If you’re like me and you are on Instagram or Twitter, the most buzzed about educational topic this summer seems to be flexible seating. And while it may be a movement more common among teachers of younger learners, there is still a lot of merit in using flexible seating in a high school classroom. However, as many seasoned high school teachers will realize, allowing students to sit wherever they want by whomever they want often drastically competes with good classroom management.
I’ve always been a fan of assigned seating, but over the past few years I’ve incorporated many different kinds of “learning stations” in my classroom to allow students to work comfortably and in their best environment.
The end result is that I use a healthy mix of both assigned and flexible seating options in my classroom instruction.
And since I just finished setting up my classroom yesterday, I thought I’d show you some of the strategies I use to balance flexible seating with assigned seating in my classroom, and how I facilitate between them.
Here is an overall image of my classroom setup. I use tables rather than desks because I incorporate small group discussion and differentiated activities quite often. Since the students rearrange themselves frequently, tables have been a much better fit than the traditional desks I used to have. I have five groups of two smaller tables pushed together, and one group of a large table in the back of the room. When students have time to work on their own or in a group, I encourage larger groups to sit at the back table.
I also have this smaller table near the door of the classroom, and if you see below it there is a surge protector underneath it. This is my “laptop charging station,” so students who need to charge laptops but prefer a table top can sit here and continue working as they would at their desks.
This is one of the most coveted spaces in my room, which has been nicknamed the “cozy corner.” The pillows with armrests (bought from Target) are great for leaning against the wall. Students like to get comfy and work individually or in small groups here, but last year I started to find students using it to nap on the sly. This year I incorporated this pretty coffee table ($50 on Facebook Marketplace) to encourage more sitting and less laying.
In the corner of my room I also have these five colorful stools which I purchased from Amazon last year (here is the link). We use these when students want to pull up a chair or move around frequently. These are lightweight and small, so they’re a lot safer to move across a room than my bulky chairs. I was also incredibly lucky to snag this amazing rolling, adjustable standing desk from my principal last year. So far this little baby has been used as a mobile workspace for me when I have to move around the room with my laptop, a podium for giving speeches and presentations, an extra student desk with a chair, a mobile standing desk for a student with a back problem, and a portable desk for a student in a wheelchair. I highly recommend every teacher have one of these in their room if they can find the space in the budget. It’s a lifesaver!
Last year, I also discovered another problem with allowing students to move throughout the room to work. While many wanted to sit on the floor or by a partner, I found that most were confined to spots near an outlet because so many of their laptops needed to be charged (my school is on a 1:1 with devices, so each student has their own laptop or tablet for classroom use). So this year I hit the Target dollar spot and bought a few surge protectors and extension cords to reach to the middle of the room. I can’t keep them out all the time because of tripping hazards, but on writing days (which occur frequently in ELA classrooms) I can extend power to the middle of the classroom so students have more flexibility in where they sit.
The last tool for managing a mix between flexible and assigned seating is this sign that I printed double-sided and laminated. It is posted on my whiteboard, right next to our learning targets and daily homework posts. Students will simply need to look at the sign when they walk in to learn if they need to go to their assigned seat or if they can grab a comfier spot where they choose. I can also flip the sign in the middle of class if we move from whole class discussion to work time in groups. This product is a free resource in my TpT store if you are interested in downloading it! Just click here!
These are some of the flexible seating strategies that I am able to manage in my own classroom, but I still can’t move beyond assigned seating for at least part of the time. Please feel free to comment below, what elements of flexible seating have you found success with? Are there any ideas included here that you want to try out?
