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Responsive Classroom
Guiding Principles
*The social curriculum is as important as the academic curriculum.
*How children learn is as important as what they learn: Process and content go hand in hand.
*The greatest cognitive growth occurs through social interaction.
*To be successful academically and socially, children need a set of social skills: cooperation, assertion, responsibility, empathy, and self-control
*Knowing the children we teach–individually, culturally, and developmentally–is as important as knowing the content we teach.
*Knowing the families of the children we teach and working with them as partners is essential to children's education.
*How the adults at school work together is as important as their individual competence.
Teaching Guidelines
Morning Meeting: A daily routine that builds community, creates a positive climate for learning, and reinforces academic and social skills.
Rules and Logical Consequences: A clear and consistent approach to discipline that fosters responsibility and self-control.
Guided Discovery: A format for introducing materials that encourages inquiry, heightens interest, and teaches care of the school environment.
Academic Choice: An approach to giving children choices in their learning that helps them become invested, self-motivated learners.
Classroom Organization: Strategies for arranging materials, furniture, and displays to encourage independence, promote caring, and maximize learning.
Working with Families: Ideas for involving families as true partners in their children's education.
*For more info, go to www.responsiveclassroom.org