Inclusive Behavior Management Tip 1:
Structure the Classroom Space for Success
Updated: December 15, 2025. Reviewer: Dr. Rose Sebastian, Ed.D.
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Reduce Behaviors Through Your Classroom Layout
My student teacher and I were asked to quickly cover a teacher’s classroom while she ran to the bathroom. We hadn’t really been in there. We walked in and there was stuff EVERYWHERE– including a black, moldy pumpkin the middle of a table. The students were in chaos, not knowing where anything was and we were so stimulated (and grossed out) that we didn’t know what to do.
Years later, I observed the most thoughtfully designed classroom. The teacher had put in table lamps and had the blinds open so he didn’t have to use the overhead lights. The artwork on the walls reflected the content and the backgrounds of the students in the room. There was a couch in back for students to use during down times or group work and the full effect was calm and welcoming.
There is no one way to set up a classroom– but if you are starting to have behaviors the easiest thing to do is to check the environment out. Maybe there are bottleneck spots or fights about pencils or annoying sharpeners getting used during class.
Modifying behaviors is HARD work. Moving desks is a lot easier so when things start to go south, pause and just check– is there anything that you could shift that might reduce the problems you are getting even a tiny bit?
Set Up Your Classroom for Success
1. Check for problem spaces in the classroom
Classrooms should be set up to make students feel welcome and to have flexibility. But when things start to go wrong in the classroom, one of the easiest things to do is to quickly check your space. Look at how things are arranged in the room. Are there bottlenecks? Are there spaces you can’t see from the front where mischief can happen? Are there places where squabbles seem to happen a lot? Are there resources that are too tempting to avoid out in an easy to get space– or alternatively are there frequently needed resources that are squashed behind your desk or behind a student?
2. Play with desk arrangements
Now zero in on your seating options. There are pros and cons of rows and more collaborative seating options. If you want to build community, you want desks grouped together. If you want your class quiet, rows might be the way to go. If you have a small class and want space for rug time, you might want a semi-circle. Beyond that, look at the types of seating. Do you want all desks the same height? Do some of your students need to stand? If so, you can up the height of a lot of desks. Then check out the spacing between desks. Are students going to bump each other getting in and out of seats? Can you get to each student to talk to them one on one if needed?
3. Take stock of how stimulating the space is
Now look at your walls, lighting, and temperature. Is the environment itself calming or overwhelming? Look at the lights. Bright fluorescent lights can be super stimulating. Does your school allow for desk lamps? Can you do natural lighting instead? Turn on all the lights if you want to wake up the class. Turn them off to chill out the students. Then check the walls. Are they messy, cluttered, welcoming, or inclusive? What are the colors in the room? Colors like red are really alerting while blue is more calming. Now take stock of the temperature. Odds are you can’t control it– but hot rooms make for cranky students. Is there anything you can do? What about noise? Does the room echo? If so, can you put in rugs or things with cloth to break up the reverberations of the sound? Can you play music? If so, think about whether you want to pump up the students or wind them down.
Each of these will shape how your students act in class! We all respond to our environments so figure out what you want– to rev up or wind down your students and adjust the stimulation in the room to match that.
4. Create break spaces
Do you need a cool-down area? That’s an area where kids can go when they need a break. Unlike a time out area, cool down areas are designed to help kids self-regulate. That might be a bean bag in your library, a study carrel at a wall, or just a quiet corner. Some students need to have a space in the classroom to go when they are frustrated or cranky.
To make a cool down area work, you will want to put up guide posts and signs that spell out how to use it. How long can students be there? What is okay and what isn’t okay when they are there?
To learn more about setting up physical spaces, check out the resources on Iris!
