Preparing for the First Days of School? No Sweat!

Setting Up Your Classroom

Your classroom arrangement has a direct impact on student behavior and learning. Be sure to spend quality time and thought in the planning of your class layout.  Your classroom organization will speak to the students the very moment they step foot into your room. It will speak to them about the type of teacher you are. What message do you want to send to your students on the first day?

Remember:

-         - All students need an unobstructed view of the board or primary instruction area.

-       -  Your layout should promote the ability of interaction between students. Pairs or triples are great for the beginning of the year. (Personally, I would not recommend groups larger than 4 for the start of the year).

-        - You and the students need to be able to move easily through the aisles. Create sections of desks by placing large gaps between rows. This ensures that you will be able to physically reach every student.

-        - Students should have access to classroom supplies. So, be sure to make them accessible.

You can save yourself some back pain by visiting: http://teacher.scholastic.com/tools/class_setup/, on this site you can arrange and rearrange your classroom virtually.

Click here to get started!