How to Design a Classroom Floor Plan for Cheap
Dividing a classroom into appropriate sections can make learning more effective and fun. Long gone are the days when straight desks were arranged in neat rows facing a teacher's desk. By planning a classroom to facilitate discussions, learning and interpersonal bonding, children will receive a lot more from their classroom experience.
Things You'll Need
- Sketch pad
- Graph paper
- Artwork and visual items of interest
- Proper lighting/natural lighting
- Teacher's desk
- Desks
- Floor sitting area
Instructions
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Design your classroom to focus on the students' needs. Create ways for them to listen, interact and contribute ideas by dividing up the room properly. For example, set aside a corner in the back of the room for small group discussions. Sketch areas for student-teacher interaction, areas for sitting casually on floor mats and private space for reading or studying.
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Use your sketch pad and graph paper to experiment with ways to arrange desks in a non-traditional pattern. Place desks in a horseshoe fashion or facing each other with a central aisle down the middle, for example. Place desks farther apart to dissipate behavioral problems or create physical barriers to separate students. Ask students to list ideas for grouping desks or spacing them. Let the class vote on their preferences.
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Buy floor mats for casual conversations or demonstrations. Create lesson plans that involve group discussion of five or six students in an intimate setting away from the rest of the class. Explain to students that this emulates the work environment they will face one day. Help them understand that intimate discussions are a great way to build teamwork and help each other.
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Place a desk in one corner for dedicated studying or reading. Tell students they can go to this space if they request time during the week to focus alone. Don't expect all students to desire to interact with others or the teacher constantly. Allow students with introverted personalities time alone to recharge their personal energy away from others. Gain feedback on what students prefer, since a classroom should accommodate all types of personalities.
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Leave space open along the blackboard wall with artwork in that section as well. Encourage participation in sharing with others by encouraging students to contribute ideas on the blackboard or affixing artwork for others to see and discuss. Make this blackboard space exciting to students by giving them special chalks to share something important via drawings or by writing special messages on the board for others to see.
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Tips & Warnings
Explain the reasons for dividing the classroom into sections. Tell students you want them to enjoy and participate. Buy items, such as colorful chalks or DVDs, that encourage students to actively "teach" the others in the classroom by sharing their own ideas.
Be careful about putting displays full of glass or materials that can cause injuries. Include sturdy items that give life to the room that are touchable at all times.
References
Resources
- Photo Credit student image by Ivanna Buldakova from Fotolia.com
