1. Mrs. Chase’s Classroom Stephanie Nelson February 25, 2015 Classroom Design Kindergarten

2. Security and Shelter Security and Shelter refers to objects or areas in a classroom that allow students to feel safe. Students need to be able to feel at home and comfortable. This coincides with Maslow’s theory. This area in the room is used for reading and a quiet space for students to relax. The carpet, closed off area, and pillows all contribute to a sense of comfort.

3. Social Contact Social Contact refers to places in the room that allow students to interact or work together. Desks that are set up in groups or tables allow for constant social interaction. All of the students in Mrs. Chase’s class sit at tables. These tables are not only used for regular seating, but they serve as centers during language arts.

4. Symbolic Identification Symbolic Identification represents the individuals in the classroom. This means that the decorations in the room should tell something about the teacher or students. This poster shows hand prints counting by 5’s to 100. Next to each hand print the students wrote their names. Therefore the poster tells something about the students and about what they are currently learning.

5. Task Instrumentality Task Instrumentality is when a teacher uses the environment to facilitate learning. In this case Mrs. Chase uses buckets on each table for students to throw away trash while they are working. She also uses them to refer to the different tables. For example she may tell the blue table to go to the carpet, so the students at the table with the blue bucket will go to the carpet.

6. Pleasure Pleasure is simply decorations that make the room visually pleasing. It is very important that the room is not too over stimulating. Too many decorations could cause students to be distracted. A simple touch like the teachers name and stars around the clock can add just enough to make the room comfortable and attractive.

7. Growth Growth allows the environment to change with the physical and developmental growth of the students. At the beginning of the year these posters were not hanging in the room. However, when the students learned more words and rhyming patterns, multiple posters like these were hung around the room. When students learn more, additional words can be added or different posters can be hung.