Routines

I love how the my little universe can all be thinking of similar and related topics at the same time. More and more, I learn that my students crave consistency. I more and more believe that spontaneity is something people enjoy more as they age. This week of my music class is much about learning the procedures and routines of my class. I like to think of this as music class boot camp. By the end of the week, my students know my vocabulary and procedures so well that they start to remind me when I forget a step in our day. By the end of the year, they can almost run the class without me. In a twitter feed I see, there was much talk about classroom management. I just had a long discussion with a third grade classroom teacher about this. We talked about how being consistent in your actions and reactions leads to a calmer, quieter, and typically happier class.
Then by coincidence, a friend blogged about how she typically is not a fan of routine but how her child loves looking at the calendar and seeing what is going to happen.
I marveled at this simultaneous similarity in thought about how children and adults can be so different in their needs.