Your Key Considerations for Classroom Seating

Desks and chairs are perhaps the most iconic symbols of the school classroom. Your students will spend countless hours this upcoming school year in classroom desks and chairs, and while these items of furniture may just seem like classroom accessories, they actually play an important role in education! In fact, the wrong chairs or desks can work to students' disadvantage, becoming discomforting, distracting, or outright dysfunctional.

As you look ahead to the next school year, think about how you could improve your classroom's seating for an optimized learning environment, and consider the following:

1.)    Are chairs comfortable?

Comfort is one of the most important characteristics of a classroom chair. Students of all ages, whether in elementary school or high school, will be asked to sit attentively in chairs for a significant number of hours each day of the school year, which is why the quality of student chairs is so important.  When chairs are stiff, poorly designed, or too large/small for the age group you teach, students will be challenged to focus on anything other than their discomfort, and you'll likely find that students in uncomfortable chairs are antsy and less participatory in your lesson. Such is why it's essential to look for ergonomic school chairs that are constructed for optimal comfort.

2.)    Are chairs durable?

Durability is a key classroom chair consideration for students, teachers, and the school administrators paying for classroom furniture.  School chairs must to be able to withstand frequent use and the sometimes rough and tumble activity of the students who occupy them. Look for chairs that are built with sturdy materials, have strong leg support (such as those made of steel frames) and a resistant, hard plastic seating surface to ensure years of future use without marks or cracks. If classroom chairs will be used in more active environments, such as in a music or art classroom where chairs may be frequently rearranged, durability will be especially important.

3.)    Are desks functional?

While functionality can be defined in various ways, in the classroom, a functional desk is one that gives students the right type of working space for the tasks at hand. Will students need storage space to keep frequently-used classroom materials? Will students need a wider surface to complete lessons that involve the construction and assembly of crafts? Does it make more sense to replace individual desks with two-student desks to promote teamwork? In short, desks should always cater to the specific lessons and activities that occur in your classroom.

Comfort, durability and function are just some of the many important characteristics to look for in classroom chairs and desks. At School Outlet, we offer a wide selection of school desks and school chairs that help students be more successful.  Begin browsing our school furniture site today!

The Top 5 Ways to Get your Classroom Ready Over the Summer

Teachers and students everywhere are no doubt eagerly anticipating the end of the school year and the arrival of summer. As we count down these final few days, it's probably safe to assume that preparing for next school year is far from any teacher's mind. Of course, the reality is that most teachers will have to spend some time over the summer preparing their classrooms for the upcoming year. To make the most out of the time you'll spend away from the pool this summer as you gear up for fresh faces in the fall, consider our top 5 ways to get your classroom in tip-top shape quickly and efficiently!

1.)    Assess What Worked

Before you begin the process of preparing your classroom, take time to consider which aspects of your classroom layout and furniture worked well this year, and which could be improved upon. Did it make sense to have the reading nook next to your desk? Did students stay on task when working in groups at tables? Was there a learning center you noticed in another teacher's classroom that you'd like to incorporate into yours this year? In what other ways could you provide enrichment opportunities in your classroom? Only when these questions are answered can you begin the process of taking inventory, planning a layout, and ordering new school furniture and supplies.

2.)    Clear out the Clutter

Even after kids have cleared out and taken their belongings with them, there's likely a host of items stored in your classroom that can still be considered "clutter." Make room for the new items you'll introduce into the room, whether they're to be new activity tables or stackable chairs, by going through storage closets or assessing which books or learning materials have passed their prime. Conducting this housekeeping each summer will ensure that your classroom never becomes too disorganized. This is also a good time to note which student desks and chairs are in poor condition and need to be replaced.

3.)    Leverage Furniture for Learning

Let your furniture enhance your classroom environment by incorporating new pieces that address key focus areas like technology, movement, and reading. Summer is the ideal time to explore new options for classroom furniture that could help your students learn better in the coming year. Consider new activity tables for kids for a new science-based "exploration" section of the classroom, or investigate opportunities for new technology stations.

4.)    Plan a Layout

Once you've identified goals for the upcoming year and have received new furniture and supplies, it's time to plan a layout.  While you've likely already developed a preference for a specific layout of student seating based on your teaching philosophy, evaluate how an overall classroom layout facilitates movement in the room. How will placing a computer desk along the right wall affect the flow of traffic in the classroom? Can all students get to their desks easily? Do all students have a clear view of the dry erase board, or wherever it is you typically give instruction in the classroom?

5.)    Don't Forget the Visual Aids

Summer is the perfect time to brainstorm new ideas for the ever-important visual aids that adorn the walls of your classroom. Though you may still be proud of the adjectives poster you made six school years ago, challenge yourself each summer to think of new, more creative visual aids that could better benefit your students' learning. In addition to permanent posters and bulletin boards, consider too what types of new visual aids you could use during various lessons.

Start preparing your classroom by checking out our wide range of classroom furniture and supplies at School Outlet!

Get All Your School Products in One Place

It's almost summer, which for most of us means a break from school and from teaching, and a chance to go on vacation and take some much-needed time to relax. But whether you are a teacher, a tutor, a school administrator or a home school parent, when that break ends you will need all your supplies lined up to start a another school year. Whether you're looking for school furniture, projectors and AV equipment, or whiteboards and chalkboards, you need the right equipment to teach well and that equipment needs to be in place before the next year starts. That's why spring is the best time to take care of shopping for your school products—so that you won't be caught in the last-minute rush in the fall.

Get these before you have to scramble!

Shopping early has a lot of benefits: you can check everything off your list well in advance, with no stress or scrambling; you can take advantage of off-season sales that will be over by the time August rolls around; and shopping now gives you time to plan your lessons, your classroom displays, and projects for your kids with no pressure. The only problem is that you don't want your school furniture and supplies shopping to cut into the end of your current marking period or the beginning of your vacation. That's what makes us at School Outlet so great.

School Outlet is your all-in-one online stop for getting the furniture and classroom supplies you need. Why are we such a great choice? There are many reasons:

·         Get everything in one place – One of the reasons so many teachers, parents, and schools love School Outlet is because it makes shopping easy. They are your one-stop shop for anything you need for the classroom.

·         Take advantage of great prices – Because School Outlet is an online shop, they have lower overhead and lower prices than most other sources.

·         Easy shipping and return options – Shipping is affordable, even for large items, and School Outlet has a flexible 30-day return policy.

·         A bigger selection than anyone else – The bottom line is that if you can't find it at School Outlet, you probably won't find it anywhere!

·         Custom & Bulk Orders – Our company specializes in getting you what you want – whether you need a hundred of something or an item you don't see on the website. We can customize orders for specific needs and if you're trying to supply a whole school with new chairs, we can do that, too! You'll literally never have to go anywhere else.

Need a hundred of these? We can do that!

·         Customer Support – School Outlet offers customer support to answer any questions, help place orders, and generally assist with the entire process. Our attention to detail and genuine concern will outdo even the best floor salesman you can dig up!

These are just a few of the reasons School Outlet has become so popular. So if you want to get your school product shopping done early, surf over and check out what School Outlet has to offer! Call us with any questions today at (855) 672-3858.