Step 3, New seating arrangement

I love groups.

I like working in them, I like having my class work in them, and I use them a bunch in my classroom.

But for whatever reason, this particular group of students, when seating in 4 person groups could not exert enough self control.

Procedures were doing well, but not fully successful.
Prize of the day was doing well, but not fully successful.

When I talked to my grade coordinator about what to do at the very beginning of the year, she, knowing my group arrangement, suggested rows, which is what her classroom is arranged in.

I, disliking rows, decided to put that bit of knowledge in the back of my mind and try everything else I could possibly think of before I resorted to that particular fix.

Last week, November 9th, I caved. Halfway.

I put half of my class into rows, using those front rows to house my most difficult students, who were separated from each other by my quiet well behaved students. The other half of my class was still in groups of 4, made of up the students that I knew could handle it.

It has been working fairly well. I had to rearrange a lot of students after the first move, but it seems to have improved after that fix.

Especially of note is that three of my more difficult boys have significantly improved since changing to rows. They are trying harder, and one of them even earned my class prize the other day.