The Walls Are Empty!

WRITTEN BY ALICE VIGORS

Over the last few weeks leading up to the beginning of the new school term, I have seen many pictures and posts of classrooms coming together. I have seen walls adorned with posters, anchor charts and bump it up walls to name a few. 

This; however, is not what my classroom looks like. YET!

It is true that in early January I have not yet been in to school, and to be honest there are no real plans to either. I'm not worried that my classroom will have empty walls on day one. Quite the opposite in fact. You see, if I put something up on the walls within my classroom, I believe it must be

• meaningful
• purposeful 

and in many cases

• co-constructed

In my classroom, I don't have anything up on my walls that is not first discussed, used, created and adapted with my students. This is primarily because what is visible in our room must hold meaning and have purpose not just for me as the teacher but for the learners within this learning environment. I have found over the years that anything that doesn't follow this process is all but forgotten and becomes a static display that lacks purpose. 

As the weeks roll on and the term gets into full swing, the walls of my classroom begin to fill. They become filled with active displays of student thinking, of co-constructed anchor charts and of student learning. An active display is something that continues to be revised, adapted and developed beyond its initial posting on the wall. This highlights to students that our learning doesn't end when we 'publish' something for others to see or draw a conclusion. Learning is an ongoing process that continues to evolve and develop well beyond the finished 'product'. 

Imagine where the world would be today if visionaries like Jobs, Edison, Branson and Musk settled for their first finished 'product' and didn't continue to evolve their thinking!

As educators I think we need to be mindful of the kind of messages our learning environments send to the people that call this space home. What get's displayed in a classroom tells you a lot about what is VALUED in that learning space and by whom. Take a moment to think about your classroom last year. What message did it send to others about what is valued in this space? What messages do you want to send, promote and foster in 2020?

My message in 2020:

Learning is an ongoing and shared endeavour that continues to grow and develop as we uncover new things. 

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