Lately I've had the pleasure of spending time in all of our classrooms. I'm always so appreciative when I have the chance to spend time in the spaces of our teachers. Each classroom acts as a temporary home for the teacher and children in that cohort. You see pieces of that cohort around the room- in the way that the materials are arranged on the shelf, how the light is used within the space, the arrangement of the furniture... all of it speaks to the intentions of the teacher and how the children use the space. This is especially true in Briana's classroom.
As I sat in Briana's classroom the other day I leaned back and took in the space as a whole. To a neat freak like me I at first saw clutter- there were things everywhere. However, when I let myself look at each section of her room closely and intently I started to see the beauty that can only come from Briana's handiwork.
Small touches of her were everywhere and these small touches called out to the children. They asked of them: "Come closer. Look intently. Study us. Make us your own." Her very set up of her room called for close, focused engagement from her children. Where I saw a pile of mismatched items, the children saw a collection of treasures.
The beauty in Briana's space moved past this as well. Flowers livened up spaces and brought nature into her room. Metal pieces from a monopoly game inspired the children to use the pieces of a stacker in a new way. A small bowl of paper with numbers on it embraced their imaginations. I felt inspired as I sat there in the quiet of her room... for no matter where my eyes rested I saw beauty.
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