My Study Hall students are involved in advanced academic classes as well as extra curricular activities. These students have a great desire to be successful in their core academic classes. They have chosen to be in Study Hall because they care about their grades and do not want to fall behind.
My rural 8th grade Study Hall students meet in a small area of a multi-purpose, junior high music classroom.
Because of our small meeting area, we have no defined space to practice as a class, the difficult concepts and challenging learning objectives they encounter in their core classes.
My school has stringent academic, attendance and behavioral expectations that have to be maintained in order to attend our graduation ceremony and end of the year Success Trip. My Students are busy with extra curricular activities and many have been placed in advanced classes and have chosen to take Study Hall. It is my goal for my classroom to be a place where my students can 1. practice learning objectives taught in their core classes 2. finish assignments and projects assigned in their core classes and 3. study for tests that are most often weighted more than daily assignments. Meeting these goals will ensure that they maintain their GPA and meet the graduation and trip requirements.
My Project
Because my room is a junior high choir and band room, ancillary resources that focus on core academic classes are limited. I have put in a leveled reading library as well as a reference library including dictionaries and thesauruses. I also have stocked the shelves with graph paper, notebook paper, rulers, compasses and protractors as well as other materials the students often need to complete assignments.
Because the band and choir demand so much physical space in the room, Study Hall meets in a small area of the room. There is no whiteboard nearby for students to write on as they work through and ask questions about the objectives they wish to practice.
If the students had a defined space with a whiteboard, they could practice learning objectives that seem difficult. This would also foster an opportunity for us to create study groups and review new concepts and test materials TOGETHER so that all the students would be most prepared for their regular classes.
All of my students are on the same class rotation schedule which means they have the same teachers for math, reading, science, language arts and history.
If students had a productive place to review and discuss objectives from core academic classes, it would create a space that says "Together We can Accomplish Anything." This defined space would keep students motivated and on the right track to meeting due dates and deadlines, as well as being prepared for daily lessons and culminating tests
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