“I can’t do it.” “I don’t understand it.” How often have we as teachers — or parents — heard our children say similar things? In my classroom, our magic word isn’t “please” (though I certainly encourage that one as well!), it’s “yet.” By adding “yet” to these sentences, students realize that it’s not that they aren’t able to do something — they just haven’t spent the time to figure it out yet.
When you think of “community,” what comes to mind?
Perhaps you think of a group living in a specific geographical location; religious groups or organizations; racial or cultural groups; neighborhoods; or activist groups.
Essentially, communities provide a sense of belonging and personal relatedness, as we all need to feel a sense of mattering. In relation to this, humans are social beings. This means we all yearn for close relationships and friendships, which communities often deliver.
In addition, communities offer a network of support and a place to share thoughts, experiences, and ideas, while being a source of inspiration and motivation. This encourages people to think bigger and achieve more.
Another great component of a community is the pool of resources available. Whether the passing of knowledge amongst its members; local classes, programs and services; local events; or the connections that evolve, resources are one of the major assets of any community.
While there are many other facets of societal communities, let’s focus on a smaller subculture – schools. Often overlooked or not necessarily described as a “community” by the larger population, schools are extremely important to the growth of any society. Therefore building community in the classroom should be a top priority for educators.
What is a classroom community, you may ask.
Similar to communities outside of the school, a classroom community serves as an empowered learning environment where scholars feel a sense of value, belonging, and connectedness to their peers, as well as their educators. In essence, building a sense of community in the classroom fosters and promotes the building of strong ties, positive social skills, and academic achievements (often displayed via student portfolios).
The classroom is a major community for each and every scholar, as it presents a unique opportunity for them to have some regulation over their worlds. By creating a learning community in the classroom, scholars become an active participant in their immediate learning spaces. They learn to trust one another; are empowered to contribute to boost the success of the group; and are willing to collaborate and negotiate.
While there are several, some of the benefits of building community in the classroom are: 11. A sense of unity in the classroom is cultivated 12. Improves the scholar-educator relationship 13. Promotes scholars’ engagement in school 14. Resiliency is developed 15. An anti-bullying environment is promoted 16. Collaborative learning is encouraged 17. Scholars develop better communication and conflict resolution skills 18. Scholars become more compassionate, helpful, and tolerant of others
Supplementary to the aforementioned benefits, creating a classroom community is one of the most efficient and effective classroom management strategies. As students begin to bond and act as a cohesive group, misbehaviors, as well as disruptions are significantly reduced.
That being said, you may be wondering how to create a sense of community in the classroom at your school.
Building community in the classroom and instilling a “community” mindset amongst scholars is fun, and has never been easier. Aside from a lack of imagination, there are no limitations as to what educators can try. It all depends on classroom culture, the scholars, and finding what works best.
Below are 5 ways to build community in the classroom:
Establish a regular morning meeting, whether once per week or daily. Choose a theme and allow each student to participate. Example: Every Monday morning, tap into the concept of Think Pair Share and allow students to share one goal they wish to accomplish by the end of the week.
Create a “We” jar. Assign a number of marbles to a specific task or goal. As scholars accomplish their goals, they earn marbles, which are placed in a jar. Once the jar is full, the scholars collectively choose their prize. Example: When the entire class submits a homework assignment, 2 marbles are earned. Or, when everyone earns a 70 or above on the daily quiz, 3 marbles are earned.
Break bread with scholars. Periodically invite scholars to eat lunch with you. This can be in conjunction with something meaningful such as, the end of state testing or because everyone did well learning a specific unit.
Use technology tools. ClassDojo, a communication app for the classroom, is a great tool to encourage community in the classroom. It allows teachers, parents, and scholars to connect and share videos, photos, and messages throughout the school day. ClassDojo supports the creation of a positive classroom culture, by allowing teachers to send messages of encouragement and acknowledgment, no matter the skill or value (i.e. being kind or acing the math quiz). It also gives scholars a voice through their platform portfolios – they’re able to display what they learn by uploading videos and photos to their profiles.
Create a class flag. Allow every scholar to take part in the decision-making process of designing the class flag, from the initial draft to the final product.
Creating and nurturing a classroom community requires planning, practice, and patience. It can be challenging at times, but exploring and implementing community building ideas for the classroom is well worth the effort.
You may have seen the “no homework” letter I wrote last week. It ended up being shared quickly by thousands around the world when Samantha Gallagher, the parent of one of my students, put it on Facebook. My only intention in writing it was to explain ― to the 21 parents in my class ― that I would no longer assign nightly homework to my second graders, and to explain why I thought it was in the best interests of their children. I had no intention of sparking a worldwide conversation. But I’m grateful I did.
Tasia Fields: “Parents and I have become partners; we’re in it together”
For teachers like Tasia Fields, connecting with parents hasn’t always been easy. Working at a Title I school in Chicago, where four in five students come from low-income families, communication barriers come into play — from language to parents working multiple jobs.
Tasia recently talked to some of our team about how ClassDojo has helped her overcome these barriers and build a classroom community for her fourth grade class.
Why do you love being a teacher?
Education is a real passion for me, so I enjoy all aspects of it. As a classroom teacher, hands down the best part is getting to help kids grow and change over a year — which sounds like a long time, but it’s really not! And the biggest changes aren’t always academic. It can be things like confidence, which is so important. It’s a powerful realization to know you can help create an “Aha!” moment for your students.
Is there a recent “Aha!” moment example you can share?
Yep! There’s a young boy in my class who is so capable of working to his highest potential but somewhere along the line he started to believe he couldn’t. This year, I’ve been encouraging him to go after challenges and push himself. Most recently we’ve been preparing for an exam and I saw he wasn’t sure of himself. But I encouraged him and he did a practice essay for me. I could tell he was nervous — but I loved it! I told him: “I told you you could do it if you practiced!” You could just feel his confidence rise as he started to believe in himself more. The next day when he took the exam he felt prepared, and he did wonderfully.
ClassDojo really helps with this – helping us all talk about these non-cognitive skills that are so critical – like confidence and not giving up. When everyone in my classroom believes these skills are important, and encourages them, students feel empowered to grow.
What does classroom community mean to you?
For me, a classroom community is a group of individuals working together – where there is trust in the environment, it’s comfortable, students are able to struggle and have success, and you have a set of shared values. It’s a community that’s not isolated to the room – it includes parents and other teachers. ClassDojo helps me build this community.
Before you started using ClassDojo, what were some of the challenges you faced in creating this sense of community – are they now easier to overcome?
Before I felt I was limited to a community within my classroom; it stopped at the four walls, and I was the only adult really involved in it. What ClassDojo does is extend the whole feeling of community so it overlaps into other places – parents and families at home, other teachers in the school. That makes us all feel more connected, and trust each other more.
Has forming a relationship with parents been hard?
I teach at a Title I school that is 80% lower income. Work schedules can be really crazy sometimes – so in the past, it has been very difficult. All that changed once I started using ClassDojo. It helps bridge that gap like nothing I’ve ever seen. Parents may not have internet access, but everyone has a smartphone. Because I’m sharing pictures and messages, it helps parents see school as a safe place, and brings them into the classroom experience. Being able to have real, ongoing conversations back and forth with parents really develops personal relationships with them, and helps us operate as a team instead of in silos. It means I’m no longer a “foreign” entity: we’ve become partners, and we’re in it together.
Are there certain features you really love?
The picture messaging capability is amazing – being able to snap a quick picture and send it home. Many parents of my students don’t speak English at home and pictures are a universal language everyone understands. Plus, I love that I can see when parents have read the messages with the ‘read receipts.’ I wear a lot of hats during the day and this way I don’t have to worry about messages reaching or not reaching them.
Have there been any benefits for you personally?
It makes teaching a lot easier for me. There are so many times that parents will send a message that says “thank you!” It’s simple but it really helps me feel that appreciation and support from home that makes a big difference!
What advice would you give new teachers?
Think about your students first – always ask yourself how will your practice benefit your students? Otherwise don’t bother with it. And relax – it’s okay if it doesn’t go perfectly to plan, be flexible and go with it!
Do you think apps like ClassDojo would have made your life easier starting out?
Absolutely! I wish it had been around then – it would have really helped me to bridge that gap between home and school, which would have made a big difference to my effectiveness.
What was the best response you got from a parent to sharing a photo or video?
The best response was, Wow, thank you so much, I love seeing my kid’s work in the classroom! !🙂
From self-confidence and encouraging curiosity to healthy attitudes and life skills, the first teachers to appear in a child’s life are the parents. The educational journey begins almost immediately after a child is born, and learning remains constant from that point on.
Through love, motivation, and encouragement, parents help form the foundation for their child. Kids’ overall character, desire to learn, and interests are great factors in the success and sustainability of their learning.
That said, there comes a time in every child’s life when they must leave the nest to embark on a new experience – to begin school.
School is not only a place where the parent-created foundation and skills are enhanced by formal teaching, it’s a place where new relationships will be born. Two of the most obvious relationships are peer-to-peer and student-to-teacher. But, often times people forget that another pertinent relationship is the parent-teacher dynamic; there is no better combination when it comes to the success of a child’s educational experience.
Writing is one of the most fundamental skills a person can possess. It’s not only part of everything we do; it’s one of the most powerful tools of communication – whether communicating our knowledge, beliefs, or emotions. Writing is a connector – it connects people across space, time, and culture, allowing us to learn from yesterday, obtain knowledge about today, and prepare for tomorrow.
To put it simply, writing is an essential tool that brings people together.
You’ve got to admire successful salespeople. You don’t need to like them, but you’ve got to admire their tenacity. And I’m not talking about the kind of salespeople who hide behind the counter, waiting for you to bring your Cold-Eez up to the counter (those do work, by the way). Rather, I’m talking about the kind who, from the moment you walk into the shop, the dealership, the office – are selling you something, even if you don’t realize it.
The salesperson’s motto? Anyone who’s seen Glengary Glen Ross knows it: Always Be Closing.
Not: Always Be Trying to Sell. Not: Always be concerned that the customer is about to bail.
It’s a mentality. At every moment, you are in the process of “sealing the deal.” Even if the customer doesn’t know it.
“I would have been to school on time,” says a student, “But I was stuck behind this old guy who was driving five miles an hour.” The other students groan in solidarity.
Some background: each day, I lead a morning discussion group. We light a candle, set some intentions, offer thanks for whatever we’re thankful for (be it family and freedom or caffeine and cars), and we talk.
Nearly always, the students are thoughtful. They reflect on challenges in their life, vent about their failures, and laugh about whatever has happened to them on the way to school.
I try to allow this space to be as unmoderated as possible, and 98% of the time, it’s perfect.
In an ever-busy and increasingly demanding classroom, it can be very difficult to forge strong home-school links. Too often, communication with parents is limited to reporting the ‘bad news’. Sometimes ensuring a strong social line from the school to the home is difficult because you don’t quite know the approach or tone to take.
This year I’ve found the opportunity to communicate with parents using ClassDojo to be integral in maintaining strong links to the home. From a practical point of view, the parent can check in on their child’s progress so they feel like more of an active participant than a passive bystander in their child’s daily school life. But moreover, I’ve found the simple messages of ‘Remember it’s Swimming tomorrow’ or ‘Don’t forget to bring your coat for the Sponsored Walk!’ to be a subtle but incredibly useful way to utilise the potential of ClassDojo. The parent gets an alert, they don’t need to say anything back. They’re happy to have the reminder!