Contributor:
Natalie Dowse
I used this classroom management strategy while I was in my last year of placement. I would constantly ask the children to come and sit on the carpet quietly. Instead, it would take them ages to decide who to sit next to, where their friend was sitting, they didn’t like who they were sitting next to etc. After wasting the best part of an English or Maths lesson, I decided to make a seating plan (sounds a bit formal, but it actually works.) I drew a plan and decided who could sit next to whom. Obviously, this was the perfect chance to separate certain individuals!
I had five lines, each consisting of six children. The children were told what line they were in and to look at the person next to them and remember that this was their carpet space!
Wow, it was a different class! They loved competing against the other lines, who could be the straightest line, who was the quietest. I then used the lines to send children to lunch, e.g. I can see line 2 is the quietest; they can go for lunch first!
Here’s a related suggestion from a visitor:
I have used this by placing children in ability group lines for the carpet times. It helps me to focus questions at the different lines. Also, when I have supply teachers in, they can do the same as they know the children’s rough ability quickly.