Responsive Classroom at SMG Catholic School

St. Maria Goretti Catholic School staff furthered their professional learning by participating in a one-day Responsive Classroom Introduction workshop this summer. According to their resource book, “Responsive classroom is an evidence-based approach to teaching and learning for kindergarten through eighth grade that focuses on the strong link between academic success and social and emotional skills.”

The Responsive Classroom approach helps educators integrate the four domains – engaging academics, positive community, effective classroom management, and developmentally responsive teaching. Engaging academics includes designing and delivering high-quality, rigorous, and engaging instruction. Positive community includes creating a safe, predictable, joyful, inclusive classroom where students have a sense of belonging and significance. Effective classroom management includes creating a calm, orderly environment that promotes autonomy and allows students to focus on learning. Developmentally responsive teaching includes responding to students’ individual, cultural, and developmental learning needs and strengths.

Creating a safe, positive, and inclusive learning environment includes several steps. First is creating clear expectations, routines, and procedures. A couple of examples of some routines and procedures that set students up for success, include students knowing explicitly how to get the teachers’ attention, and what to do during certain interruptions, like morning announcements, when someone new enters the room, and when a student finishes an activity.

We believe that the kids do well when they can. So enforceable statements are a must for effective classroom management. Learning must focus on building relationships and keeping students engaged. And a little challenge and competition never hurts!

What This Means for SMG

What can students expect to see this year? At the elementary level, we will continue beginning our school days with Morning Meeting. This includes a greeting, share, group activity, and morning message with prayer. Our middle school students can expect an advisory time that includes an arrival welcome from their teacher, announcements, acknowledgments, and an engaging activity to start their day.

Another key component of Responsive Classroom is called Interactive Modeling. In Interactive Modeling students learn exactly why the skill, routine, or procedure is important to their learning. The teacher models exactly what they would like students to do and then asks students what they noticed about the teacher’s modeling. A few students then model the routine, followed by another round of what students notice and then all students rehearse the procedure the right way while receiving immediate feedback and coaching from their teacher while they practice.

When it comes to starting this school year, we believe that students will notice a difference in how their classroom routines and procedures are taught; they will notice an emphasis on engaging activities that include all learners. Later this year, our staff also plan to take a four-day intensive course to further their learning of Responsive Classroom teaching practices.

We invite all members of the pastorate to come see for themselves what the teachers and staff feel is so amazing about their school. Contact the school office today at 608-271-7551 or [email protected] to schedule a time to visit.