Classroom Arrangement Ideas: Research on this subject seems limited. However, it would seem to be an area of interest to new teachers and teachers interested in maximizing their effectiveness. After all, there’s no college course on how to arrange your classroom. Add it to the list of things you’ll learn with experience.
In part, how you arrange your room depends on what furniture you have at your disposal. Are there individual student desks or long tables? An overhead projector or chalkboard? Teacher’s desk and computer desk? Bookshelves? If you don’t have what you want … can you request it or bring it in yourself?
Sit in student desks after arranging your class to get a student’s-eye view of the room. Fix anything that becomes distracting or inaccessible from a student’s chair.
How to Choose the Best Classroom Setup and Seating Arrangements?
Choosing the right classroom setup can feel like a challenge, since every room and group of students is different. The right seating arrangement depends on your needs, and there’s no one best setup. Many teachers these days are trying out flexible seating, though it’s not for everyone. If you’re looking for more-traditional classroom setup ideas, there are still plenty of options to consider. But how to choose? Ask yourself these questions:
- What type of instruction do you use most often?
- What do you have to work with?
- Can you see every student’s face as you teach? Can every student easily see you?
- Do you need to keep students separated?
- Can you easily move around the classroom and get to each student if needed?
- How will you accommodate seating needs from IEPs/504s?
Popular Classroom Arrangement Ideas
Keep all of the above questions in mind as you consider whether one of these classroom setup ideas will work for you.
Stadium Style Seating
Stadium-style seating involves angled rows of student desks that touch on the sides. This common desk arrangement faces all students to the front of the room, ensuring everyone has their eyes on the teacher and the lesson.
Pros: The primary benefit of stadium seating is that the teacher can see what every student is doing at all times because everyone is facing the front and is in clear view. Likewise, every student also has a clear view of the teacher, ensuring everyone can see what’s happening. Because students are already next to each other, group work can be done quickly and easily. The advantage of angling the rows rather than leaving them straight is that it’s easier for students to see the front of the room and also leaves some space at the front of the classroom for a podium or AV cart.
Cons: Although stadium seating works well for smaller class sizes, it may not be ideal for larger classes as the rows would need to be farther away from the front of the room to accommodate more students.
Runway Style Seating
Runway-style seating involves 2 rows of desks facing each other with a good deal of space between them, forming a “runway.” In this setup, the teacher stands in the runway during lessons and can walk up and down freely while speaking.
Pros: This setup emphasizes paying attention to the teacher. This configuration is best suited for classrooms that hold a lot of lectures and class-wide discussions.
Cons: Due to the amount of space it takes up in the classroom, the runway-style configuration is not suitable for large class sizes. This type of grouping can also make group and partner work tricky.
Grid
Students’ desks are spaced apart from one another in neat rows. It is best suitable for traditional classrooms and teacher-led instruction.
Pros: Grid arrangements keep all eyes focused on the teacher. They make it easy for an instructor to move from desk to desk and keep distance between students to minimize distractions.
Cons: This arrangement doesn’t work well for whole-class discussions. It’s also not ideal for group work, although students might be able to move their desks together as needed.
Herringbone
On both the right and left side of the classroom, position rows of two to four desks equally spaced apart and angled slightly toward the center of the room. The arrangement resembles the skeleton of a fish. This method is best for students to focus on the board and the teacher.
Pros: This setup helps students focus on the teacher or board at the front of the classroom.
Cons: Herringbone arrangements aren’t the best option for group discussions.
Face to Face Pairs
Students sit face-to-face with a partner, either at small tables or two desks arranged next to each other. Students usually both face front. This arrangement is best for lab work, and teacher led instruction.
Pros: This setup is popular when students work on science labs with partners, while also accommodating lectures or other teacher-led instruction. It’s easy for the teacher to circulate from pair to pair.
Cons: Not all partner pairings are a success. Be prepared to be flexible and rearrange pairings as needed.
Small Groups (Tables)
Groups of students sit together, either at round or square tables. It is best for group work, small-group of discussion within the class.
Pros: If your students spend a lot of time working in small groups, this setup with tables makes that easy. The teacher can move from group to group as needed.
Cons: At least some students won’t be seated facing the front of the classroom.
Final Thought
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