Singing Children by Ferdinand Georg Waldmüller, c. 1858.
It is an astonishing fact that, during the school year, students spend more (waking) hours with their classmates and teachers than they do with their own families. To ensure that the children entrusted to our care are being nurtured in the same way they would be in their homes, Catholic school classrooms can and should have a family feel.
Family and community life centered on the liturgy are the essence of culture. The English word “culture” is derived from a Latin word that is related to worship. Catholic culture has always flowed from worship, particularly from the cycle of feasts and observances that make up the liturgical year — traditions of food, dance, and other observances developed out of these religious feasts. School culture is no different, and every thriving Catholic school has a rhythm of liturgical celebrations built in throughout the year. Likewise, every teacher has a key task in the first few weeks of school of setting the stage for a healthy culture in his or her individual classroom. Here are some tips to build and sustain a beautiful and rich classroom culture with your students this year.
Keep the Faith central to your daily activities.
- Pray together regularly. Pray not just the school-wide prayers but in your classroom with your students. Allow students to express their personal intentions and lead prayer as appropriate. Frequent communal prayer encourages an attitude of support and encouragement that bleeds out into many other facets of school life.
- Foster a devotion to a class patron. If your school has not already assigned patrons for each classroom, choose a saint or title of Mary to look to for patronage. Incorporate images of your patron into your classroom decor and a prayer to him or her into your daily routine. Your students could even choose individual patrons for the school year and keep an image and prayer at their desks.
- Celebrate feasts as a class. Whether it’s a big feast day you celebrate as a school community or other occasions like your class patron’s feast, baptismal anniversaries, or a celebration related to your curricular content, observe special occasions with a good old Catholic feast. The school version can be simple — no roasted pig on a spit needed! Having a simple breakfast to start the day, dessert to end the day, or something in between provides an experience of feasting together without the mess of a huge cleanup.
- Fast as a class. Feasting and fasting go hand in hand in the Catholic tradition and the ever-flowing cycle of celebration and solemn observance is both formative and somehow comfortable. Plan to balance celebrations with communal fast times — giving up morning snack or drinking only water one day a week during Lent or offering extra prayers or sacrifices for the Poor Souls during November can be just as unifying as feasting together.
Create a classroom atmosphere that mirrors a home.
Incorporate homey elements like rugs, plants, lamps, and beautiful art to create a familiar and cozy atmosphere. - Make space for a reading nook, comfortable chairs, or a prayer corner.
- Choose a color scheme that unifies the classroom.
Build good routines that allow for independence and responsibility.
Just like a home culture is built on traditions and routines, a classroom culture will thrive when practices are clear, consistent, reasonable, and enjoyable!
- Do’s and don’ts for arrival and dismissal are crucial for any classroom, but consider structured group activities that students could participate in during these times of transition. Quiet games, puzzles, or a read-aloud of a non-curricular book can help teachers and students bond through a shared experience.
- Establish jobs and duties to encourage responsibility and stewardship in the classroom. Beyond keeping their personal space neat and tidy, rotating students through other age-appropriate tasks like watering plants, sweeping, taking out trash, or being in charge of opening and closing windows or turning off lights gives students a responsibility that has an impact on the whole classroom culture.
Most importantly, as St. Mother Theodore Guerin aptly said: “Love the children first, then teach them.”