Seating+Arrangements

The use of the physical space in a classroom can either make or break a classrooms atmosphere and the success or failure of a lesson. Gonzalez-Mena acknowledges that for children in the early years, incorporating a variety of levels is a key factor in how successful a seating plan will be (Gonzalez-Mena, 2007, pg 66). So the more common seating plans for primary settings like the traditional desk rows and pair seats are not likely to be successful, but that of course depends entirely on the teacher. Studies have shown that the physical design of classrooms has clear instructional and group management implications. Students seating in action zone areas – areas of high traffic and the teachers walking path, have clear classroom management implications. Therefore as teachers we should place students who require specialized help or have trouble paying attention in this zone or close proximity to the teachers walking path. (Krause et al,2010) The following are five examples of seating arrangements currently used in classrooms.

__Pair seating plans:__ - Good for teamwork or small group exercises but Could cause disruptions if you place the wrong people together - Will only work if you are constantly changing who sits with who, this will rule out the possibility of arguments and encourages everyone to speak to everyone - These kind of seating plans are perfect for children with Autism of Asperger’s who will only work successfully with one person or with an LSA.



__Collaborative Seating Plans__: - I feel these collaborative seating plans are the most successful in an early childhood setting - Can be set up for any activity and for any purpose eg- math’s groups, reading activities, or investigations of different topics. - With them all angled towards the front of the classroom it is easy for the teacher to move around and keep the classes attention - May not be as successful for children with disabilities (Asperger’s or Autism especially)



__Quad share seating plans:__ - These type of seating plans are ones that I would not feel comfortable having set up in my classroom permanently as it would lead to a lot of talking and disruptions - Great for group and project work and any activity involving collaborative learning - <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Vygotsky would have supported seating plans like this one as he argued that “it is through interaction with other’s that we learn how to think… with young children especially” (Krause et al, 2010, pg 83)



<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">__The U shape seating plan:__ <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">The more contemporary U-shaped seating plan is one I would be more cautious about using in an early childhood setting. As this would take up a lot of the classroom space, I would imagine that children would be yelling over the top of each other and fighting to be heard. I do, however, feel strongly about this seating plan in middle or secondary education as this type of collaborative seating plan will foster many discussions and debates and allows the teacher to move freely throughout the classroom. It also helps to control behaviour management.



__<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Desk Row seating plans: __ <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">- Traditional seating plan <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">- Takes us back to the day when teachers sat at a desk and dictated to children <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">- This type of seating plan does not view children as capable, but as tasks that must be completed <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">- <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">This would not be successful in a primary setting



<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">So depending on what a teacher’s personal philosophy is towards education, there are a lot of different seating plans available to us. Coming specifically from an early childhood perspective I would be choosing a collaborative seating plan, but included different levels in the classroom for example having tables for doing desk work, and providing smaller working areas on the ground for games and project work, and also allowing floor time and group sharing.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">__References:__


 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Gonzalez-Mena et al, 2007, “Infants, Toddlers and Caregivers – A curriculum of respectful, responsive care and education”, McGraw Hill Publishing, New York
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Krause et al, 2010, “Educational Psychology for Learning and Teaching”,Cengage Learning Publishing, Australia