Seven Tips Toward a Flexible Classroom

Seven Tips Toward

A Flexible Classroom

Story and photo by Hertz Furniture The Innovation Center at Mound Fort Junior High School in Utah, furnished by Hertz Furniture, features flexible areas to support project-based learning.

Aflexible classroom is a dynamic learning space. Its setup is constantly changing to create the ideal learning environment – and the venue for a variety of different activities – on any given day. Teachers who want a flexible classroom have discovered that setting one up is a lot more involved than arranging a traditional classroom. They’ll need help, and as the local school supplies distributor and/or teacher store owner, you are the perfect person to supply it, even if you don’t sell classroom tables, desks, and other furniture. Here are seven tips from Hertz Furniture to help you help them create the kind of classroom flexibility that accommodates different learning styles, provides more room for physical activities, and encourages collaboration while also offering independent learning opportunities.

Let curriculum drive the plans

Determine whether the curriculum activities will be around for the long term or short term. That way, you can help the teacher decide to what extent the classroom planning should reflect a particular educational design. Some of the questions to consider include, Will the students be working alone or in groups based on the curriculum? and Does the classroom need quiet spaces where students can relax or calm down? It makes a big difference which activities the whole class will be doing together at the same time, and which will be done in smaller groups.

Make room for well-organized storage

What kinds of activities are planned for the space and how often will they occur? Supplies should be organized in the most accessible and efficient way, so it is best to decide in advance what will be needed so that you can plan for proper storage. The less classroom space you use for organizing supplies, the more room you will have for activities.

Rethink the teacher’s desk

In a flexible classroom, a mobile teacher’s desk can become part of the daily learning. To keep it lightweight and maneuverable, it may be best for teachers to store their supplies and papers in a different place. The teacher’s work area can be an additional group-learning space in and of itself, or it can be integrated into a collaborative learning setup.