Fully set up, an Immersion Classroom can feel like a world of its own...
Mr. Stone's room ready for Julius Caesar
In this scene:
1-Spray-painted cardboard shapes (to show symbols in Julius Caesar): Free- Use recycled cardboard and an overhead to project and stencil shapes. Or draw freehand if you want to be a show off about it. 2-Stage: ~$15- Home Depot will pre-cut wood for you. Just ask. 3-Table cloth: ~$4- Wal-mart, Goodwill, and Dollar General have tons of cheap home good supplies. 4-Fake plants: ~$4- Home Depot also has real plants that will go on sale. Make it a class duty to water them or they will shrivel and die (not that we know from experience or anything). 5-Candles: ~$2- Dollar General gets it done again. Create ambiance and scents to bring a unit to life. 6-Beads/Rocks: ~$3- Tactile piece. We toss a handful on the floor to create a "path" for when characters go on journeys 7- Curtains: ~$5- Keep them up all year long. Tie them around things to look extra theatrical 8- SPQR Sign: Free- Recycled cardboard and paint from the art teacher. Bonus points here if you ARE the art teacher. Add some historical flair. 9- Plastic themed backdrop: ~$8- Ordered online. I use about 6 feet a year, so one order is enough for about 5 school years 10- Black plastic mesh: ~$4- Use it to clip things to, or to provide texture on desks or chairs. |
Ms. Vernon's room set up for Lord of the Flies
Notice that, in the full classroom picture, half of the room is ocean themed and half is jungle themed.
|
In this slideshow:
1- Vines from ceiling- ~$2.99- A roll of fringe garland 2-Water backdrop- ~$20- An entire roll will last many years 3- Streamers- ~$1- for a roll 4- Plants- ~$10 each from IKEA 5- Fabric for "sand"-~ $20- for the entire amount shown 6- Jungle floor- ~$2/yard- Green fabric lets the boys sit in the jungle 7- Blue curtains- ~$30 for 3 pairs- Curtains can remain up all year long, or be mixed and matched for specific units. 8- Green curtains- ~$1.99/yard- Don't just put curtains on windows. Try covering a bookshelf or part of the board to hide important info for the day's lesson. 9- Camouflage cargo net- FREE- Thanks military! 10- Various fish and plants- ~$1/pack of 4- Add any relevant animals, plants, trinkets, or symbols to your room. Try party stores for cheap, fun decorations. 11- Blue lights- ~$4.99 a strand- A post-Christmas deal! These are excellent for setting an atmosphere. In addition to the above items, Ms. Vernon played jungle sounds on a looped CD, had a small waterfall feature running throughout class, and lit scented candles. All 5 sense are engaged, and the boys are immediately sucked in. |
A History classroom prepped for Greek and Roman study
In this scene:
1- Free 2-Free 3-Free 4-Free 5-Free 6-Free 7-Free 8-Free 9-Free 10-Free These items were all created by students as an end of the year project. Bottom Line- Allow the boys' work over the years to become a living collage in your room. It's free immersion and creates a sense of value in their work. |
Other items that are great to have:
(If these don't apply to your subject area...don't worry! We're going to give you a chance to brainstorm your own materials in a jiffy!)
Ceiling Tiles- Wait...what?
Get started on your Immersion classroom with ceiling tiles. Yes, ceiling tiles.
How- 1- Take out a ceiling tile
2- Choose a subject-area-specific photo
3- Project the photo onto the board
4- Stencil the photo
5- Paint that thing! Then put it back in the ceiling.
Why? This allows the boys to have some ownership over their learning space, some input into the decorations, and creates automatic, small-scale immersion.
Check out the slide show below to get some ideas.
How- 1- Take out a ceiling tile
2- Choose a subject-area-specific photo
3- Project the photo onto the board
4- Stencil the photo
5- Paint that thing! Then put it back in the ceiling.
Why? This allows the boys to have some ownership over their learning space, some input into the decorations, and creates automatic, small-scale immersion.
Check out the slide show below to get some ideas.