The physical space where you teach is always the most important and it is the greatest moment when you get to make the classroom your own.
Some Breakthrough sites have their own facilities. But others, like Breakthrough Pittsburgh, are housed in a local school. Sewickley Academy has hosted Breakthrough Pittsburgh since its creation in the early 1990s. Each summer, the school gives up its space for us and we get our own classroom. Last summer, I hated my classroom. There were no windows, aside from the one in the doorway. It felt miserable and I was happy to take my students to the science labs.
Luckily this year, I had a new classroom which was much more inviting. I added my own personal touches like posters with quotes on them. But I had a whiteboard that I wouldn't use and I wanted it to be filled with my student's drawings (it was by the end of the summer). It always makes me think about how I want my future classroom look. I remember one of my teachers in high school had the most inviting classroom. She used to decorate it based on the seasons and we always found ourselves there during free periods.
But, in a general sense, I always want my classroom to be a safe space for any student that walks through those doors. For some students, school is a place to explore themselves away from their parent's supervision. It is important that students have a space where they can discover more about themselves without fear of judgement or criticism. I want to foster that safe space for students. It isn't always easy. Students have different perspectives and ideas. I will never tell someone what to believe, but I will always open the conversation for people to talk and learn from one another. As a teacher, all I can hope is that I educate my students something new.