July 29, 2008

Oooh, that smell .. . that classroom smell

I am up north helping Mama Cool work in her classroom, prior to working in my own next week, and we were studying on ways to improve the learning environment, based on brain research. Accordingly, I have a few tips I am going to be taking to my room:

Step One: Suggest full spectrum lighting to the administration. Apparently, this cuts illness and ups attendance. Fluorescent lights are a negative aspect of most school/work environments.

Step Two: Plants are important in a classroom--they are green, growing, and provide negative ions. I must get one--considering bamboo or peace lilies.

Step Three: Smell is also important, with peppermint, basil, rosemary, and lemon being key smells that stimulate learning. I think I need a new wallflower, with one of those yummy scents.

Step Four: Hang stuff up on the walls. Will do!

How can you help? Tell us what you remember about the classrooms of your past--what stimulated your mind, what drug it down, how do you decorate your classroom?

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I love maps, mappy, map, maps. A big world map would stimulate the mind as well as they learned about some literary stuff from exotic geographic location. Book of the month on travel or set in world wide locations. Anyway, I love maps, it breed adventure.

Hannah said...

Know what's funny: I didn't start to hate fluorescent lights until adulthood. I never noticed what a little dungeon those classrooms were with one slit for daylight between the cement piles. But now I do.

I wonder, are there filters/types of plastic that could be put over those bulbs to help change the color from tepid green?