Showing posts with label classroom. Show all posts
Showing posts with label classroom. Show all posts

Thursday, December 1, 2022

THE POWER OF PAINT: WHY PAINTING YOUR CLASSROOM IS THE FIRST THING YOU SHOULD DO

 

As I mentioned in a previous post, the first thing I did when I got my own classroom was paint, and it made such a huge difference.

The Power of Paint: Choosing a Color for your classroom - Disorderly Teaching

(click to enlarge)

The Power of Paint: Choosing a Color for your classroom - Disorderly Teaching

Since then I have painted every single one of my classrooms (up to five so far!) and helped my sister and my work bestie paint their rooms too. The way I see it, you have to stare at those walls for 1/3 of your day for most of the year. It might as well be something you enjoy looking at.

(Side note: I really need to post some before and after pictures of my rooms. Not sure if I should make that it's own post or just share them on Instagram.)

I think it really conveys a sense of caring to your students as well. Trust me, they notice when they walk into your room at the start of the year and see that your room isn't the same institution beige as all of their other classes.

But it goes beyond just aesthetics. Something as simple as the color of your classroom walls can actually affect your students' learning and behavior. For example, one study found that students in classrooms with light blue and green painted walls had lower blood pressure and pulse, and better behavior than when they were in a room with brown and off-white walls. Another found that monotone environments may induce anxiety and lead to irritability and an inability to concentrate.

Before I put paint to wall I did research on the psychology of color and the impact of color on students (especially those with disabilities). Here is what I found.

 

Understanding Color Psychology

Color psychology is the study of how color affects human behavior and emotion. Different colors can have different psychological effects on individuals. For example, red is often associated with energy, passion, and aggression, while blue is associated with calmness, tranquility, and focus. By understanding the psychology of color, we can use it to create a positive learning environment for our students.

Each color has its unique set of psychological effects that can impact an individual's emotions and behavior. Here are some common associations with specific colors:

  • Red: Often linked to energy, passion, and aggression, red can be an attention-grabber but may also evoke feelings of anxiety or restlessness.
  • Blue: Associated with calmness, tranquility, and focus, blue can create a serene and focused atmosphere.
  • Green: Symbolizing nature, growth, and balance, green can promote relaxation and concentration.
  • Yellow: Representing happiness, optimism, and creativity, yellow can stimulate mental activity and inspire positive feelings. However, too much yellow may cause agitation or overstimulation.
  • Purple: Combining the stability of blue and the energy of red, purple is often linked to creativity, luxury, and wisdom.
  • Orange:Often associated with energy, warmth, and enthusiasm, orange can evoke feelings of excitement and happiness, but it can also be perceived as bold or attention-grabbing.
 

The Best Wall Colors for a Classroom

While there is no one-size-fits-all solution to selecting the best wall color for a classroom, there are certain colors that have been proven to be more effective than others.

Blue: Studies have found that blue can help reduce stress and increase focus, making it an excellent choice for classrooms. This is especially beneficial for students with anxiety, ADHD, or other attention-related disabilities.

Green: Green is a natural and soothing color that can create a sense of balance and harmony in the classroom. It is also associated with growth and renewal, which can be motivating for students.

Yellow: Yellow is a cheerful and energizing color that can boost mood and creativity. However, it is important to use this color sparingly, as too much yellow can be overwhelming and cause anxiety.

Neutral Colors: Neutral colors such as white, beige, and gray can create a clean and organized space, which can promote a sense of calmness and focus in the classroom.

Colors to Avoid

While some colors can have a positive impact on student learning and behavior, others can have the opposite effect. Here are a few colors to avoid:

Red: Red is an intense and stimulating color that can increase heart rate and blood pressure. This can lead to feelings of anxiety and aggression, which is not conducive to a positive learning environment.

Orange: Orange is a vibrant and energizing color that can stimulate creativity and enthusiasm. However, it can also be distracting and overstimulating, especially for students with ADHD or sensory processing disorders.

Dark colors: Dark colors such as black and dark brown can create a sense of heaviness and negativity in the classroom. This can lead to feelings of depression and fatigue, which can negatively impact student motivation and productivity.

 

Crafting the Perfect Palette: Using Color Psychology in the Classroom

By being mindful of the psychological effects of colors, we can create classroom environments that promote learning, focus, and positive emotions. Here are some additional tips to consider when selecting colors for your classroom:

  • Balance Warm and Cool Colors: Warm colors like red, orange, and yellow can evoke feelings of excitement and energy, while cool colors like blue, green, and purple can promote relaxation and focus. Striking a balance between these colors can create a harmonious and stimulating atmosphere.
  • Consider the Needs of Your Students: When choosing colors, take into account the unique needs and preferences of your students, especially those with learning disabilities or sensory sensitivities. For example, cool and calming colors might be more beneficial for students with ADHD, while high-contrast colors could be helpful for students with visual impairments.
  • Factor in Your Decor: If you're taking the time to paint, chances are you have a classroom theme or design scheme already in mind. Try to match your color choices to that. When we had a cafe theme, we did a soft, warm brown with accent colors. For my superhero classroom I used off white with dark gray accents to pair with the bright colors of the Carson Dellosa Aim High line of decor I used. This year I didn't have time to paint my whole room so it is the original beige with 2 lovely green walls to watch the botanical decor I've been using.
  • Experiment with Accent Colors: As I said, you don't have to repaint your entire classroom to benefit from color psychology. Try just painting a single wall. Ideally you should choose a wall you want to draw attention to, such as around your whiteboard or where you place a word wall or other anchor charts.
  • Consider the size of your classroom: If your classroom is small or cramped, choose lighter colors that will make the space feel more open and airy. If your classroom is large or cavernous, choose darker colors that will make the space feel more cozy and intimate.
  • Avoid Overly Bright Colors: Brightly colored walls (as well as high light levels) may increase glare. They can also be overwhelming and lead to restlessness, particularly for students with sensory processing issues or ADHD. Therefore, the wall color in a classroom should not be too bright. Avoid super glossy paint for the same reason.
  • Pay Attention to Lighting and Glare: Lighting can play a significant role in creating a comfortable learning environment, especially for students with visual impairments or light sensitivity. Soft, natural light is ideal. Avoid harsh fluorescent lighting, and consider using adjustable blinds or curtains to control sunlight. If natural light isn't an option, place some lamps around the room. It makes a huge difference! I use a set of remote plugs like these to turn mine on and off each day with no hassle.
  • Limit Exposure to Fumes: This is for yourself and your students. Firstly, I highly recommend painting your classroom at the start of the year before students return. That way there is plenty of time for it to air out. When buying paint, go for one with low VOCs. I usually get Valspar Signature paint from Lowes and have never had an issues personally while painting (and I have allergies and asthma) and it doesn't leave behind a smell.

 

Sources

Barrett, P., Davies, F., Zhang, Y., & Barrett, L. (2015) The impact of classroom design on pupils' learning: Final results of a holistic, multi-level analysis, Building and Environment, 89. 118-133 .

Barrett, P., Davies, F., Zhang, Y., & Barrett, L. (2017). The Holistic Impact of Classroom Spaces on Learning in Specific Subjects. Environment and Behavior, 49(4), 425–451.

Chang, Bo; Xu, Renmei; and Watt, Tiffany (2018). "The Impact of Colors on Learning,"
Adult Education Research Conference. https://newprairiepress.org/aerc/2018/papers/30

Grangaard, Ellen Mannel, "Effects of color and light on selected elementary students" (1990).
UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations. 2961

Mahnke, F.H. (1996) Color, Environment, and Human Response: An Interdisciplinary Understanding of Color and Its Use as a Beneficial Element in the Design of the Architectural Environment. Van Nostrand Reinhold, New York, 1-234.

Yildirim K, Cagatay K, Ayalp N. Effect of wall colour on the perception of classrooms. Indoor and Built Environment. 2015;24(5):607-616.

https://www.eschoolnews.com/educational-leadership/2023/01/20/classroom-design-promotes-effective-learning/

https://profcamp.tripod.com/ClassroomDesign/IdealClass.html

https://www.verywellmind.com/color-psychology-2795824




Sunday, January 13, 2019

MAGIC REALLY DOES EXIST: THE LIFE-CHANGING MAGIC OF TIDYING UP YOUR CLASSROOM (PART ONE)

Disorderly Teaching - Magic of Tidying Your Classroom Part 1
Image courtesy of KonMari.com

The Inspiration


This past week I signed up for Educators 2 Educators Teacher New Year Reboot Conference. While there was a lot of great information available at this conference, the thing I wanted to see more than anything was The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up Your Classroom from Building Book Love.

I'd previously read Marie Kondo's book, but had never thought about applying it to my classroom before. I've been feeling stressed lately about the size of my room, and the lack of storage and wall space, so seeing BBL's post on Instagram seemed serendipitous.

When I watched her presentation, the number one thing that stood out to me was the concept of taking EVERYTHING out and then figuring out how to organize things. I had been trying to organize around the things I had already stored, even though those things had been put away haphazardly in a rush at the beginning of the year and where they were placed really made no sense. No wonder I wasn't making any progress!

Feeling super energized and optimistic, I decided to commit my entire teacher planning day after Winter Break to this challenge.

If you're interested in doing the same in your room, I highly recommend you join Building Book Love's Life-changing Magic of Tidying Up Your Classroom FREE 7 Day Challenge.


Day One

A quick snapshot of what me room looked like daily.

Despite my enthusiasm, it took a little effort to get going. What can I say? Coming back to work after two weeks and hitting the ground running is a little rough. Still, I eventually did start pulling out all of my belongings and stacking them on the desks in the middle of my room. The only things I left in place were student binders and notebooks, because I knew I wanted them to stay where they were. EVERYTHING else came out. EVERYTHING.



It was kind of exhausting removing items from every corner of the room, but it also felt really good to take stock of what I had. In the 7 years I've been teaching I've been through 4 subject areas, 4 classrooms, and combined with a co-teacher with 25 years experience. So while I had a lot of the usual clutter of supplies and materials, I also had a ton of off miscellaneous items around. I honestly could not have told you half of what was in my room.

But with everything pulled out and categorized, things didn't seem so bleak. I realized I had a fair amount of space to store things on shelves if I organized properly, and I had more wall space available once the boxes and bins were out of the way.

All of my sorted piles

The first major thing I did was recognize that I simply could not store our Relay for Life fundraising materials in my room. I had shirts, wristbands, and other materials filling up filing cabinet drawers, bookshelves, and tabletops. Feeling frustrated, I vented to my sister whose own room is one building over from mine. And, like the sound of angels from heaven, she told me:

"I have an empty cabinet this can probably all fit in."

BAM! Big cart, 3 shelves, and 3 filing cabinet drawers were freed! Talk about magic!


Next I went into my miscellaneous pile. I knew some of it would be tricky to sort and organize, but there was also clearly a lot that I simply did not need. With ruthless precision I yanked out anything I knew right away was unnecessary and started a give away pile.

I also started a return pile because, apparently, I had things that belonged to a number of other people.

Once the pile had grown too big to fit on one desk, I bagged it up and brought it to our planning room and put it on display. Another sigh of relief. I could finally breathe in my classroom.


I boxed up the rest of the miscellaneous items to deal with another day, then moved on to my novels. I realized just how few I had actually taken to my new room. I stacked them on my nicest bookshelf and planned to get more books from storage. 

Looking around the room I started to see things I hadn't before. My Harry Potter posters, as much as I loved them, did not match my Superhero theme, so them came down.

I had highlighters stored in three different places. They were all combined into one container.

I HATED the sliding draw organizers I used because of course adding an extra level in my desk drawers made sense. Who wouldn't want more room? Except they slid around, blocked access to the other materials in the drawer, and they were ugly. Now I had the clarity to let them go.


Near the end of the day I found myself looking back to my desk area repeatedly. There was nothing inherently wrong with it, but it definitely did NOT "spark joy" as Marie Kondo would recommend. It felt cramp and cluttered, and despite having a rack organizer, desk drawers, and a 2 drawer filing cabinet, I was constantly stacking papers on random corners and over my printer until I could get to them. It simply wasn't working.

So I yanked out my desk. I didn't even like it to begin with. It's metal, and it doesn't watch the wood of my shelves or the build in shelf that holds the room's electronics. I had made do with it because it was all I had, but after tidying everything else, I felt ready to try removing it completely!

It didn't work. Or rather, removing my desk and shifting my computer to the side counter didn't work, because then I would be putting my back to the room any time I took attendance or loaded a presentation. No bueno.

Still, removing that desk had felt so good, I simply refused to put it back. After playing around with a number of ideas, I condensed two of the student computers to one table, and dragged the other table over. I tried it in a few spots and finally placed it in a spot that DID spark joy.

With only a few minutes before I would have to leave for my doctorate classes, I rewired my computer, not even caring that the wires were in a cluttered pile. Somehow it still felt better than my old desk and it's hidden wires ever had.


Several students came in the next day and commented on how much bigger the room looks and how open it is! I really expected them to be chiding me about the massive pile of things I had waiting on our small group table but I guess the overall effect of my tidying and rearranging overrode that.

Their enthusiasm gave me the energy to push through a 12 hour day the next day.


Coming Soon: Day Two

Friday, March 10, 2017

THE POWER OF PAINT: CHOOSING A COLOR

The Power of Paint: Choosing a Color for your classroom based on color research - Disorderly Teaching

One of the first things I did when I got my new classroom was paint it. This was something I has planned for since I first decided to pursue teaching as a career, and I'm so glad I went through with it. I had to go in to work several days early, and my back was killing me by the end, but it just made the classroom feel so much more homey and inviting, and it showed the kids that I'm willing to make an extra effort to improve their experience in school. (It also covered all of the grungy and marked up spots on the walls from years of neglect!)

You can see the difference it made here:

The Power of Paint: Choosing a Color for your classroom - Disorderly Teaching

(click to enlarge)

The Power of Paint: Choosing a Color for your classroom - Disorderly Teaching



In a future post I'll have a nice pic spam of before and after shots for multiple classrooms, but first I wanted to share the research behind the colors I chose. I knew there was a lot of theory out there about color design and choice, but I wanted to know what actual research had to say. Below are some of the notes and excerpts I pulled from research, as well as the sources for this information:



According to Barrett, et al.

Color has a more significant impact on student performance in Reading and Writing, versus other subjects like Math.

The color elements were initially rated with pale and white colors rated low and vivid (saturated) colors rated high. However, as already mentioned, wall and display colors were subsequently found to be curvilinear meaning that the optimum level for learning was in the middle of the ranges.

Color, white- or pale-colored walls with a colored accent wall or panel and brightly colored furniture were found to be optimum for learning.



According to Grangaard:

Students in classrooms with light blue and green painted walls had lower blood pressure and pulse, and better behavior than when they were in a room with brown and off-white walls.



According to Mahnke:

The fourth wall, the front of the room that faces the students, should be a different complementary or at least a darker hue than the other walls. […] The different hue and color at the front of the room helps to reduce students' eyestrain as they look up and down to write notes, etc. A deep tone on any one wall can reduce glare.



According to Nuhfer:

Colors best suited for classrooms reduce agitation, apprehension and promote a sense of well-being. In brief, colors that reduce tension and anxiety produce a home-like atmosphere, in contrast to an "institutional" one.

Studies show that monotone environments may induce anxiety and lead to irritability and an inability to concentrate.


Pastel oranges promote cheerful, lively and sociable moods that are desirable in a college classroom.

Pastel yellow has a similar cheerful effect.

Greens and blue greens in pastels are calming and provide a good background color suited to relaxation into tasks that require concentration.


Brightly coloured walls (as well as high light levels) may increase glare. Therefore, the wall colour in a classroom should not be too bright.



According to Yildirim et al.

Cream, the existing colour of the research environment, was the neutral colour; pink was the warm colour and blue was the cool colour. The results of the study clearly indicate that the use of different colours in the interior environment of a classroom has a statistically significant effect on the perceptual performance of male students.

Blue-coloured space was perceived more positively – described as happy, roomy, peaceful, pleasant, calm and comfortable – compared to the cream and pink-coloured spaces. On the other hand, blue coloured classrooms were considered less attractive, exciting and dynamic than the others.

In common with other studies, this study has found that the use of cool colour, blue for interior surfaces would engender pleasant, peaceful, calm and comfortable perception of occupants; whereas warm colours such as pink, would make space seems more stimulating but smaller.




Sources

Peter Barrett, Fay Davies, Yufan Zhang, Lucinda Barrett. The Holistic Impact of Classroom Spaces on Learning in Specific Subjects. 2016


Grangaard, E. M. Effects of color and light on selected elementary students. 1993. (Doctoral dissertation).


Mahnke, F. H. Color, Environment and Human Response. 1996


Nuhfer, Edward B. Some Aspects of an Ideal Classroom: Color, Carpet, Light and Furniture." California State University. 2004.


Kemal Yildirim, Kubulay Cagatay, Nur Ayalp. Effect of wall colour on the perception of classrooms. Indoor and Built Environment. 2014


Wednesday, January 6, 2016

DISORDERLY TEACHING CLASSOOM




Disorderly Teaching - My Classroom


Oh my gosh, it took me way longer than I planned to get this post up. I take a lot of pride in my classroom and have wanted a chance to show it off. : ) Apologies for the image heavy post, but how can you do a classroom tour without a ton of pictures?

First a brief bit of background: When designing our classroom, we had our students and our goals in mind. We knew many of our students would never pass the state exam, due to their various learning disorders and disabilities, so our goal was not to drill them repeatedly to force them to do well. Instead we felt the best thing we could do was teach our students to actually enjoy reading.

Many of them have been forced to read and dragged through literacy programs since elementary school. Now in high school they've spent years hating reading and many can't think of a single time they enjoyed reading something. They've just resigned themselves to being forced to do it (or fake it) for a few more years until they graduate, after which they plan to avoid reading as much as possible.

With that in mind, we designed Starbooks, a warm, inviting classroom where you'd actually want to cuddle up with a good book. Rather than a coffee café, it's a book café where students get free choice on what they want to read, and time to actually read for fun.

We do plenty of targeted instruction and work as well, but building a love of reading is at the heart of it.

Without further ado... Welcome to Starbooks.


Here's the front half of our classroom. We went for an eclectic collection of tables and chairs, all gathered from our district warehouse and transported by ourselves (and some very kind family members).

The colorful padded chairs had been run down, mildewy, grey things, but my co-teacher Janice reupholstered them, replacing the padding and matching the fabric to our room's color scheme.



You can see a full panorama of the classroom here to get a sense of the size and layout:

Welcome to Starbooks, a warm, inviting classroom where you'd actually want to cuddle up with a good book. Rather than a coffee café, it's a book café where students get free choice on what they want to read, and time to actually read for fun.


Our student resource center, including the Turn-It-In bins, writing utensils, and any other supplies the kids may need.

Disorderly Teaching Classroom Tour: Our student resource center, including the Turn-It-In bins, writing utensils, and any other supplies the kids may need. 


We went with the CAFE acronym, created by "the Sisters" in The CAFE Book: Engaging All Students in Daily Literary Assessment and Instruction. We hadn't even heard of CAFE before deciding on our café theme, so it's was a fun coincidence.

Welcome to Starbooks, a warm, inviting classroom where you'd actually want to cuddle up with a good book. Rather than a coffee café, it's a book café where students get free choice on what they want to read, and time to actually read for fun. 


Our Lingo List (previously the word door neé word wall). The yellow labels are for our ELL student who recently moved here from Puerto Rico.


Disorderly Teaching Classroom Tour: Our Lingo List (previously the word door neé word wall).


Across from our Lingo List, we have our Dead Word Graveyard. These words have been banned from answers to encourage our students to expand their vocabulary and not be lazy in their writing. 

Disorderly Teaching Classroom Tour: Across from our Lingo List, we have our Dead Word Graveyard. These words have been banned from answers to encourage our students to expand their vocabulary and not be lazy in their writing.


This is our multipurpose area for mini conferences, and for students to sit outside of the group for a while if they need some space.

Disorderly Teaching Classroom Tour: This is our multipurpose area for mini conferences, and for students to sit outside of the group for a while if they need some space.


 Books! What good is a Reading classroom without books? Our goal this year was to have 2000 books in our class library. This is our series shelf, one of five bookshelves in the room.

Disorderly Teaching Classroom Tour:  Books! What good is a Reading classroom without books? Our goal this year was to have 2000 books in our class library. This is our series shelf, one of five bookshelves in the room.


 Comfy Reading corner. Students are ONLY allowed to sit here when reading their books.

Disorderly Teaching Classroom Tour:  Comfy Reading corner. Students are ONLY allowed to sit here when reading their books.


This year we tried sorting our books on the shelves using photo boxes. It's great for separating by genre and they can be moved to different areas of the room easily.

Disorderly Teaching Classroom Tour: This year we tried sorting our books on the shelves using photo boxes. It's great for separating by genre and they can be moved to different areas of the room easily.


Part of enjoying reading is sharing book recommendations with others. Students love recommending a book so they can be put in the display case. We put the book they recommend, and a framed photo of the student who made the recommendation. We threw in some party decorations and fairy lights to jazz it up.

Disorderly Teaching Classroom Tour: Part of enjoying reading is sharing book recommendations with others. Students love recommending a book so they can be put in the display case. We put the book they recommend, and a framed photo of the student who made the recommendation. We threw in some party decorations and fairy lights to jazz it up.  


Our current learning board. We usually have the anchor chart for our current topic, plus the matching required Marzano scale up.

We also keep up with announcements and events on our board since our kids sometimes get tripped up by the rotating schedule, and may miss announcements. You can see how long ago I actually took these pictures!

Disorderly Teaching Classroom Tour: Our current learning board. We usually have the anchor chart for our current topic, plus the matching required Marzano scale up.


It's all about Reading!

This is our Computer On Wheels, aka the COW. I don't know why we're the only teachers in the school to think to put actual cows on our COW, but it makes it easy to find whenever we need to get it back from IT.

Disorderly Teaching Classroom Tour: This is our Computer On Wheels, aka the COW. I don't know why we're the only teachers in the school to think to put actual cows on our COW, but it makes it easy to find whenever we need to get it back from IT.


Ah, non-negotiables. In addition to class rules, we have specific items that are absolutely not negotiable in any way, shape, or form. We teach our kids to advocate for themselves and speak up if they think something is illogical or unfair, but they know these are off limits.

We also use this to teach the words/parts non-, negotiate, and -able.


Disorderly Teaching Classroom Tour: Ah, non-negotiables. In addition to class rules, we have specific items that are absolutely not negotiable in any way, shape, or form. We teach our kids to advocate for themselves and speak up if they think something is illogical or unfair, but they know these are off limits.   We also use this to teach the words/parts non-, negotiate, and -able.


One of my favorite quotes. I made this poster years ago when my classroom theme was The Magic of Reading.

Disorderly Teaching Classroom Tour: One of my favorite quotes. I made this poster years ago when my classroom theme was The Magic of Reading.


I somehow managed to not get a good picture of my desk, but this is the shelf behind it. We try to change it each season. This was for the start of the read to represent me.

Disorderly Teaching Classroom Tour: I somehow managed to not get a good picture of my desk, but this is the shelf behind it. We try to change it each season. This was for the start of the read to represent me.


My small group area. When we got a budget to redo this classroom in exchange for giving up our previous classrooms and team teaching, we were both super excited to be able to get these tables for small group work. They seem pretty common in elementary, but not in high school.

Disorderly Teaching Classroom Tour: My small group area. When we got a budget to redo this classroom in exchange for giving up our previous classrooms and team teaching, we were both super excited to be able to get these tables for small group work. They seem pretty common in elementary, but not in high school.


It's Skippyjon Jones! This is Janice's favorite book series, and she reads to our students every year. You may not expect high school students (some with criminal records) to enjoy a picture book, but they will gather 'round, sit on the floor, and get into it.


Disorderly Teaching Classroom Tour:  It's Skippyjon Jones! This is Janice's favorite book series, and she reads to our students every year. You may not expect high school students (some with criminal records) to enjoy a picture book, but they will gather 'round, sit on the floor, and get into it.

More yellow labels for our ELL student. Love him!

Disorderly Teaching Classroom Tour:

And finally, what you don't see when bloggers post pictures of their classrooms - all the mess they had to hide. I told you we have around 2,000 books, and we did NOT have them all sorted by the start of the year. We ended up shoving them in one of the kitchens (our room was previously a culinary room) and worked on sorting them from there: p

Disorderly Teaching Classroom Tour: What you don't see when bloggers post pictures of their classrooms - all the mess they had to hide. I told you we have around 2,000 books, and we did NOT have them all sorted by the start of the year. We ended up shoving them in one of the kitchens (our room was previously a culinary room) and worked on sorting them from there: p

I hope you enjoyed a look at our classroom. I wish I could give a better sense of the room but I did my best! If you can think of anything else you'd like to see, or have any questions, PLEASE comment below!!!

Thanks for sticking through this whole post! : )