Allowing students to move the furniture can help you differentiate instruction and give your students more agency in their learning.
Original Article. THis is a video I recently came across. It is a short five minutes of valuable ideas!
https://www.edutopia.org/article/optimal-seating-plan-letting-your-students-choose-emelina-minero
This video was an extremely interesting display of how much classrooms have changed over the years.
By designing classrooms to use tables that not only link together in a variety of ways, and also encouraging students to move their workplaces to optimize their workspace, the classroom becomes a wonderful space for learners to collaborate as a team.
The instructor also sees the need for those who either want, or need to work in privacy. Those students are encouraged to move to the outer edges of the room, facing outwards, allowing the instructor to be able to see what they have on their laptop.
Definitely not for everyone, especially when classes can’t just buy a bunch of tables on wheels and outfit everyone with laptops, but for those who are building from scratch, I see this almost as a must have in today’s learning spaces.
A few key notes from this video:
Students understand what types of learning works for them
Teachers are equipped with more ways to deliver better instruction
I think it is obvious this would work much better for certain types of socially interactive classes. I don't see how it would be as valuable to perhaps a math class!
Original Article. THis is a video I recently came across. It is a short five minutes of valuable ideas!
https://www.edutopia.org/article/optimal-seating-plan-letting-your-students-choose-emelina-minero
This video was an extremely interesting display of how much classrooms have changed over the years.
By designing classrooms to use tables that not only link together in a variety of ways, and also encouraging students to move their workplaces to optimize their workspace, the classroom becomes a wonderful space for learners to collaborate as a team.
The instructor also sees the need for those who either want, or need to work in privacy. Those students are encouraged to move to the outer edges of the room, facing outwards, allowing the instructor to be able to see what they have on their laptop.
Definitely not for everyone, especially when classes can’t just buy a bunch of tables on wheels and outfit everyone with laptops, but for those who are building from scratch, I see this almost as a must have in today’s learning spaces.
A few key notes from this video:
- Offer students choice in their learning environments to increase engagement
- Encourage participation by giving students the task of moving classroom furniture
- Those who need to collaborate move together in groups. this give students the opportunity to learn in different ways
- Tailor each learning spaces by offering to support personal working environments
- Enable better communication and I contact by seating students in large circles with no desks
Students understand what types of learning works for them
Teachers are equipped with more ways to deliver better instruction
I think it is obvious this would work much better for certain types of socially interactive classes. I don't see how it would be as valuable to perhaps a math class!