My Classroom Environment

Reflection
I was asked to produce an artifact showing my classroom environment using images, sound, and limited text. I've written various papers and other literature about my environment before, but using images was new to me.  Instead of just writing my points down, I had to think through the eyes of the viewer. I had to think about what images popped into my head when I thought about certain words. This was a lot of fun for me to think about (once I got on a roll) especially being a kindergarten teacher. Many of my students come in with little to no english. We have to communicate through motions, sounds, and pictures. How very appropriate for me to be in the opposite roll, trying to help others understand my point.  Even later in the year, kindergarteners write many stories using only pictures to show their stories. 

After completing the above graphic, I began to think about how might my students represent their knowledge in different ways. I used graphics that included some words in some instances.  If it were my students, this entire graphic would be pictures. I think I will use this activity next year with my kindergarteners. I could ask them to explain a word on a poster, maybe using only magazine pictures or pictures they draw.