Seating students who shouldn’t sit together
Every class has a few pairs that don’t work side by side — best friends who chat, students in conflict, or two who feed off each other. Seating is the quietest way to handle it.
Not just "not next to each other"
Two students at the same table, or facing each other across the room, can still distract each other. Aim for different groups and, for the hardest pairs, opposite corners with no clear line of sight:
Make a short list
Write the pairs down before you start — usually three to six per class. More than that and the chart stops working; focus on the pairs that really matter.
Place them first
Seat the separated students before everyone else, spread across the room. Then fill around them. Trying to fix conflicts at the end means moving half the class.
Keep it low-key
Students notice when a chart is obviously built around them. A new chart for everyone, on a normal rotation, avoids singling anyone out.
When it doesn't fit
Sometimes the room, a preferential-seating need and a separation pull in different directions. Decide which matters most, and write it down so a substitute knows too.
In ClassMap
Add a Separate rule once for the class and it applies to every chart. Auto-assign keeps those students in different groups, and if you drag one next to the other, ClassMap warns you.