Classroom Layout

Rational for Classroom Layout

The rationale behind the classroom layout mainly stems from the focus of group driven

work and an environment where the students can rely on each other for support and information.

In a classroom of 35 students, it would be impossible for a teacher to be everywhere at once,

therefore group work and collaboration between students is important for their growth as a class.

According to the information provided by Effective Classroom Seating Arrangements (2016), a

classroom can be three things; teacher-centered, learner-centered, or both, the goal is to aim for

the sweet spot that incorporates both strategies (para. 10). The classroom will have 9 square

tables (refer to classroom layout diagram), these tables will be divided into 3 columns of 3, each

table will seat 4 students which means a total of 36 students can be seated. The great thing about

this layout is that it can be used for a variety of classwork; individual work, pair work, small

group work (table of four students), large group work (three tables combined to make 12

students) (A. D’Andrea, personal communication, 2019). An example of utilizing this layout is

having the students break off and individually read a section of a chapter, they were then told to

pair-share with the person next to them, and finally to group-share with their table of four. There

will also be a round table located on the bottom of the classroom, refer to the diagram, where

students that need accommodations such as more space, a quiet area, or even troubled or

troublesome students can be placed for extra supervision. The great thing about this area is that it

will be located closer to the teacher’s desk, the laptop bin and will be surrounded by a soft rug

that will provide a nice texture and color stimulation for the students that will be seated at the

round table.

Another important part of the classroom layout is what is on the walls, the first and most

important thing is that the content objectives need to be written somewhere they can be seen with
ease, the diagram shows the placement of this board on the right side of the classroom

(D’Andrea, personal communication, 2019). This bulletin board will outline the objectives for

the students that will be updated every week, the objective for each day will be listed followed

by the standards that will be strived for, i.e. “The students will be able to…”. Aside from the

bulletin board with the objectives, it would also be essential to have the classroom procedures

and rules plastered on the walls so that the students will be constantly reminded what is expected

of them. However, it won’t all be restrictive regulations on the classroom walls, there will be

posters and even Fathead stickers that are relevant to the subject being taught; a few examples

being historical figures like Ulysses S. Grant and Frederick Douglass. The Fathead stickers may

be updated as to directly reflect the lesson being taught as the year goes on, having the kids see

the real person in front of them may help engage and interest them.

When it comes to technology in the classroom, a ceiling-mounted projector will save

space and laptops provided for the students which will be in a laptop bin in the bottom of the

room, according to the diagram. The projector will allow the of integration of PowerPoints,

Peardeck, or Nearpod presentations into the lessons, whichever the school will prefer or provide,

so that the visual learners can have a more thorough understanding of the material. The laptops

will be there for students so they can use outside sources for research and even use Peardeck or

Nearpod for their group projects and/or presentations. The only desktops in the room will be the

ones located at the teacher’s desk and the one placed at the top of the classroom (according to the

diagram) which will be used to control the projector. The great thing about the laptops is that the

students will be able to use them anywhere, the students can take them to the round table or even

the hallway if they need space or a quiet area.

 When looking at the diagram, shelves have been placed all around the room, every side

of the room has a place for a shelf or container. The shelves on the left side of the room will be

designated cubbies for classwork and supplies meant for each class period. The shelves on the

top of the classroom will contain more materials like copier paper for miscellaneous projects,

colored pencils, both electric and manual sharpeners (having an option for both makes things

convenient) and markers. The great thing about having more shelves is so that materials can be

accessed at any side of the room to prevent bottlenecking one area of the room, the downside to

this is the need to keep each area stocked and organized. Also, there is something therapeutic and

relaxing about taking a half hour to sharpen an entire box of colored pencils.

The final thing to mention is the addition of a sink and water fountain combination at the

upper left corner of the room, this may also be the location of a fridge, but the fridge can easily

be moved to teacher’s desk area. The fridge can be used to store food in such as fruits and other

snacks that can be provided to students that forgot to bring or cannot afford lunch (D’Andrea,

personal communication, 2019). The point of a sink and water fountain is to eliminate the need

for students to leave the room to wash their hands if they have a project that uses markers, paint

or other utensils and the excuse for them to “get a drink of water” just to wander the halls.

All in all, the layout of the room contains all the essentials that are needed to run a fun

and safe classroom, but surely there are things that can be improved upon, especially when this

layout is implemented into a real classroom. However, no matter the change of materials,

shelves, and such, the group centered focus of the room will stay as that characteristic is one of

the foundations of the layout.

 Procedures and Routines in the Classroom

Starting off, it must be mentioned that most of the procedures and routines of this

classroom layout are inspired by Carl Rogers. After spending a considerable amount of time

researching Carl Rogers and his techniques related to the classroom and adolescent development,

I have found that his work is the most effective when compared to other theorists researched

(McLeod, 2014). The approach to the classroom closely follows his Unconditional Positive

Regard method which relies on caring for the student no matter what happens, whether they fail

or succeed, unrelenting support will be offered throughout the entire process (McLeod, 2014).

The classroom procedures will start with the methods for beginning and ending class, as

well as handling the transitions between activities. Going back to Rogers’ Unconditional Positive

Regard, it is imperative to be consistently kind and diligent with the actions used to calmly

remind the class of their daily procedures as they enter the classroom. A strategy that will be

implemented is one where the teacher will stand outside of the classroom and observe the

students as they pass by or enter class, this strategy can be utilized in a menacing way in order to

prevent the students from breaking rules as this will result in immediate disciplinary against them

(A. D’Andrea, personal communication, 2019). However, this strategy will be utilized differently

by establishing a calm presence as one that is tied to safety and acknowledgement for the

students’ wellbeing. The point of the procedures for beginning and ending class will be to kindly

remind the students of their responsibilities in the classroom.

The procedures for handling student work whether it’s collecting or handing it back is to

give the time to make sure each student is on track and not lost. Establishing a routine to

regularly check if a student is lost or needs answers is important. From personal experience, I

still do this now, I will be lost and may feel too embarrassed to ask for help, it isn’t too
farfetched to think that these thoughts may also plague my students’ minds. As for the

expectations of the students, as with all the rules and procedures that will implemented, the rule

of respect will be enforced. It is a student’s responsibility to be respectful when turning in work,

if they shout, “I’m done!” or loudly shuffle to the assignment tray they will disturb their peers. It

will also be the teacher’s responsibility to grade assignments in a timely manner and give

appropriate feedback that will benefit the students.

Student absences are inevitable; therefore, it is important to establish an effective

procedure that will smoothly handle the situation when it arises. Of course, there are also school

wide procedures that will be in effect while also being out of the hands of teachers, it will solely

be their duty to enforce the procedures. Approaching these situations with an open mind and

respect is an important job, it is impossible for a teacher to know everything about a student’s

personal life so it would be irresponsible for he/she to make negative assumptions about them.

Again, it is a two-way street, it is also the student’s responsibility to provide the proper

paperwork or excuses for their absence. Another thing to mention is late work, as that is loosely

related to this subject. I like to think that I’m a lenient person and have had experiences before

that have led to me being absent which then in turn would result in me falling behind in class. If

anything, these experiences have made me more empathetic and understanding. If a student

provides a valid excuse, they will be cooperated with and extra time may be given to follow-up

with their late assignments.

The procedures for grading will be rather straight forward, the standard grading scale of

90-100 being an A, 80-89 being a B and so on. This simple scale will be easy to comprehend and

follow, if a student has a better understanding of what is expected of them, they can begin to

push forward without worrying if what they’re doing is correct or not.

 As for communicating with parents, it is crucial to be as transparent and consistent as

possible. There is an app that connects teachers and parents without giving out phone numbers,

this handy tool lets teachers send out notifications for due assignments, upcoming projects dates

as well as fun functions that parents may attend (A. D’Andrea, personal communication, 2019).

Communication between parents and teachers is paramount for the success of the student,

parents and teachers need to work together so that more can be done at home for the betterment

of the student. Parents need to know that the teacher is available for any questions or concerns

they may have regarding their child in the classroom, if there are any complaints they have they

should not feel hesitant to share them with the educator.

Discipline Strategies including Rules and Consequences

Regarding laying out the specifics, the fewer the rules the better. Of course, there are

district-wide rules that students must follow like no gum, no wearing hoodies, and teachers must

enforce but it is also important to establish a calm environment for the students (A. D’Andrea,

personal communication, 2019). The first rule would be for students to have respect for others,

their surroundings and themselves. Students should to be able to take the rules and apply them to

their daily lives outside of school and maybe keep them for the rest of their lives. The students

need to know that respect is everything, respect for their peers who are there to learn and respect

for their surroundings, this extends to the outside world. The students should also be able to

appreciate the beauty in the world, to respect the spiritual link that every human being has with

their surroundings.

Now time for the hard part, how will the students be disciplined? Having a consistent

model that all students must abide by and the same punishment for all is important. Students

should not feel like they are being singled out, they should know that they messed up and that
they can use this opportunity to improve. A way to handle this is by taking the student out of the

equation, take each misstep by a student to educate the class on what was done was wrong

instead of focusing on who. The who becomes less important because everyone makes mistakes,

it comes down to how everyone can take this as a lesson to improve upon themselves. Of course,

there will be times when a student must be pulled aside to have a discussion with, the main thing

to stress here is how important it is to prevent bringing any attention toward them during this

process, some may not like it, others may see it as a reward. This may later lead on to the teacher

having a meeting with other teachers and even parents if the troublesome behavior continues. It

is important for the teacher prevent these behaviors from escalating but there may be some

situations where the student will need to be referred to the principal’s office but that must be

used as a last resort. In summation, all disruptive, disrespectful behavior will be handled

impartially and fairly, all students should receive the same guidance for a misstep. It is important

not play favorites in this setting; each student will get a warning before being talked to

independently and the last resort will be sending them to the principal’s office.

The way the procedures will reflect the needs of diverse learners is that the teacher will

be universally understanding of all learners. It goes back to Rogers’ theory, Unconditional

Positive Regard, it does not matter who the student is, everyone gets the same unconditional

care. This extends to ELL students who may not fully understand or be able to comprehend what

is being said or expected of them. As well as students with IEPs, it is not a matter of how they

will be treated differently but how everyone will have the same care and attention they need. The

only obstacle in the way of accomplishing this goal is time, there is only so much time in a

lesson, class period and day. It is the teacher’s responsibility to make an effective use of both the

students’ and their time.

 References

Classroom Architect. (n.d.) Retrieved from http://classroom.4teachers.org/.

Effective Classroom Seating Arrangements. (August 25, 2016). Retrieved from

https://www.displays2go.com/Article/Effective-Classroom-Seating-Arrangements-32.

McLeod, S. (2014). Carl Rogers. Retrieved from https://www.simplypsychology.org/carl-

rogers.html.