Making Failure Harder Work Than Passing | Edutopia

I read a great blog article about encouraging students to work hard and not be satisfied with barely passing.



Making Failure Harder Work Than Passing | Edutopia

I read a blog today that paused me to think and reflect on "seating charts" and how they are used in the classroom.  This is how one teacher determines her weekly seating charts.

"Every Friday afternoon my child's teacher asks her students to take out a piece of paper and write down the names of four children with whom they’d like to sit the following week. The children know that these requests may or may not be honored. She also asks the students to nominate one student whom they believe has been an exceptional classroom citizen that week. All ballots are privately submitted to her.

And every single Friday afternoon, after the students go home, my child's teacher takes out those slips of paper, places them in front of her and studies them. She looks for patterns.

Who is not getting requested by anyone else? 

Who doesn’t even know who to request?

Who never gets noticed enough to be nominated?

Who had a million friends last week and none this week?

You see, she is not looking for a new seating chart or “exceptional citizens.” Chase’s teacher is looking for lonely children."

What a wonderful and easy way to ensure that all students are included and their voices are heard. Classroom teachers have so many demands and responsibilities required of them daily to ensure that all all subjects are taught according to state standards.  By using this seating chart system teachers can also stay in tune with the emotional health of her students.