Quote: "Gatto allowed students into the knowledge spaces of the classroom and arranged the space so that her desk was a child-size desk that sits amongst the children."
Comment: I like the idea of having a child's desk for the teacher desk in some ways; like the fact that it will show that students that you are learning as much as they are and it can also give the feeling that everyone is equal and that everyone deserves the same amount of respect. I don't like it because I would not have enough room and that it does not distinguish the teacher as someone of authority, which is needed in the classroom.
Question: How do I get the feelings provided by the small desk without actually having a child size desk among the students?
I would say that you could have a special place in the back with a jar where questions and other things the students don't feel comfortable talking about in front of their classmates that they can discuss privately with you later. That way the teacher doesn't have to be amongst the students in a little desk, which might diminish her credibility; but she has a place where students feel comfortable letting her into their lives. Maybe something else you could do is to have daily class meetings so that the students have a voice and the classroom is more like a democracy and not a dictatorship.
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