Classroom Looping was a phrase Jim Grant, the author of "The Looping Handbook", uses to describe a theory in which a teacher keeps a group of students for two or more years.
Classroom Looping is a theory that has been around for many years. An Austrian philosopher and educator, Rudolf Steiner, founded the Waldorf School in the early 1900s. He believed that consistent and long term relationships between students and teachers was beneficial to yound children.

The principles of Classroom Looping are:

1. Schools keep groups of children together over long periods of time.
2. The teacher moves with the children to the next grade or level of education.
3. The period of time students and teachers will stay together is determined by the school personnel.
4. Preparing teachers, students, and families yields the best results.

Social advantages include:

1. Students have reduced apprehension about a new school year, new teachers, and new friends
2. Looping encourages a stronger sense of community and family among parents, students, and teachers
3. Long term relationships result in an emotional and intellectual climate that encourages thinking, risk taking, and involvement.

These are just a few examples of the benefits of Classroom Looping. We are very excited to incorporate looping into our philosophy.
For more information on Classroom contact the LAB at Brown University

The academic benefits include:

1. Teachers gain eaxtra time to teach. They do not have to build a new relationship each year, which can take several months to develop with students.
2. Teacher knowledge about a child's intellectual strengths and weakness increases in a way that is impossible to achieve in a single year.
3. Long term teacher/student relationship improves job satisfaction in many studies.

References:

Northeast and Island Regional Education Laboratory at Brown University (1997 study)
Killough, G. (1996) In J. Grant, B. Johnson, The Looping Handbook