How seating charts keep me in line.
I spent five years out of the classroom and starting teaching again last fall. What I quickly realized was how difficult it is to truly ensure each kid is getting the support they need. We spend so much time moving about our classrooms while students are working, but how do we ensure we check in with each and every student? This was the big question I sought to answer when it dawned on me that the kids who I was helping the most were the ones who ended up getting As and Bs on the summative test. This was when I started to create strategic seating charts.
Before I get into the how, let’s get into the WHY. My kids are in teams of four in my classroom. These seating charts allow me to do the following:
- Strategically stand at each table of four when students have a question, placing myself next to students who might struggle the most and who are the least likely to ask a question.
- Monitor students’ progress over the course of the year with a simple visual.
- Creates a structure for seating charts that isn’t about behavior.
- Easily communicate with support staff which students in the room might struggle with a lesson. This might be a student teacher, volunteer, or co-teacher.
Now for the HOW. (Side Note: This method for building seating charts came from Kagan Cooperative Learning. I’m sure I adapted it a bit, since I took a training through Kagan over 15 years ago!)
Before I make seating charts I break my kids into fourths based on some achievement data. 
Each student has a notecard with their name at the top and gets a sticker (blue, green, yellow red) with the fourth that they fall within. (These notecards are for my eyes only. I don’t share this with students.)
I set up groups of four with a student from each fourth. When I seat them at a team, I put all the blue sticker kids in the same spot in the group of four. For instance they might sit in the back left of each team of four. This way I know where the students have been achieving relative to peers and I can monitor and support students who have been struggling by simply going to the front right of each team to check in if that is where the red sticker students are. The Notecards will have the student name, the sticker and I put the team number on the sticker to keep kids moving around the room throughout the year. The stickers show me how kids are progressing relative to peers and might help me notice if a student starts to struggle or excel.
These seating charts were a lifesaver a year ago to make sure I didn’t only go to students who had a question to ask since those students are often achieving what they need to. Instead I went to students based on where they were sitting and asked them a question or gave them a nudge in the right direction if necessary. It was a highly valuable formative assessment tool to keep me in check and better serve all students. I’d love to hear if you have strategies you use to help you monitor your tendencies in class.
Jessica Rice
Teacher at Kennedy High School