Sometimes, on weekends when my wife and I have nothing better to do, we like to visit model homes. Despite the realization that no one actually lives in these homes, we are always impressed with how simply yet attractively decorated they are. They always look so uncluttered. Much of their visual appeal is that they appear so refreshingly clean and clear. Simple is beautiful.
Some classrooms have all the charm of an unmade bed.
They remind me of the messy bedroom of Ricky, my childhood playmate. His mother told me with a twinkle in her eye of the day they bought Ricky a hamster, which he kept in a cage on his dresser. At first, she said, the smell was terrible, but eventually the hamster got used to it. On the flip side, some classrooms have gone to the other extreme with little decor. Students enter a lifeless, sterile world that is as devoid of inspiration as a hospital ward.