Today we went into the classroom for another observation, and I noted the groups of students as they were seated. The table up at the front left seems to be students who are well behaved, but who need some extra help and explanation. The table next to them, also up front, is just about the same, but there is a child who cannot seem to stay still or on task, and sometimes just gets up to sharpen a pencil or throw something away in the middle of a lesson. The teacher often has to say his name and that seems to bring him back. The back left is a group of very smart boys who don't need extra help, and excel in independent work. The back right table has the two whiners and two really well behaved girls.
In thinking about this seating, I wonder if it helps at all. I mean, I understand that when you have a class that is composed of many needy children, then its hard to spread them out evenly and arrange your classroom in a way to counter it. But containing the smart boys in the back- do they get bored with the work and then cause problems by entertaining themselves, or is it kind of a containment atmosphere where she can differentiate and give them different work to challenge them, or engage them in deeper conversation, without the rest of the class holding them back? And is it better to keep the whiney girls in the back to contain them so they can be dealt with at the same time, or does that just amplify the problem?Classroom management is definitely a concern here.

I also picked up a text book so we can get some ideas about the depth our lessons should go into. Text books have gotten so much cooler since I went to school.