Letter from the editor: what kind of atmosphere do I create?

By Courtney Warren

It’s time to head back to school, and classroom preparations are underway! Over the years, I have flipped and decorated many a classroom. I found great pride in creating a space my students didn’t want to leave. So much so that, for many years, instead of students reporting to the auditorium in the morning, I had a full classroom until the first period bell rang. 

I painted rainbow walls, had bouncy chairs, covered an entire wall in contact paper, had door decorating contests, and even brought in a pink Christmas tree. 

When I left my beloved llama classroom behind, it was a great opportunity to come up with a new theme. I begged my students to have a Jurassic Park-themed prom for so long (with many rejections), and I knew this was finally my moment. 

Dinosaurs in the classroom. 

Last year, I gathered all of the materials - from 3D printed dinos to fossils and footprints. I have topographical maps from the movies and was even gifted a giant dinosaur by my sixth graders for my birthday. 

This year, I haven’t had to do so much to prepare my room. It’s my first year without having to do a true classroom flip, and it’s exciting to consider what other improvements I can make to the space. 

I recently came across a video where a man was talking about the birth of his son. They went to the doctor to find out the gender, only to be told the baby wouldn’t survive because the mother’s water had broken. They told the doctor that they would pause and wait to see what God does. God resealed this mother’s womb, replenished her fluid, and their son was born at 28 weeks. Being only two pounds, he was taken to the neonatal intensive care unit. 

This dad talked about the importance of atmosphere. In his son’s incubator, he had an ipod that played worship music day and night, night and day. 
“We created an atmosphere of worship,” he said. “He didn’t hear the machines beeping. He didn’t hear the nurses whisper. All he heard was worship.” 
He said it reminded him of when Elisha the prophet responded to a problem in a valley with worship. He goes on to say he created “an atmosphere.” 
This hit me hard, for many reasons. But in this season, what stuck out was the idea of “an atmosphere.” What atmosphere am I creating in my home? What atmosphere am I creating in the classroom?

When those anxious feelings come, even as I write this column and consider the feedback, what is my atmosphere? I want the worship to be so loud, the praise to be so loud and so exciting, that I can’t even hear those anxious thoughts. I can’t feel the trembling hands, because my hands are too busy in the air worshiping. 

When students walk into our classroom, they should feel welcomed. They should feel encouraged. They should feel wanted. They should be allowed to make mistakes. 

Let me say that one more time: THEY SHOULD BE ALLOWED TO MAKE MISTAKES. 

That is how school works. Not a single adult I know puts “Headmasters List” on their resume. Not a single adult I know puts “Awarded a caramel apple pop from Mrs. Armstrong” or “Made an A on my math test” on their resume. 

But those former students do remember walking in a room that they didn’t want to be in. I guarantee you can remember that teacher that made you feel important AND that teacher that made you feel not so. 

What’s the atmosphere? What’s the atmosphere in your home? What’s the atmosphere in your office? Your cubicle? Your car on the ride home from the baseball game? 

While I add pens, pencils and highlighters to my back to school list, the number one thing I’m adding to that to do list is “create an atmosphere for the King.” I hope it’s on your list, too.