Seven classroom layouts, and when each one works
Every layout here is one click from a finished seating chart. Each page covers what the arrangement is good at, where it goes wrong, and how to set it up — because picking the right one matters more than drawing it quickly.
The default for direct instruction, testing, and any room where every face needs to point the same way.
Four-desk clusters for collaborative work, station rotations, and classrooms that run on group tasks.
An open horseshoe for discussion, seminar, and language classes — everyone can see everyone.
A full circle with no head of the table — for seminar, restorative practice, and morning meeting.
A widely spaced grid for tests and state assessments — maximum distance, walkable aisles.
Two-desk partnerships in rows — the compromise layout that does most of what both extremes do.
Eight-seat cafeteria tables for lunch duty, assemblies, and field-trip groupings.