Literacy, Math, Science and Social Studies, but that is not all! We share things we are proud of, we enjoy good stories and we also problem solve solve together! Like the rest of the room, we collaborate, and use creative and critical thinking skills here!
Our Writing Area is where many creative stories are created!
We may all get messy sometimes because that is Kindergarten! But it just means that we were really getting into our learning!
Here you can see the kids exploring and learning in their new environment!
As they see how the room works, the areas can change to foster different concepts we are focusing on! I teach based on their interests so I can’t wait to see what happens in this room this year as they learn and grow an inquiry mindset!
