The GPS Way to Your Ideal Classroom

If you are going on a driving trip to somewhere new, and you are like me, you start by entering your destination. The GPS then tracks your current location and gives you directions. 

Now, if you make a wrong turn, it's not a big deal. The GPS does not say - "You are a complete failure. You are never going to get there. Can you believe you missed that turn."

The GPS just recalculates your route. As long as the GPS knows where you currently are, where you are going and has service, it is going to get you to your destination. 

What if your ideal classroom was like that? So, this is my challenge to myself. I thought, if my classroom is like GPS, where am I really right now. And where is my final destination? If you want to read my details, they are here. Of, you could just look at the highlighted section below. 

Final destination for my Spanish classroom: 

• I meet kids outside in the hallway and they are smiling, excited to come to Spanish and ready to hear my instructions.
• We come in and students immediately go to their study spots. For the first 10 minutes or so they study with their partner on their individualized Spanish word list. 
• Every third week is a level up week. Students can demonstrate that they have mastered a level and can pass the assessment with me. At the same time, kids are playing learning games around the classroom focused on their individual vocabulary and phrases they are learning. Other students are reading Spanish chapter books. 
• The other two weeks, we have a different learning engagement - that spans both weeks. It could be a mad lips story, it could be a cultural experience or any number of things. These activities include a lot of partner talking that is scaffolded.
• After the first month of school, the majority of the class is taught in Spanish. 
• Students are focused on the task at hand. Kids are calm, peaceful and happy. 
• I am in the flow while teaching. 
• At the end of class, kids line up and head outside with a high five, fist bump or handshake. 
• By the end of the year, any child that had the desire was able to read a simple chapter book in Spanish. 

My current GPS location: 

• When I meet in the hallway, about 30% of the students are often noisy as they arrive with their teacher. I have to wait for them to calm down. 
• I start class with a whole group activity in the center of the class. 
• I do not have a strong scope and sequence for the words that students are learning.
• 70% of the class is focused in most classes - up to 90% according to my data for other classes. 
• Students with special needs are often not participating fully or report being distracted in class. Other students with special needs are able to participate, but it is sometimes hard to know how much they are really understanding and following. 
• I do not have a method for tracking what vocabulary words which students have mastered. 
• I am not always consistent with my behavior management plan. 
• The majority of students on the end of year anonymous survey report that I am kind, class is interesting, they are not often distracted, they learned a lot, they are interested in learning more Spanish and or traveling abroad. 
• 90% of students who had one or more timeout for the year reported they often feel distracted in class. 
• Zero students reported that I did not care about children or was not kind.
• I sometimes use hand motions and more Spanish and other times revert to more English. 
• The curriculum I started with was not engaging and was too hard for the students. I tried a wide range of strategies and did not have a consistent strategy.
• Kids were really engaged during the learning games we played and requested more next year. 
• 70% of students had 3 or fewer behavior reminders the entire year. 30% of students had between 4 reminders about behavior up to multiple time outs during the year. 

Your take away: 

My suggestion to you is this - go ahead and make a drawing of your GPS locations or write them up. I folded a piece of paper in half created a cartoon of what a class looked like on the left in my ideal situation. Then on the right I created a cartoon of what it really looked like right now. 

I learned a lot about my final destination while writing it down. It turned out that many of my ideas on my final destination I didn't have until I started to draw and write out my cartoon. 

Once you create your two final destination and current location - let it go. The GPS doesn't need you to constantly look at it to track your location. Let your mind open up and relax. The ideas will come to you on how to move yourself to your final location. Trust that you know how to get there. 

Even more importantly, trust that you might not know what it will look like. Maybe you are wrong. Maybe what is going to make you happy is nothing like what you think. Or maybe it is! 

I can't actually tell you! But inside, you have everything you need to create a classroom that lights you up with joy. 

When you feel peaceful, ask for some ideas on what you should do next. Just like with GPS, you don't need all of the turns in the beginning. You just need your next turn. So, ask yourself once you have done this - what is your next turn right now? You'll know it is the correct next turn, because you will feel calm and connected and peaceful as you come up with the idea. 

Why should you listen to me? 

I trust that you know if listening to me makes sense. I can't see any harm in trying this out, but I can see a lot of good. .You might just surprise myself. I would say it is worth the 10 minutes of investment of your time if it makes your life better and more fulfilling in the long run! 

If this inspires you - go ahead and try it.