2 Setting Up the Classroom and Classroom Management
2 Setting Up the Classroom and Classroom Management
Martina Vasil; Chris McDowell; Judi Reynolds; and Kailey Holmes
Preparing for the elementary music classroom and school is multi-faceted. This includes thinking about your classroom set up, the procedures you will put in place, classroom management strategies, and how you communicate with stakeholders (the principal, colleagues, staff, and parents).
Classroom Set Up
Identify things that cannot be changed or moved. For example, you may not be able to change the placement of your whiteboard, projector, and the area where your desk is located. The projector will display the computer screen, only if you use certain hookups located in the wall near the desk. This also means that the carpet cannot be moved if you want the students to have a place to sit while watching the whiteboard.
Create as much open space as possible for movement. Movement is necessary when using the Orff process and Dalcroze eurhythmics.
Identify the tools you need the most and make them easy to access. Mr. McDowell’s piano, barred instruments, ukuleles, and unpitched percussion instruments are in constant use in his classroom. He has them always available with easy access. His tubanos, djembes, timpani, and contrabass bars are used sparingly so he has them stored in his storage closet (see picture below).
Be creative with your storage. Mr. McDowell uses command hooks to hang his hand drums on a wall. It saves so much space on his shelves so he can then store many other instruments with easy access. He also hangs his ukuleles with command hooks so they are safe but always available for use.
Create wall displays that are also useful tools. Mr. McDowell’s word wall is a useful tool that he uses in many lessons. This wall of movement words helps the children when they create movement plans.
Gadgets can improve efficiency. Bluetooth speakers and a voice amplifying device will both ensure the recordings you play are loud enough and save your voice over time. Wireless controls for technology are also helpful (i.e., bluetooth keyboard/mouse or a clicker for slide presentations). Gadgets help Ms. Holmes move around while she is teaching, rather than being tethered to her desk. Having a clicker with a laser pointer has helped her a ton with things like sight reading and referencing visual resources on the board.
Think about student seating. Students should have assigned seats. How you determine that is up to you. Ms. Reynolds uses sit-spots and Mr. Mcdowell has a square carpet and students know if they are in row 1, 2, 3, 4 and how many spots in.
Ms. Holmes uses rubber exercise mats in different colors to customize seating. They are cheaper than carpets, are easy to rearrange, and are easier to clean. Her seating space has four colored borders (red, green, purple, and orange). See figure below. She doesn’t have to group students, she can simply say “orange group go to x”. She also shows a slide for seating. She types the students’ names i