Check out our list of tips for arranging your classroom with classroom management in mind.
When you begin the school year and get to know your learners, place the learners who need more space to move to the edges of the seating arrangement. Give them a lane on the outside to utilize the space for stretching and moving uninhibitedly. Some of your more rambunctious learners need more space, which the outside aisles will provide.
Decisively arrange desks or tables to accommodate learning and minimize misbehavior. Your arrangements need to facilitate various activities and keep disruptive behavior to a minimum.
Based on the lesson, a seating arrangement should never be lasting and can change with the way the lesson is presented. Once changing seating arrangements, designate where learners will sit prior to class begins. Utilize an overhead to assign seats. As the learners walk into the room, have them check where they need to sit or organize the change yourself, preserving class time for academic instruction.
Organize the class so that it permits an easy flow of traffic. With any age, a push, trip, or bump might cause some pushing or shoving. Remain proactive by arranging the tables or desks with enough space for learners to walk easily and freely. This will minimize class- room management issues.
Put yourself in an area where you can reach all learners and see all learners. You should make eye contact with all your learners as a form of communication, and you must reach them quickly if they need help or discipline.
Find your desk outside of the main teaching area. Effective educators don’t teach from behind their desks. Consider moving the desk to the back of the room as an alternative to the front to create an area where learners can conference one-on-one with you in a more private area. This also gives you a good chance to supervise students at work.
Carry the class tidy and organized. Refrain from the clutter that will distract from instruction, impede the flow of traffic, or cause you to take time to look for a misplaced item. Learners are thrown off task quickly, so alleviate natural or physical barriers as much as possible.
Model the standards that either you or you and your class have established. If you believe that being on time, prepared, and active listeners are important, then model these behaviors for your learners. Start the class on time, be organized, and listen when learners are responding to you. Your actions show learners that you also believe in the guidelines for the class.
