ABSTRACT
Having taught Earth science in four high schools, I have worked on focusing on the one thing that I can control: my own classroom. My chapter is a series of stories about interactions with students, and of my own classroom structure, illustrating what I perceive to be the most important (largely unspoken) aspects of my classroom environment, why they are important, and what my students think. In this quest, I respond to the research questions: What are the features that make my classroom environment work? What are the “moves” that I make as a teacher that make the classroom more inviting? I summarize my current thinking about how to create a classroom learning environment grounded in conversation, honesty and trust building, and responsibility and opportunity.
