Table of Contents

Foreword by Mick Waters (Director of Curriculum QCA); About this book; People and their clutter; Where we are now; Schools say...(feedback the author has received from her training and consultation on clutterclearing); PART ONE: Before; Chapter 1: Six good reasons to clear your school; How Clutterclearing Ticks the Boxes (table); Chapter 2: Begin with people; Answers at the Ready (table); Chapter 3: The run-up; Clutterclearing Memo Board; Chapter 4: Let's do it!; Clutterclearing Day Checklist; Case Study One: The strange case of the marching corridor that thought it was a dumping ground; PART TWO: Afterwards; Chapter 5: Keeping it going; Whole School Clutterclearing Policy; Chapter 6: Integral peripherals; Reinventing and maintaining the classroom; Case Study Two: Dead mice and old medicine; PART THREE: Beyond; Chapter 7: Grow it bigger!; Conclusion; Case Study Three: Skip after skip after skip; PART FOUR: Check it out; Sources and references.

About the Author

Jane C Anderson has been involved in education and training in various settings for over 28 years. She has designed and delivers a distance learning Diploma in Personal Wellness for Newcastle College. She is a Reiki practitioner and a Feng Shui consultant, as well as being an established writer, columnist and speaker in the field of professional development and personal enquiry in relation to environment.

Reviews

'It is important for the sake of the whole school community that school leadership place emphasis upon a healthy and inspiring environment. Once this is valued as part of the school's ethos, such awareness will become an integral part of the school's systems, and its effectiveness will be seen at an emotional and academic level. Where this is not happening it may be necessary to break with the traditional approaches and reconsider the learning environment in a new light, if provision and standards are to be improved.'

Tim Nelson Gateshead Council Raising Achievement Service School Inspector --Sanford Lakoff
'Schools and classrooms can be like many people's minds, cluttered and disorganised. When we focus on what we want, we can throw things away that we don't need any more - this is where a more streamlined approach can help in school. Editing the classroom environment, and refining what is left to what is supportive and reassuring rather than distracting, undoubtedly ensures a better quality teaching and learning experience all round.'

Helen Walker, School Improvement Adviser, Newcastle City Council Children's Services --Sanford Lakoff
'Distraction, distraction, distraction! How can we focus on educating children when surrounded by so much irrelevant stuff? Jane Anderson's brilliant book isn't just about creating a calmer, tidier, more exciting and inviting schools... it's about helping teachers and children think more clearly in a world where it's never been easier to lose the plot.'
Sue Palmer (author of Toxic Childhood)