Fresh quarter, fresh seating chart. When I create a new seating chart, I usually ask students who they want to sit with or who they work well with, then try to put together heterogeneous groups (my students sit in tables of 4) so that there’s a balance of skill level and personalities, but also so that everyone has someone they feel comfortable talking with.

This time, I asked my Honors English 11 students to not only tell me one person they wanted to sit with (and why), but also someone they admire or would like to get to know better. I had no idea if this was going to work.

In a word, the results were heartwarming. Students wrote thoughtfully about their admiration of classmates who expressed their ideas clearly, had good insights, thought similarly to them, seemed interesting, etc. While on cafeteria duty, I walked up to a student who was named by several of his classmates as someone they admired. When I told him, he was genuinely shocked: “Me? No way. I would never have thought that.” Next time I do this, I’ll have to find a way to share (anonymously) the positive feedback.