The Caring Classroom

Book excerpt: The Caring Classroom focuses on building positive teacher-student relationships that support effective classroom management and instruction. The iconic writer Maya Angelou has said "I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel." This is true in education as well as it is in life. The way you treat your students will stick with them longer than any content you cover in a classroom lesson. Classroom management and positive teacher-student relationships are essential components in today's classrooms. Honing your skills in these areas is important if you want your classroom to be a place students are able to learn. Many of our students don't come to our classrooms knowing how to behave appropriately. It's our job to teach them. All teachers need to know how to effectively manage their classrooms, and the ability to do that while building and maintaining positive teacher-student relationships is essential. The Caring Classroom uses a variety of examples to demonstrate how to create a caring classroom climate, using narratives from teachers and from educational experts. Also, it shows how the components of a caring classroom will positively affect you and your students. A caring classroom is obtainable for all teachers. By introducing the components discussed in this book into your classroom, you will be able to improve your students' learning, lessen student misbehaviour, and create positive relationships with your students.