Classroom Set Up

With it getting closer to the Christmas break you may be getting tired of the look of how your current classroom set up is.  So what better time to shuffle things around then right before the break so that it is all ready for you when you come back!?!  I mean… you’ll probably be switching up your seating plan anyways.

Here is something for you to consider when coming up with your classroom set up.

Things that I learned about how I set up my classroom last year:

-  I had it set up for group discussions and demonstrations (I LOVE this)
-  my colour choices led to a relaxing and comfortable classroom (perfect!)
-  I had clutter and not enough wall space with nothing on it... so student focus and engagement may have been lowered (but in my defense... I was using someone else's room for the year... I wouldn't have enough stuff to fill a room).
-  I needed to remember to open the blinds more often
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No one expects you to change everything (if you class is way far off from any of these suggestions)… technically you don’t have to change anything at all.  But it’s something to consider… that’s all.

Based on this I think I would keep most of my classroom the same as it was last year...
-  I love my colour choices
-  I really like having students sitting with at least one other "elbow partner" (sometimes 2 and sometimes 3... depending on how groups are set up - last year we used the U set up for the majority of the year)
-  If I had my own classroom that was empty when I got it I know I wouldn't have clutter... but I would be missing some stuff too 
-  If I had my dream room it would include some kind of library area... maybe a couch and some end tables and a couple different kids of chairs.  I like comfortable... and I want my students to be comfortable in the classroom (although not too comfortable probably).  I would also want lamps of some kind... then during some reading times we could turn off the classroom lights and just use the lamps.  
If you've seen a classroom like this you should probably leave a link to a picture of it below... I would like to see it!
-  I think I would wait to REALLY hone my skills at technology and all that.  Let me teach the same grade for a few years in a row and have my classroom running like a well oiled machine... and then I can start tinkering with some of this other stuff.

Is there anything you would change about your classroom?
What does your dream classroom look like?