Student Table Spaces

I have decided to go a new route with my student work spaces this year. No matter how hard I try to improve my classroom management skills or come up with innovative lesson plans, there are just too many goodies (scissors, markers, etc.)  in student desks! This year I have done away with student desks and am using medium sized group tables for students to sit at instead. I have noticed that this has helped in several ways:

1. Student have a clear and clean space for working and collaborating.
2. Students are able to collaborate more.
3. Students are more engaged in a lesson rather than what is inside of a desk.
4. Students have a sense of belonging to a table team, as well as our classroom community.
5. There is more "room" in the room for small group tables, a large group meeting space, and spaces for students to read in comfortable spots.

To achieve a clean working space and to encourage teamwork and community, here is how I have had the students organize their materials:

These are the tables in our room. There are five tables- sorry I couldn't get a great view of all five in the same photo due to the spacing and proximity to the front of the room! These tables face the front of the room where a whiteboard and our overhead projector are. There is a large group meeting area in the back of the room- more on that later!

 

I have five different table group team names: The

Bakery, The Bistro, The Deli, The Diner, and The Grill. This ties in with our literacy CAFE menu, which inspired our classroom theme décor to have the essence of a café.

 

 

Each table group has a "table basket" filled with community supplies for the students. I purchased classroom organizing baskets, but shower caddies also work really well. In the small space to the left, I add erasers. To the right are sticky notes. Then in the long compartment on the top, I have added three paper cups to organize the dry erase markers, highlighters, and pencils- Thanks Mrs. Anderson for the cup idea! It took a week or two for the students to get used to sharing the supplies and having a community basket, but things are running very smoothly now!

 

Originally, I was using cubbies for the students to organize their folders, text books, and book baskets. Those were far enough away from the table group that it was not convenient for students to get their things. What I had gained in quality instruction time during a lesson, I had lost with having long transitions. Now, each table has a short bookshelf at the edge of their table group. Here, the students can place their book baskets, textbooks, and organize their folders and notebooks.

 

I have several tubs, which are storage containers I purchased at Walmart for $1.97 each. These are sturdier than your average shoe box, so I quite like them for durability sake in holding folders and notebooks upright. They are labeled with which items should be stored in each tub. You could choose labels and items that suit you and what your students use in your classroom. The first tub on the left holds dry erase boards and clipboards.

 

 

 

 

 

So far, I am quite excited about my choice to have table groupings this year rather than individual desks. What I have noticed is that the tables, which can seat 5-6 students, take up only the space of what would have been about three student desks pushed together. There is now a more open feel to the room, and the students have been working together more than what I've seen in previous years. Feel free to let me know if you have any thoughts or ideas on the matter!