Classroom planning guide
Keep students apart when rearranging seats
Use Not next to to keep two students out of neighboring seats. Follow the steps to add the rule, check the result and decide whether you need separate groups instead.
Choose how to separate students
Not next to keeps two students out of seats joined by a neighbor link. Different group from puts them in separate groups. Neither rule measures distance in meters or feet.
For example, Alex and Sam may occupy two non-neighboring seats within one group. That can satisfy Not next to while failing Different group from. Alex and Sam are fictional examples; they are not added to your class.
Add the separation rule
Add both students to your list first; they do not need seats yet. On a phone, open Students / Rules to reach the rules form.
- Open Rules and choose + Add rule.
- Select the first student. Choose Not next to in Rule and the second student in With student.
- Under Advanced, leave Priority set to Required if the students must sit apart. Preferred allows an arrangement that does not meet the rule.
- Choose Save rule, then Show neighbors to see which seats the rule treats as neighbors.
- Choose Arrange seats and read the rule checks. Choose Use this arrangement to accept the result, or Cancel to keep your current plan.
Example: two students in a row of six
Imagine one row of six numbered seats. Alex in seat 1 and Sam in seat 2 are neighbors. Alex in seat 1 and Sam in seat 3 are not immediate neighbors in the default Rows layout. You still need to check any other rules in the second arrangement.
After moving desks, inspect the neighbor links again. Neighbor links do not measure distances in your room. Check the rule status after changing seats manually.
If Seatly cannot find an arrangement
Check fixed seats first. If both students must stay in neighboring seats, a required Not next to rule cannot be met. Change the fixed seats or the layout before trying again.
A required Same pair as rule can also conflict with Not next to when every pair’s seats are neighbors. For Different group from, the layout needs at least two usable groups. Rows and U-Shape do not contain groups by default.
Search limit reached means Seatly stopped searching before finding an arrangement. A solution may still exist. Check the reported rules, remove any you no longer need, or try again. Your current arrangement stays in place until you accept a preview.
Check the applied result
Before printing, check that both students are seated and that the separation rule shows Met. Check the other required rules and decide whether any unmet preferences are acceptable. Download a JSON backup if you need to restore the editable plan and its rules later; the printed chart cannot do that.