Flexible seating has re-vamped my classroom!

WHAT IS FLEXIBLE SEATING?

I define it as giving students responsible freedom to sit around the room in a comfortable seat of choice.

According to some of my students, flexible seating is:

“Something for responsible people. It is a special privilege. Flexible seats are places to sit around the room.”
–MARK, GRADE 3

“Seats that you can sit in. You get to leave your desk to work somewhere. Students get to choose a comfortable seat like a beanbag chair or wobble stool.”
–SAM, GRADE 3

“Flexible seating is having a choice of where you want to sit. The point of it is to have fun and choose a place to work better in a fun place.”
–IZZY, GRADE 3

“Flexible seating is a fun place to sit around the room. Instead of sitting at a desk, you get to work around the room in a comfortable place without getting restless and you can focus on your work.”
–AMIRAH, GRADE 3

Students are motivated and engaged in learning when given the choice of a flexible seat.

 

HOW DO I USE FLEXIBLE SEATING IN MY CLASSROOM?

Flexible seating has revamped my classroom! I use flexible seating in my classroom as a reward. Students are able to choose a flexible seat when they have shown responsibility to work independently around the room. To motivate them, I often tell my students, “Who wants to sit in a boring desk, when you can choose a fun flexible seat?”

The engagement and rigor I can give my students is doubled this year due to flexible seats. Last year I only had a few flexible seats and the students were not as interested. This year I have enough flexible seats for the class and my students really step up to the plate and work hard to move out of their “boring desk” and into a flexible seat. I like the option of having flexible seats, with desks as a home base. Not every student can handle a flexible seat—some need a more structured seat in class. I really like the option of having both within my classroom and am blessed to have the space for both in my room with a class size of 28.

 

 

Flexible seating has transformed my room into a completely student-centered class. Everything in my classroom besides my little teacher corner is for my students. It gives them a voice and has brought our classroom community closer. In my classroom, the ultimate reward is a spot at the VIP desk! This year I gave up my teacher desk and transformed it into a VIP desk for the students. Allowing them to sit at a teacher’s desk for the week and use special supplies is a huge motivator! The VIP desk is the ultimate flexible seat.

In addition to flexible seating, another tool I utilize in my classroom to really build student rapport is the combination of restorative circles and a positive learning environment. I do a lot of classroom cheers and family building in the classroom with the use of a restorative circle. In the restorative circle we do classroom check-ins where students rate how they are feeling on a scale of 1-5. If a student is feeling a 3 or below they share with the class how they are feeling and why using the phrase, “You caused me harm when…” The student that caused the person harm then responds by stating that, “I can repair the harm by…” This allows the opportunity for the students to learn empathy, compassion, and problem solving.

I really encourage my students to work together to solve their own problems. For example, this week when coming back to our classroom from another activity, I chose not to assign a door holder. My students are very accustomed to having someone designated to hold the door, and when no one was, they stopped and looked at the door. It was a silly little example to demonstrate to students how we can solve our own problems and be leaders. Who will step up to the plate and hold the door? In a world where it is easy to sit and follow direction without questioning, I want to instill in my students the power to question the world around them. When a problem arises, how can we solve it? Are there multiple solutions that we can use to solve our own problems? And how can we use teamwork?