How to use room2learn 2.0
By room2learn
Drumroll please… announcing the new and improved room2learn 2.0!
Back in 2015, our team of educators, designers, and engineers set out on a mission to improve student learning experiences through space design. To do so, we wanted to empower teachers to think more critically and creatively about learning space design. After months of prototyping, testing, and iterating, we are excited to bring you — our friendly educator and designer community — the best learning space search engine on the Internet.
Are you trying to teach project-based learning in a clunky old classroom? Or find a low-budget hack for organizing materials? Look no further. On room2learn, you can find hundreds of teachers tackling similar problems every day, and peek into their classrooms for actionable ideas. Explore learning spaces from around the world and filter by learning space, class size, grade level, and more.
Here is a simple guide on how to get the most out of room2learn.
- Identify your teaching and learning needs.
Before browsing options, think about your:
- Problem: What is the main concern you are looking to address? Abundance of resources? Lack of flexible working space?
- Process: What activities are you planning for the classroom?
- Impact on Learning: What educational goal are you trying to achieve?
We suggest involving your students as co-designers in the classroom. Here are some ideas on how to include students.
2. Explore designs for…
Now you’re ready to head over to room2learn. You can start with popular learning styles like collaboration, personalized learning, and blended learning in the tag cloud. Mix and match up to 3 tags or type in your own search terms.
3. Keep filtering
If you want to drill down further, use the drop-down filters to narrow down rooms by School Space, Grade Level, Room Type, and Number of Students.
Keep an open mind! Remember that inspiration can spark anywhere. You might want to browse ideas from other grade levels or class sizes, just to see what other teachers are doing.
Search Tip!
Like someone’s room? Be sure to save it, and check out their profile to discover all their submissions.
4. Put ideas into action
Seeing is not the same as doing! What one teacher does in Moses Lake might work great for you, but it might not. Match these ideas with your own teaching needs and resources to find the right designs.
5. Iterate, iterate, iterate!
Adjusting to a new design change might take a class period — or it could take months! Monitor the change you see in your own and your students’ habits over time. Did you solve your initial problem and improve the learning experience? If yes, congratulations!
If not, reflect on why. Did the students react differently than you had expected? Did you lack resources to make the change you wanted? There are so many friction points in taking an idea to implementation. You probably experienced bumps in the road you hadn’t expected. These things are great feedback for the teacher you got the idea from — you can use the Comments section to start a conversation.
Remember, this is an iterative process — your first prototype may not be the best fit. Keep looking, keep trying, and prepare yourself for the ongoing process of redesign.
6. Share your creation*
Ok, you’ve finally implemented a design you’re excited about. Or, maybe you’re stuck on a challenge and want feedback from other teachers. It’s time to share your space with the world! It’s easy and free to upload a room! Simply click on the red “+” button in the bottom right of the page.
Select what room type you’re uploading, answer a few questions, and add some tags to identify your room.
Hit submit, and voilà! Your room is live and ready to share. If you Tweet, be sure to tag us at @HackClassrooms — we’ll be sure to give you some love. Check back to see if other users have liked or commented on your space. You might even see your room featured in blog or social media one day!
How has room2learn helped you with your classroom? Tag us at @room2learn on Instagram, or Tweet us at @HackClassrooms. We can’t wait to see what you’ve come up with!
