Responsive Classroom
Key Components
The Key Components of the Responsive Classroom Model are:
- Classroom Organization that provides active interest areas for students, space for student-created displays of work, and an appropriate mix of whole class, group and individual instruction.
- Morning Meeting format that provides children the daily opportunity to practice greetings, conversation, sharing, and problem solving, and motivates them to meet the academic challenges of the day ahead.
- Rules and Logical Consequences that are generated, modeled and role-played with the children and that become the cornerstone of classroom life.
- Academic Choice for all children each in which they must take control of their own learning in some meaningful way, both individually and cooperatively.
- Guided Discovery of learning materials, areas of the room, curriculum content and ways of behaving that moves children through a deliberate and careful introduction to each new experience.
- Assessment and Reporting to parents that is an evolving process of mutual communication and understanding.
Implementation
Methods include:
- Building a Classroom Community
- Modeling, Practicing and Role Playing Conflict Resolution
- Appropriate Environment and Materials
- Cooperative Learning
- Independent Inquiry, Continuous Progress, Portfolio Assessment, Critical Contracts
Outcomes
We measure outcomes through:
- Balance of teacher-directed instruction and child-initiated learning
- Student responsibility for work and environment
- Caring behavior
- Problem solving ability both socially and academically
- Parental involvement and understanding
Foundation
The foundations of our practice are:
- Knowledge of Child Development Theory
- Principle of Teaching Social Skills
- C.A.R.E.S. — Cooperation, Assertion, Responsibility, Empathy, Self-Control