I always have assigned seats for my classes. I change them every two chapters or so. Here’s what I’ve done so far:

Last name (alphabetically)
First name
Student ID number
Homework completion rate

The one I’m on now is helpful because kids that don’t get much homework done are put together. When I assign their homework, some of which should be done in class, I can go over to their group to get them started immediately. I find that if I get to them early, they’ll put the calculator games away and begin. These certainly aren’t grouped by ability – there are some smart boys* in these groups.

One group has a white/middle Eastern girl, a black boy, a Jewish boy, and a Somali boy. This is a group where every problem is always done on every homework assignment. When they were first put into these groups, the girl who is part white, part Middle Eastern jokingly said that I put all of societies rejects into one group.

A week or so later, I videotaped the class. I only was going to videotape one group’s work, and since they sit in the front with a little room off to the side, they were perfect for camera placement. So I said, “I’m going to videotape the United Colors of Benetton group. Apparently nobody gets the joke, except for one girl, who burst out with a laugh. She admitted later that she was embarrassed that she laughed, but I thanked her for getting the joke. She’s about the quietest student in the classroom, so it was quite surprising coming from her.

She’s my favorite student now.

*Yes, I didn’t put “smart girls”. That isn’t because girls aren’t smart, but because I never have any girls in the groups of kids that don’t do their homework.