I recently asked my third graders how they wanted to arrange their desks. THEY suggested (and then overwhelmingly voted for) rows. They have spent their whole academic careers (including with me) at small group tables or desk clusters, but they were so excited to make rows and have fewer distractions.
I love that!! Even the third graders know what’s best!! Thank you for sharing. And when you do something in groups they can always move the tables for a little bit. Students know they are distracted by other students. It’s not their fault, it’s human nature.
I’m not much of a traditional row person myself. In my 2nd grade classroom, I started using a U-shaped seating arrangement during the last four weeks of school, and it seemed to work really well. All of the desks are connected to form a large U, which allows every student to clearly see the board while still creating a sense of community. Although the two sides are technically facing each other, they're far enough apart that it doesn't create many distractions.
For Kagan structures and other collaborative activities, students simply move around the room as needed. I liked that it gave me the benefits of direct instruction without completely sacrificing opportunities for student interaction and discussion. Four weeks isn't enough time to declare it a success, but the early results were promising. We'll see how it holds up when we start fresh in August!
That’s a great in between solution if you are not ready to go to rows. The u shape for me still had my 7th graders obsessively looking at each other but it may be perfect for second graders. I have a feeling it’s going to hold up well but keep me posted! Thank you for sharing and for making a change that works best for your students!
Age and developmental level is such an important part of this conversation. When I taught 4/5th combo classes, I found a U was the best shape. I was able to ensure proximity with any student at a moments time. Beyond that, my class culture was built upon one norm: You can do anything in this class so long as it doesn’t harm yourself or another. Conversations with students supported their understanding that “harm” can be emotional, physical, mental, etc. Harm includes impeding your or another’s ability to learn or focus. The U, with this baseline, enabled students to practice self-control and support their peers when needed as well.
Sounds like you had it all under control. I think the U can be really helpful. I agree that age really matters… in my 7th grade classroom I always say willpower is overrated. It’s very hard for them to focus when they are staring at a friends face. Even when they have the best intentions. Back in the day I taught 4th and 5th and they were easier, but still had some trouble when faced with a classmate. Thank you so much for reading and sharing your experience. I really appreciate it.
Please do… and you know you can always switch it up a bit for a month.., try slanted rows with a space fine the middle or something else if you find they are getting antsy😂
Hi there. For me, it does not depend on that at all. The rows work for all learners and when we are doing something that requires group discussion then we move the tables. If it is a small group of students and it’s just a discussion based class, I could see a circle or u shape working.
I am glad it works for your students. I do think, however, that it also depends on the students assigned to classrooms and how they interact, learn, and focus.
I agree with that. I had a pretty relaxed—but definitely chatty—2nd grade class last year. When I took over the classroom in February, students were seated in individual islands. That approach wasn't really my style, so I quickly transitioned them into table groups. Initially, it worked well because expectations were clear and consistently reinforced. However, once routines became established and students got comfortable, the talking increased significantly.
Rather than viewing that as a failure, I treated it as feedback and continued adjusting the classroom setup to meet the needs of the group. By the end of the year, I had settled on a U-shaped arrangement, which seemed to provide a better balance between collaboration and focus. I may even try two U-shapes this coming year. Honestly, I'm still deciding. Throughout most of my teaching career, I've used tables, so this was the first classroom where I had traditional desks and the flexibility to experiment with different configurations. It was a good reminder that there is no one-size-fits-all seating arrangement—sometimes you have to adapt to the students in front of you.
From being a fifth-grade teacher 25 years ago to being a college professor for most of my career, I never put students in table groups. Like you said, I want everyone facing me to minimize their distraction and so I can track their listening/engagement. So simple, yet teachers fight against it for some reason.
Yup! Like I said in the article it has become almost shameful to use rows. It makes no sense and I’d love to empower young teachers to do what actually works instead of the trendy thing to do. Thanks for reading and following. I love connecting with like minded teachers. I also taught 5th grade many years ago. It’s a great grade to teach.
We were forced to go to rows during COVID and I wondered where my common sense had been all the years I had just gone along with tables/groups. I never went back!
Yes!! We tend to do that as teachers. Especially new teachers who just go along with what everyone is doing. Good for you for going against the grain. It has totally changed my teaching and classroom. And students never complain about it. In fact they think it’s an obvious set up. They know their limitations:))
Thank you for this post. When I say things like this, many colleagues think I’m old-fashioned. I explain: six-year-olds don’t have much inside their heads that applies to learning how to read, write, or do ‘rithmetic, so they need to be facing the expert in the room…me, the teacher. 🤦🏻♀️
Yup! You got that right. Good for you for doing it anyway. That’s why I wrote this article. We need to stop with this type of language calling it old fashioned… we are teachers that know how students learn best! And we are not afraid to do what is best for them. Bravo to you!
"That does not mean collaboration disappeared from my classroom. We still do projects, partner work, discussions, and group activities regularly. And unsurprisingly, students never seem to struggle moving chairs, pulling desks together, or finding space on the floor."
Rows as the Day 1 default is the way to go, in my experience. It's much easier to go from rows to groups than it is to go from groups to rows. For students, the first feels fun and purposeful, the second feels punitive.
That is so true and such a good thing to point out. It’s not hard for them to move tables (they actually enjoy the chaos of it), and as long as I save a few minutes at the end of class to put them back it works great. It’s truly the best of both worlds. Thanks so much for your thoughts!
When I was in elementary school (we called it grammar school in those days), there were 60 students in the class. Six rows of 10 students. I was tall, so I was in the back.
It forced me to pay attention. It worked. I have multiple post grad degrees, had a very successful career, many friends & contacts. I still think of those days (how did Sister ever manage?!!).
Yup! I hear you! The beauty of it is that seats and tables are changeable. For the most part rows are needed for focus and when a group project is done, they can be moved. Everyone is always complaining these days that they can’t keep students attention, and the phones, and the screens… and yet they think using rows is so outlandish. It works!! Thank you so much for reading and commenting:))
I came over from our conversation on my collaboration post, and I'm glad I did. You named something that doesn't get said enough. When students are facing one another while the teacher is speaking, focus is genuinely difficult for many of them.
I think it boils down to the type of instruction. If the majority of class runs teacher-led, and sometimes it should, then rows make the most sense. If the class moves into groups to practice together before demonstrating independence, then the space needs to be conducive for that.
I love the balance you've found of facing the teacher to eliminate distractions, moving desks to signal collaboration. Your room matches your model, and that helps signal to students where attention should be given.
Thank you so much for reading. Yes, I do believe in direct instruction, and I do it quite often (I wrote an article on why,) but that’s doesn’t mean there is not time for group work as well. I wouldn’t say there is an equal balance if both in my classroom, but I put a lot of thought into why and when I put students in groups. Thank you again for your thoughts on this!
Thank you so much Erin. I really appreciate your support! My methods truly work and my students are the proof. We need to make an environment where they can truly learn. They are why we are in the classroom in the first place! That’s why I decided to start this substack. The series of articles will be about ways to truly make the classroom work for students.
Thank you, as a parent and former school kid, truly. I see what some educators are trying to get out there to their colleagues and I really appreciate the movement I see for change. 💛
When I see that group arrangements are still the norm so many decades after I experienced it in my own schooling, I question reality.
Never, not ever, not once, not once not ever, no exceptions, literally NOT ONCE, could a group stay on task for a moment. Ever. It was crazy making for me. Overstimulated, and lack of privacy to the extreme. My focus didn’t stand a chance. And the older one gets, the more questionable the conversation gets with table mates. The kids that you would normally avoid at snack/recess- they want to tell you about what they caught their parents doing last night🤢.
I would go to the bathroom just to get a moment of privacy for a second, have 2 minutes of quiet and a thought of my own. I actually enjoyed the social scene, not neurodivergent, and no learning disability. But those all day, everyday table groupings?
Like making professionals do all their work inside a Top Golf.
Thank you so so much for this very validating comment. I love hearing it from a students perspective as well. What you described is exactly what happens in groupings. It just does… and I know some people will say that’s the point of it.. so kids can learn patience and resilience etc. but you can’t have it both ways. You can’t complain that kids are not learning and then say it’s more important for them to learn patience. We can actually do both if we use rows and move the tables when necessary. Thank you again for taking the time to share your thoughts:)
The amount of drama that fell on my head when I switched to rows was unbelievable. I had to write a detailed email/report about how I was taking into account ADHD, student voice, and behavior to choose this layout and was treated like I was making the worst decision possible. When I left for maternity, I was shocked when I visited and they nonchalantly kept it the same. Because it was working.
Thank you so much for this comment! You are what I was describing in my article. Educators have been brain washed into believing that kids must sit in table groups and it doesn’t work. I’m so glad you stuck to your guns and kept them. Hopefully your school learned something.. if not, send them my article 😂 bravo again for being brave enough to go against the grain 👏
Great piece. Common sense approach used. I partcularly like the buzz word names, Blooms, Maslow, etc. Teaching starts with standards and developing rekationships.
Thank you so much!! You are correct. I try to write my articles with the straightforward truth. No need to complicate the obvious. Not sure if you saw it, but my article called “engagement is not the same as entertainment” is about how connection is the key to good teaching. Take a look at it and let me know what you think. Thanks again for reading!
Love this post. I'm a secondary ELA teacher in Florida and find that Socratic circles can work for middle school. I also had success in an intensive reading class, putting desks in rows but sectioning off the room into groups according to progress on assessments and daily work.
Thank you so much! I also use Socratic circles and the beauty is that when we do them we can move the desks. Nothing is permanent and I wish more teachers were open to that. Thanks so much for sharing your ideas. I really appreciate it!
I've taught all levels from middle school to grad school, and my students feel (and tell me they feel) more comfortable in rows facing me, even though my class is always discussion-oriented rather than lecture-based. They're clearly more engaged. We do lots of collaborative projects with kids in groups, but the students seem most comfortable with hearing my explanation of the foundation first, and they seem much more likely to ask questions when they're facing me. Thanks for letting us know that rows work for you, too.
Yes, yes yes! Thank you for confirming that your students agree with me too:) It feels so obvious and yet people fight it so much. You put it very succinctly in your comment. Even the students see its value. I hope people will see it too because I only want to help teachers have a better chance of success in the classroom.
I've been lucky to teach the same class in the same school long enough that the kids don't expect "cute" and know that they'll be free to pursue their own ideas in research papers (Did Lady Macbeth exhibit signs of what we now diagnose as PTSD?) as long as their research supports their position....so they don't fight much, even at the beginning. They're in rows alphabetically because I have a weird brain thing that literally keeps me from learning names well. They even accept that when I explain. Such a wonderful profession! Our collaborative group projects have individual assignments and individual grades, although they have to collaborate to make each part meet the requirements, and they appreciate not being bound by someone else's sloppy work. I try to listen to their genuine concerns and take them into account in my teaching as well as the assignments, and it's such a joy to work with them (at least most of the time...) !
You clearly know yourself as a teacher, and the students at your school do too. I think that's they key to it. We have to be who we are as teachers, and the students need to see that, in order to respect and enjoy us. It sounds like we have similar teaching styles as we kind march to our own drummer and that is felt deeply in the classroom as us caring enough to do things differently. I too have alternative ways to do group assignments, as I don't thinks its fair to make one student responsible for another students lack of care...I should write an article about that🤔 I can feel your love and enjoyment for the classroom and it is so nice to see...I'm sure your students love you!
Many of them live in my neighborhood even now that they’ve married….they routinely cross the street (that even happened out of town when I was at a cousin’s university move-in day) to say hello and catch up. Such a gift — I remember crossing the street with my head down to avoid former teachers! Of course, the administration almost always tried / try to get me back in line with “best practices” of the trendy, and they generally made / make my life miserable when not actually in the classroom, but the kids always make up for that!
I love that!! The students are truly the best part of it. But I think you and I can see that because we put them in situations where they could really learn and enjoy the class and us as teachers. We weren't constantly trying to get their attention and focus. I'm still in it fighting the good fight...luckily I am in a school that trusts me:)
I’m still fighting the good fight, too, just not full-time in the classroom now. Working on developing some programs that work with all kids, no matter how well or poorly prepared they are, as long as they’re willing to work and try to apply what we discuss.
As a middle school teacher (7th grade too!) I really appreciate this perspective. One small adjustment I make - I prefer rows of pairs - it makes turn and talks much easier. But grouping on the regular rarely works for me. I save it for specific tasks. It took me many, many years to become okay with this. I so badly wanted groups to work because it seemed like the "look for" but they were so problematic for all the reasons you note.
Haha at first when I was reading I was encouraged but when I got to that last part I started to have doubts 😂Open design is definitely not a plan that o will be using.
Thank you so much for that perspective. I’m not judging you are all, but I have an aversion to turn and talk:) I absolutely do not like them in my class or when I have to do them in a meeting. I just don’t think it does what it is meant to do. But that is for each teacher to decide:). But yes, rows solve a lot of problems, and the beauty is they are not permanent. The students can always move the tables when they need to.
Ah, I too assigned my middle school language arts students to seats that were set up in 3 rows of side-by-side desks. I assigned boy-girl pairings blindly from reading the student roster on the first day, and easily made adjustments after that. Our 50 minute period typically began with sentence work—revision and proofreading of 3 sentences taken from recent student writing (Nellie Thomas). Students then chose from a limited set of activities that they could do anywhere in the room, alone or with others. It was a tiny carpeted room with no windows and a sliding divider wall to the room next door—the open learning design concept that failed dramatically.
I recently asked my third graders how they wanted to arrange their desks. THEY suggested (and then overwhelmingly voted for) rows. They have spent their whole academic careers (including with me) at small group tables or desk clusters, but they were so excited to make rows and have fewer distractions.
I love that!! Even the third graders know what’s best!! Thank you for sharing. And when you do something in groups they can always move the tables for a little bit. Students know they are distracted by other students. It’s not their fault, it’s human nature.
I think my students really appreciated having their own distinct little space the room.
I’m not much of a traditional row person myself. In my 2nd grade classroom, I started using a U-shaped seating arrangement during the last four weeks of school, and it seemed to work really well. All of the desks are connected to form a large U, which allows every student to clearly see the board while still creating a sense of community. Although the two sides are technically facing each other, they're far enough apart that it doesn't create many distractions.
For Kagan structures and other collaborative activities, students simply move around the room as needed. I liked that it gave me the benefits of direct instruction without completely sacrificing opportunities for student interaction and discussion. Four weeks isn't enough time to declare it a success, but the early results were promising. We'll see how it holds up when we start fresh in August!
That’s a great in between solution if you are not ready to go to rows. The u shape for me still had my 7th graders obsessively looking at each other but it may be perfect for second graders. I have a feeling it’s going to hold up well but keep me posted! Thank you for sharing and for making a change that works best for your students!
Age and developmental level is such an important part of this conversation. When I taught 4/5th combo classes, I found a U was the best shape. I was able to ensure proximity with any student at a moments time. Beyond that, my class culture was built upon one norm: You can do anything in this class so long as it doesn’t harm yourself or another. Conversations with students supported their understanding that “harm” can be emotional, physical, mental, etc. Harm includes impeding your or another’s ability to learn or focus. The U, with this baseline, enabled students to practice self-control and support their peers when needed as well.
Sounds like you had it all under control. I think the U can be really helpful. I agree that age really matters… in my 7th grade classroom I always say willpower is overrated. It’s very hard for them to focus when they are staring at a friends face. Even when they have the best intentions. Back in the day I taught 4th and 5th and they were easier, but still had some trouble when faced with a classmate. Thank you so much for reading and sharing your experience. I really appreciate it.
It worked okay at the end of the year. The real test is August. I will keep you posted!
Please do… and you know you can always switch it up a bit for a month.., try slanted rows with a space fine the middle or something else if you find they are getting antsy😂
Hi there. For me, it does not depend on that at all. The rows work for all learners and when we are doing something that requires group discussion then we move the tables. If it is a small group of students and it’s just a discussion based class, I could see a circle or u shape working.
I am glad it works for your students. I do think, however, that it also depends on the students assigned to classrooms and how they interact, learn, and focus.
I agree with that. I had a pretty relaxed—but definitely chatty—2nd grade class last year. When I took over the classroom in February, students were seated in individual islands. That approach wasn't really my style, so I quickly transitioned them into table groups. Initially, it worked well because expectations were clear and consistently reinforced. However, once routines became established and students got comfortable, the talking increased significantly.
Rather than viewing that as a failure, I treated it as feedback and continued adjusting the classroom setup to meet the needs of the group. By the end of the year, I had settled on a U-shaped arrangement, which seemed to provide a better balance between collaboration and focus. I may even try two U-shapes this coming year. Honestly, I'm still deciding. Throughout most of my teaching career, I've used tables, so this was the first classroom where I had traditional desks and the flexibility to experiment with different configurations. It was a good reminder that there is no one-size-fits-all seating arrangement—sometimes you have to adapt to the students in front of you.
From being a fifth-grade teacher 25 years ago to being a college professor for most of my career, I never put students in table groups. Like you said, I want everyone facing me to minimize their distraction and so I can track their listening/engagement. So simple, yet teachers fight against it for some reason.
Yup! Like I said in the article it has become almost shameful to use rows. It makes no sense and I’d love to empower young teachers to do what actually works instead of the trendy thing to do. Thanks for reading and following. I love connecting with like minded teachers. I also taught 5th grade many years ago. It’s a great grade to teach.
We were forced to go to rows during COVID and I wondered where my common sense had been all the years I had just gone along with tables/groups. I never went back!
Yes!! We tend to do that as teachers. Especially new teachers who just go along with what everyone is doing. Good for you for going against the grain. It has totally changed my teaching and classroom. And students never complain about it. In fact they think it’s an obvious set up. They know their limitations:))
Thank you for this post. When I say things like this, many colleagues think I’m old-fashioned. I explain: six-year-olds don’t have much inside their heads that applies to learning how to read, write, or do ‘rithmetic, so they need to be facing the expert in the room…me, the teacher. 🤦🏻♀️
Yup! You got that right. Good for you for doing it anyway. That’s why I wrote this article. We need to stop with this type of language calling it old fashioned… we are teachers that know how students learn best! And we are not afraid to do what is best for them. Bravo to you!
"That does not mean collaboration disappeared from my classroom. We still do projects, partner work, discussions, and group activities regularly. And unsurprisingly, students never seem to struggle moving chairs, pulling desks together, or finding space on the floor."
Rows as the Day 1 default is the way to go, in my experience. It's much easier to go from rows to groups than it is to go from groups to rows. For students, the first feels fun and purposeful, the second feels punitive.
That is so true and such a good thing to point out. It’s not hard for them to move tables (they actually enjoy the chaos of it), and as long as I save a few minutes at the end of class to put them back it works great. It’s truly the best of both worlds. Thanks so much for your thoughts!
When I was in elementary school (we called it grammar school in those days), there were 60 students in the class. Six rows of 10 students. I was tall, so I was in the back.
It forced me to pay attention. It worked. I have multiple post grad degrees, had a very successful career, many friends & contacts. I still think of those days (how did Sister ever manage?!!).
Yup! I hear you! The beauty of it is that seats and tables are changeable. For the most part rows are needed for focus and when a group project is done, they can be moved. Everyone is always complaining these days that they can’t keep students attention, and the phones, and the screens… and yet they think using rows is so outlandish. It works!! Thank you so much for reading and commenting:))
I came over from our conversation on my collaboration post, and I'm glad I did. You named something that doesn't get said enough. When students are facing one another while the teacher is speaking, focus is genuinely difficult for many of them.
I think it boils down to the type of instruction. If the majority of class runs teacher-led, and sometimes it should, then rows make the most sense. If the class moves into groups to practice together before demonstrating independence, then the space needs to be conducive for that.
I love the balance you've found of facing the teacher to eliminate distractions, moving desks to signal collaboration. Your room matches your model, and that helps signal to students where attention should be given.
Thanks for the thoughtful exchange!
Thank you so much for reading. Yes, I do believe in direct instruction, and I do it quite often (I wrote an article on why,) but that’s doesn’t mean there is not time for group work as well. I wouldn’t say there is an equal balance if both in my classroom, but I put a lot of thought into why and when I put students in groups. Thank you again for your thoughts on this!
So much yes.
Thank you so much for reading:) and agreeing !
I applaud your approach for balancing limiting distractions and supporting students.
Thank you so much Erin. I really appreciate your support! My methods truly work and my students are the proof. We need to make an environment where they can truly learn. They are why we are in the classroom in the first place! That’s why I decided to start this substack. The series of articles will be about ways to truly make the classroom work for students.
Thank you, as a parent and former school kid, truly. I see what some educators are trying to get out there to their colleagues and I really appreciate the movement I see for change. 💛
When I see that group arrangements are still the norm so many decades after I experienced it in my own schooling, I question reality.
Never, not ever, not once, not once not ever, no exceptions, literally NOT ONCE, could a group stay on task for a moment. Ever. It was crazy making for me. Overstimulated, and lack of privacy to the extreme. My focus didn’t stand a chance. And the older one gets, the more questionable the conversation gets with table mates. The kids that you would normally avoid at snack/recess- they want to tell you about what they caught their parents doing last night🤢.
I would go to the bathroom just to get a moment of privacy for a second, have 2 minutes of quiet and a thought of my own. I actually enjoyed the social scene, not neurodivergent, and no learning disability. But those all day, everyday table groupings?
Like making professionals do all their work inside a Top Golf.
Thank you so so much for this very validating comment. I love hearing it from a students perspective as well. What you described is exactly what happens in groupings. It just does… and I know some people will say that’s the point of it.. so kids can learn patience and resilience etc. but you can’t have it both ways. You can’t complain that kids are not learning and then say it’s more important for them to learn patience. We can actually do both if we use rows and move the tables when necessary. Thank you again for taking the time to share your thoughts:)
Yea! Exactly. Move into groups for specific structured activities. It’s not that hard 😅
The amount of drama that fell on my head when I switched to rows was unbelievable. I had to write a detailed email/report about how I was taking into account ADHD, student voice, and behavior to choose this layout and was treated like I was making the worst decision possible. When I left for maternity, I was shocked when I visited and they nonchalantly kept it the same. Because it was working.
Thank you so much for this comment! You are what I was describing in my article. Educators have been brain washed into believing that kids must sit in table groups and it doesn’t work. I’m so glad you stuck to your guns and kept them. Hopefully your school learned something.. if not, send them my article 😂 bravo again for being brave enough to go against the grain 👏
Great piece. Common sense approach used. I partcularly like the buzz word names, Blooms, Maslow, etc. Teaching starts with standards and developing rekationships.
Thank you so much!! You are correct. I try to write my articles with the straightforward truth. No need to complicate the obvious. Not sure if you saw it, but my article called “engagement is not the same as entertainment” is about how connection is the key to good teaching. Take a look at it and let me know what you think. Thanks again for reading!
Love this post. I'm a secondary ELA teacher in Florida and find that Socratic circles can work for middle school. I also had success in an intensive reading class, putting desks in rows but sectioning off the room into groups according to progress on assessments and daily work.
Thank you so much! I also use Socratic circles and the beauty is that when we do them we can move the desks. Nothing is permanent and I wish more teachers were open to that. Thanks so much for sharing your ideas. I really appreciate it!
I love both those ideas!
Hats off to all of you teaching in Florida in this decade of living hell politics in education.
Thank you for your encouraging words:) Nobody said it was going to be easy and it certainly is not
I've taught all levels from middle school to grad school, and my students feel (and tell me they feel) more comfortable in rows facing me, even though my class is always discussion-oriented rather than lecture-based. They're clearly more engaged. We do lots of collaborative projects with kids in groups, but the students seem most comfortable with hearing my explanation of the foundation first, and they seem much more likely to ask questions when they're facing me. Thanks for letting us know that rows work for you, too.
Yes, yes yes! Thank you for confirming that your students agree with me too:) It feels so obvious and yet people fight it so much. You put it very succinctly in your comment. Even the students see its value. I hope people will see it too because I only want to help teachers have a better chance of success in the classroom.
I've been lucky to teach the same class in the same school long enough that the kids don't expect "cute" and know that they'll be free to pursue their own ideas in research papers (Did Lady Macbeth exhibit signs of what we now diagnose as PTSD?) as long as their research supports their position....so they don't fight much, even at the beginning. They're in rows alphabetically because I have a weird brain thing that literally keeps me from learning names well. They even accept that when I explain. Such a wonderful profession! Our collaborative group projects have individual assignments and individual grades, although they have to collaborate to make each part meet the requirements, and they appreciate not being bound by someone else's sloppy work. I try to listen to their genuine concerns and take them into account in my teaching as well as the assignments, and it's such a joy to work with them (at least most of the time...) !
You clearly know yourself as a teacher, and the students at your school do too. I think that's they key to it. We have to be who we are as teachers, and the students need to see that, in order to respect and enjoy us. It sounds like we have similar teaching styles as we kind march to our own drummer and that is felt deeply in the classroom as us caring enough to do things differently. I too have alternative ways to do group assignments, as I don't thinks its fair to make one student responsible for another students lack of care...I should write an article about that🤔 I can feel your love and enjoyment for the classroom and it is so nice to see...I'm sure your students love you!
Many of them live in my neighborhood even now that they’ve married….they routinely cross the street (that even happened out of town when I was at a cousin’s university move-in day) to say hello and catch up. Such a gift — I remember crossing the street with my head down to avoid former teachers! Of course, the administration almost always tried / try to get me back in line with “best practices” of the trendy, and they generally made / make my life miserable when not actually in the classroom, but the kids always make up for that!
I love that!! The students are truly the best part of it. But I think you and I can see that because we put them in situations where they could really learn and enjoy the class and us as teachers. We weren't constantly trying to get their attention and focus. I'm still in it fighting the good fight...luckily I am in a school that trusts me:)
I’m still fighting the good fight, too, just not full-time in the classroom now. Working on developing some programs that work with all kids, no matter how well or poorly prepared they are, as long as they’re willing to work and try to apply what we discuss.
As a middle school teacher (7th grade too!) I really appreciate this perspective. One small adjustment I make - I prefer rows of pairs - it makes turn and talks much easier. But grouping on the regular rarely works for me. I save it for specific tasks. It took me many, many years to become okay with this. I so badly wanted groups to work because it seemed like the "look for" but they were so problematic for all the reasons you note.
Haha at first when I was reading I was encouraged but when I got to that last part I started to have doubts 😂Open design is definitely not a plan that o will be using.
Thank you so much for that perspective. I’m not judging you are all, but I have an aversion to turn and talk:) I absolutely do not like them in my class or when I have to do them in a meeting. I just don’t think it does what it is meant to do. But that is for each teacher to decide:). But yes, rows solve a lot of problems, and the beauty is they are not permanent. The students can always move the tables when they need to.
Ah, I too assigned my middle school language arts students to seats that were set up in 3 rows of side-by-side desks. I assigned boy-girl pairings blindly from reading the student roster on the first day, and easily made adjustments after that. Our 50 minute period typically began with sentence work—revision and proofreading of 3 sentences taken from recent student writing (Nellie Thomas). Students then chose from a limited set of activities that they could do anywhere in the room, alone or with others. It was a tiny carpeted room with no windows and a sliding divider wall to the room next door—the open learning design concept that failed dramatically.
Cheers!