Students with exceptionalities benefit from structured environments, particularly in the classroom. If you’re an educator looking for resources or ideas to arrange your classroom to create a structured environment for your students, check out our classroom layout templates.
Before you arrange the furniture and set up stations in your classroom, start by mapping out where everything will be placed. Mapping things out in advance will make it easier if you need to make changes to the layout and will save you from moving furniture around multiple times.
As you think about layout, consider the routines and activities in which your students will be engaged. You may want to incorporate various centers/areas in your classroom that are used for specific tasks or activities.
For example, classrooms may include: a reading center, a teacher table used for one-on-ones with students, a vocational center in which students work on life skills and pre-vocational activities, independent work stations, and a group work area for group therapy or classroom meetings/activities.
Once you have an idea of which centers and stations you’ll need, start mapping it out!
The special education resources on this page were authored by Watson Institute’s special education consultant: Lisa Plastino, M.Ed.
Drawing the layout can assist in set-up design.
Check out these additional classroom layouts.
If you have questions or concerns about the Watson Institute’s use of this information, please contact us.