Fieldwork - Classroom Setting

Over the course of the semester I have been completing fieldwork that is required for the class.

For this, I observed a 5th grade classroom.

The first thing I noticed when I began my observations was the classroom setup.

For a class with 27 students in it, it was a rather small classroom. The teacher whom I was observing discussed this issue with me.

She noted how while this was the classroom the 5th graders were placed in, the 2nd graders had a much larger room and a considerably smaller class enrollment.

When it came to arranging the classroom before the school year began, she was required to have a certain arrangement, however, when it came to the small stuff like materials, storage, mailboxes, etc. it all came down to where she could find the space.

Desks were arranged in three large groups of nine, making a 'U' shape. In the center of the 'U' was a space for students to gather on the floor, or the meeting area, where they sit in front of the Smart board and receive direct instruction before being sent back to their desks to work on an activity.

Materials (i.e. pencils, paper, pencil sharpener, etc.) are located on the counter by the window. Alongside these materials is the class library. Here, students may check out a book from a number of genres including realistic fiction, nonfiction, fiction, etc.

The teacher's desk was located in the back of the room near the window. Again, this was because that was where it could fit.

Next to the Smart board were five computers for the students to use.

Above the computers was a bulletin board where the students' work was displayed. During the time I was observing, the bulletin board was used to display book reports the class had recently completed.

Coat racks are located along the wall where the door is located. So are the students' mailboxes.

In this classroom, as with most other classrooms I have been in, the traditional blackboard and whiteboard are no longer needed, thanks in part to the Smart board. Therefore, these boards are now used to hang up posters, rules, pocket charts, and student work.

During ELA and math, the class is usually broken up into learning centers. When this happens, one group usually is assigned to the computers, and the rest are split up into two or three groups.

The teacher explained that the district was a Fountas and Pinnell district. This means that the classrooms were required to have a guided reading area and a meeting area. The meeting area is used to bring the students closer together and helps the students to pay attention.

The classroom was essentially set up for ELA purposes, or to create a literacy rich environment.