Educators and school designers place a high priority on creating facilities that enhance learning. That applies not only to how a school is built, but also to the materials and equipment used. Just as acoustical treatments or well-placed windows and skylights can make a classroom more conducive to learning, so can the right furniture. Desks,…

The organization of space profoundly affects learning. Students feel better connected to a building that anticipates their needs and respects them as individuals. Built in 1971, Crow Island School, in Winnetka, Illinois, is a prize-winning facility that has provided generations of children with windowed classrooms, skylights, adjacent workrooms,…

Daylighting a space is both an art and a science. The impact of daylight can make a building's design come to life. Daylighting can be carried out skillfully, or it can be too casually considered or totally misunderstood. Bad daylighting is devastating to a space and costly to fix. Today, in this era of sustainable design, daylighting is given…

Provides considerations for educational facility lighting designs that support student learning while controlling costs. Lighting design decision factors include the types of classroom activities involved, the importance of properly using artificial and indirect lighting, the importance of color rendering, the positioning of windows and skylights,…

This guide for novice teachers includes ten sections: (1) "A Knowing Colleague as Counsel...About the Policies, Practices, and Politics!" (proactively seek a mentor); (2) "A Place Called 'My Room' for Students To Grow, To Groom, and To Zoom!" (create a climate that fosters growth and pride); (3) "A Method for Managing 1,500 Decisions: On Your…

This book explores 15 practical literacy strategies that can be used across grade levels (K-College) and content areas. The easy-to-use book offers an overview of the research and best practices associated with each literacy strategy--and it defines each strategy. It explores proven instructional methods such as metacognition, literacy circles,…

The compact school, generally defined as a brick structure with a flexible interior and natural light admission of skylights, domes, clearstories and interior courtyards, emerged from the new educational programs. Evaluation of the compact school design includes--(1) appraisals and reactions to the physical environment, (2) explanations of the…

This document is a simple 34-category checklist to be used by technicians conducting maintenance surveys. Categories includes: roadways & parking lots; site appearance; site utilities; exterior appearance; playground equipment; exterior structural conditions; gutters and downspouts; windows and caulking; sidewalks; entryways and exit doors;…

Foreign language instruction is known to develop better critical thinking skills in children. Therefore, the teaching of foreign languages should be promoted so that "all" students may attain better creative, divergent, critical, and analytical thinking skills. Research done in past years on cooperative learning models has consistently shown that…

An energy task group of the American Institute of Architects discusses design features and options that educational facility designers can use to create an energy efficient school building. Design elements cover the building envelope, energy storage system, hydronic heating/cooling systems, solar energy collection, building orientation and shape,…

The focus of this action research project report was to reduce female bullying in the school. There were 35 female participants from sixth and seventh grade, one counselor, and eight recess supervisors. This research project took place from September 4, 2007 through December 14, 2007. Some of the behaviors associated with this problem included:…

The new Riverheights School, constructed by the Brandon (Manitoba) School Board for kindergarten through ninth grade students, was built as a "low-profile" school with an "earthberm" in order to save on heating, vandalism, and insurance costs and to integrate the building into a neighborhood park setting.…

This booklet helps teachers understand how to increase student motivation and interest and how to design lively, creative, and interactive lessons that will enrich learning. Chapter 1, "The Differences That Impact Learning," describes the differentiated classroom and provides teachers with an understanding of the many variations of how…

This paper discusses environmental preference, particularly related to the design of children's museums. It explains that preference for an environment leads to motivation to interact with the environment, which leads to learning. It lays out several design principles: (1) involve children in the process of children's museum design in a way that…

THIS REPORT DESCRIBES A HIGH SCHOOL IN CALIFORNIA INCORPORATING FLEXIBILITY TO ACOMMODATE ALMOST ANY FORESEEABLE EDUCATIONAL CHANGE. STUDENTS MOVE IN THE MIDST OF A COMPACT ENVIRONMENT IN WHICH ALMOST EVERY SQUARE FOOT OF SPACE IS USABLE ACADEMIC SPACE. EACH DEPARTMENT SUBCOURT COMPLEX IS SITUATED SO AS TO BRING ALL STUDENTS INTO SOME CONTACT WITH…