How to Design Your Classroom Like a Cafe

"I hear and I forget. I see and I remember. I do and I understand," goes the Chinese Proverb. Educate the mind by feeding the stomach with a classroom designed like a street-side cafe. Incorporate old and new materials to make a boring old classroom into an ideal learning place for students. Learn about food from other cultures, traditions from different societies and proper manners at a table with a cafe-themed classroom. Get students involved in learning by using a cafe as a backdrop for education.

Instructions

1

Lay out bed sheets on a large flat surface. Discuss with students themes and backdrop ideas to paint on the bed sheets. Backgrounds with buildings, people walking by on a sidewalk or a view of a park make pleasant scenes for a cafe. Help students sketch in ideas with a dark colored pencil on the sheets.

2

Set up various colors of paint and lay out paintbrushes, water cups and paper towels. Have students fill in the drawn scene with paint. Use disposable pie tins as paint palettes to make maneuvering around the large work easy. Use damp paper towels to clean up spills and drips. Allow paint to dry.

3

Attach bed sheet scenes around the classroom with duct tape. Arrange desks to allow room for a comfortable table and chairs for students to lounge in. Turn off the overhead lights, and bring in some lamps for soft, indirect lighting.

4

Cover a large desk or table with a checkered tablecloth. Fill glass jars with coffee beans, fragrant teas or spices for an enticing aroma. Place the jars on the desks and around the room. Disperse reading materials of culturally appropriate materials to help engage students in the learning topic.

5

Pick a culture for the week and have each student bring a dish centered around the culture to share with the whole class.