Eric’s Classroom Philosophy

In order to create a productive environment, you must have effective classroom management strategies set in place. It all starts with getting off on the right foot with your students and accepting them for who they are; they will accept me for who I am in time. Like most teachers do, I establish my procedures and protocols early for keeping a safe and well maintained work area at an acceptable level. In doing this, you should be gentle but firm, very firm indeed. Throughout the quarter, it’s important to be aware of everything going on in the classroom. Withitness is hard to achieve in my art room, given the layout of the space. Once I recognized that the students were aware of the task at hand and what was expected of them, it made it easier for me to monitor the room. Throughout the school year, I’ve been able to establish good teacher-student relationships by working independently amongst them and conversing with them as if I were one of their peers. They like to be able to talk to me without the view of me being superior to them. They enjoy the informal conversations, and it shows them that I’m hum. Doing all of these things on a regular basis has helped me manage my classroom well and keep a healthy perspective on what my students should be taking away from my class.