At first, this task sounded impossible. How could I sum up so many ideas without any words or explanations? Not to mention my lack of professional sculpting skills. After taking a critical look at my bulleted list, I noticed a few connections, which ultimately led me to the overall theme of ‘Community’.
Channeling my Alberts-esque platform, I decided that student involvement and input in creating procedures and norms was something I really identified with. In combination with managing in a culturally responsive manner, which has especially been stressed in our ESOL course, and the idea that administration, resource teachers, and other school staff should play a positive and interactive role in our class, I felt that my interpretation was well-suited for this activity.
After creating my MASTERPIECE, my classmates and I walked around our gallery and guessed the management concepts that we were trying to represent. This part of the activity really displayed the multiple interpretations that “classroom management” can have, and also revealed some important beliefs of my classmates.
Overall, this Play-Doh Philosophy really got my gears turning over how I see my future classroom operating. Like the Play-Doh, teachers and management plans must be malleable, however should ultimately maintain some recognizable structural integrity.