Journal Question #6

This entry answers #6 of the Reading Methods Journal Questions

Describe the physical arrangement of the room and explain how it is or isn't conducive to the reading or language arts program. Describe and respond to the "literate richness" of the classroom environment.

Mrs. Overstreet’s classroom was extremely inviting and made me feel very comfortable. Upon walking into the classroom, one would see the desks organized in a 3 sided rectangle open to the front of the room (the opposite wall from the door) and the smartboard. Inside of the rectangle were the desks of 4 children. Mrs. Overstreet rearranged the seating order every 4 weeks. This seating arrangement allowed the children to see the smartboard at the front of the classroom as well as the chalkboard/word wall on the adjacent right wall (from the perspective of standing in the back of the room facing the front of the room). Mrs. Overstreet’s desk was positioned at the front of the classroom to the left of the smartboard. On the right side of the smartboard was a library of books arranged by reading levels.

The children would sit on an area of carpet in front of the desks, facing the smartboard during the class meetings. Mrs. Overstreet would sit in a rocking chair positioned at the left side of the smartboard as she conversed with them. At the back of the classroom, to the right of the door, was an island with a sink, mini refrigerator, pencil sharpener, and a cabinet with supplies. Behind this island was a mini hallway filled with lockers for the children. Also at the back of the room was a guided reading table and bookcase filled with binders on which each child’s name was printed. I am assuming that these binders held the children's writing, however, I never saw them used (I was not present for many reading lessons). Beside this shared reading table were two computers open for the children to use to take Accelerated Reader tests. The walls were decorated with cute decorations, calendars, and writings about “the writing and reading process” that Mrs. Overstreet composed with marker and chart paper.

Mrs. Overstreet’s room was comfortable, though there were some elements that did not seem to be conducive to the reading and language arts program. There were purposeful writings on the wall that were very thought provoking (the definition of metacognition, schema, the writing process, etc.), but they were not child-produced. The room was print rich, but not literate rich. The guided reading table was very purposeful and conducive to the language arts program. When the children had independent reading time, they were allowed to spread out in the room and use pillows provided by Mrs. Overstreet while they read their books. During independent reading, Mrs. Overstreet would go from child to child having them read for her. Overall, the inviting atmosphere, organization, comfort, and abundance of books and resources made Mrs. Overstreet’s room fairly conducive to the reading and language arts program.