Desk Arrangement

Playing with the desk set-up in our classroom brings me joy.  It may bring (some of) my students pain--as they frequently walk into the room with a different set-up.  While, no joking here, this can cause some student anxiety, my intent is not just to play.  My goal is to have the most ideal arrangement for the learning goals of the day.  For example, here you can see that I have the desks grouped for my students' current literature circles:


Students are reading three different novels, so the desks are grouped for those reading assignments. 



Below is a frequent arrangement for us:



Students are frequently grouped into learning teams that are selected based on current student need.  Often, students are permitted to select their own tables to sit at; however, I often group them based on need, assignment, task, skill, etc.

Students may be grouped based on:

• a different reading they are working on
• different aspects of writing
• academic support
• academic enrichment 
• and more!

So, while, at the beginning of the year it may be frustrating for students to see the desk arrangement constantly change, they do get used to it--and sometimes even excited about it.  ("Oooh...what are we doing today?")

Lit Circles with Student Choice, Autonomy, & Control

As we approach the end the school year, and engage in our final unit of study, students are in groups, reading a novel they selected (from a provided list).  This spring, the student options are: The Secret Life of Bees, The Things They Carried, and The Road.  Students rated the books after listening to a book talk on each, indicating their level of interest.  Based on their responses, I placed them in groups (as best I could) with their top choices.

Students prepare analyses of what they've read based on a teacher-created schedule; however, students determine how much they read for each scheduled day.  I try to give them as much autonomy as possible, but for this final unit, I selected the topics they would discuss (characterization, setting, syntax, structure, etc) so that they could be best prepared for the final exam.

Here they are discussing their novels on their first collaborative discussion day:

   

Thought-filled Thursday 2.26.15

Freshman College Prep Agenda

Thursday: February 26, 2015

EQ: What compels me to be a reader?

What are my reading strengths?

Tech Expectations: Closed and put away

1.     Book distribution

2.     First 3 pages

a.     Meet and greet

b.     Discuss

3.     Reading calendar

HW:  Group reading assignment

ASK YOUR FRESHMAN:

1.  How were the first few pages of your new book?

Junior Honors Agenda

Thursday: February 26, 2015

EQ:  What stories are most interesting to tell? 

HOW does one make them interesting?

Tech Expectations: Open and on

1.     Word Choice Exercise

a.     Details

b.     Imagery

c.     Senses

2.     Drafting

HW: Drafting; Rough draft due Monday

ASK YOUR HONORS JUNIOR:

1.  Who did you focus on in your writing warm up today?

Junior College Prep Agenda

Thursday: February 26, 2015

  

EQ:  What makes a reliable source?

How do I start to break down my research?

Tech Expectations: Open and on

1.     ACT English Prep tinyurl.com/act4me

a.     Give Schmitt your score; explanation of 2 missed answers

2.     DEJ work time

HW:  Work on DEJs

ASK YOUR COLLEGE PREP JUNIOR:

1.  Are you ready to start drafting?