The Physical Literacy Environment

Growing up in Elementary school our teachers taught each subject, we didn't have a teacher that only taught ELAR or only taught Math. Therefore, their classrooms where full of different types of decor, like anchor charts on the walls and student work. I can only remember a couple of my teachers having an area in their room that focused on reading. Those teachers had a designated spot in the room, usually the corner to be full of books some in bins and some displayed. There would also be a rug and different pillows to sit or lay on. It looked so warm and inviting. My teachers that had this set up in their room always made me want to have time to read so that I could go to that area.

When it comes to creating a literacy environment that has a designated spot, I think teachers have a hard time finding a spot for it and being able to buy items to make it cozy. Most classrooms are small and only have space for desks, teacher table and maybe a small area where students can sit in front of the board. Therefore, it is challenging to make space for a reading corner without making the room feel too crowded. Additionally, in order for there to be rugs and blankets, teachers have to purchase those items with their own money. This can be a struggle for some teachers because there are other items teachers need to buy for their classrooms. 

There are a few ideas that I want to do to create a literacy rich environment. I LOVE reading and want my students to love reading as well. The first thing I want to do is to create a space that students will want to read in. I think flexible seating could help with this because then students would be able to find a quiet spot in the room that they can go to. I would have bean bags, pillows, scoop seats, etc. Another thing I want to do is have themed reading days! Themed reading days would allow the kids to dress up like the theme we picked for the day. This would engage the students to want to participate and would get them excited about reading. I think it would be so fun to see kids dress up for each theme like fairytales or under the sea. I also want to add storybook characters around the room so that students can see a characters and that would inspire them to want to read about it.