Building a Community
By Peter W. Cookson, Jr.

Imagine this: it's your first day of teaching. You've just woke up and already you're wondering what the day will be like. Now shift your imaginative focus to the 30 children who'll be in your class. They're also waking up. They come from households that are highly diverse in terms of family structure, educational background, comfort and support for children. Some students will need you as their most important source of stability.

When kids are securely attached and feel safe within a group, they're free to use their cognitive capacities in ways that are unimaginable. While there's no secret formula for creating genuine learning environments, here are a couple of ideas to get you started. You'll create your own strategies as the year develops.

The sooner you get to know your students' names, the better. Kids are very sensitive about being recognized and knowing their names is the surest indication that they are visible to you. One possibility for remembering children's names is to create a classroom game where the children wear name tags and interact with you so that you're able to put a name and a face together.

Establish the following ground rule early: in your classroom, there will be no ridicule, sarcasm or bullying. You're a role model for your students. A sense of humility and support signals to them that mistakes are okay and that we are all struggling learners.

Don't raise your voice, always keep your sense of humor and never overreact. How you deal with your challenges could well set the tone for the entire year. If the challenging child and the other children see that you have the character to deal with dissent and maintain your equilibrium, you'll have won their hearts and their minds.

Each child in your class should have the opportunity to speak and to express him or herself. Create visibility by assigning children classroom tasks. I've found that when the children have actual responsibilities in the classroom behavioral problems virtually disappear. Teaching is a performance art. There need to be moments of action, but also moments of reflection and physical refreshment.

Peter W. Cookson, Jr. is the founder of TCinnovations and the Dean of the Graduate School of Education of Lewis & Clark College. He is also founder of the Center for Educational Outreach & Innovation at Teachers College.

Updated July 2010
August/September 2004, Vol.35, No.1