Learn Hardcore Dutch: We wisselen van plaats zodat iedereen het scherm kan zien. - We change seats so that everyone can see the screen.

We is the unstressed, neutral subject pronoun. Wij is the stressed form and is used for emphasis or contrast. Without special emphasis, We wisselen... sounds most natural. If you want to stress that it’s us (and not someone else), you can say Wij wisselen....

Why is it wisselen van plaats? Could I say ruilen or something else?

wisselen van plaats = change/rotate where you sit/stand; it doesn’t necessarily imply a one-to-one swap.
ruilen (van plaats) (met iemand) = swap places with someone (explicit exchange).
plaats veranderen exists but is much less idiomatic for seats; prefer van plaats wisselen or van plaats ruilen.

In this context, wisselen van plaats is the idiomatic choice for a group rearrangement.

Do I need singular plaats or plural plaatsen?

Use the fixed expression van plaats wisselen (singular). You’ll also see van plek wisselen (more informal). Plural plaatsen appears mainly in expressions like plaatsen ruilen (met), which focuses on a pairwise swap. For a general rearrangement, stick to singular.

Why is there a van after wisselen? Sometimes I see wisselen without it.

Dutch has two common patterns:

wisselen van + noun = change that thing you currently have/are in. Examples: van baan wisselen, van kleren wisselen, van plaats wisselen.
wisselen + direct object = exchange/switch that object. Examples: geld wisselen, banden wisselen, zitplaatsen ruilen/wisselen (met iemand).

So van is required in the idiom van plaats wisselen.

What happens to word order after zodat?

Zodat introduces a subordinate clause. In that clause, all verbs go to the end in a cluster:

Main clause (V2): We wisselen van plaats ...
Subordinate clause: ... zodat iedereen het scherm kan zien. Pattern: subject + other elements + verb cluster at the end.

Could it be zodat iedereen het scherm zien kan?

That order occurs in some dialects and in older/formal styles, but in contemporary Standard Dutch you should prefer kan zien. So stick with ... het scherm kan zien.

Should there be a comma before zodat?

A comma is optional here. Many writers add one for readability or to highlight cause/effect: We wisselen van plaats, zodat iedereen .... Leaving it out is also correct in modern Dutch.

Why is it iedereen kan and not iedereen kunnen?

Iedereen is grammatically singular, so the verb is third person singular: iedereen kan. Think “everybody can,” not “everybody can-plural.” If you rephrase with a plural subject, you’d say Allemaal kunnen.

Could I say zodat iedereen het scherm ziet instead of kan zien?

You could, but the nuance changes:

kan zien stresses ability/possibility (“so that everyone can see it”).
ziet states the fact of seeing (“so that everyone sees it”). In contexts like seating arrangements, Dutch typically uses the ability form kan zien.

Why het scherm and not de scherm?

Scherm is a neuter noun, so it takes het: het scherm. If you wanted an indefinite article, it would be een scherm. There’s no reliable rule to predict this; it’s best to learn the article with the noun.

Pronunciation tips for tricky parts like scherm and zodat?

scherm: sch is pronounced like an s followed by a harsh guttural h ([sx]); roughly “s-khern” with a trilled or tapped r.
zodat: stress on the second syllable: zo-DAT; final t is pronounced.
plaats: long aa vowel [aː]; the t and s are both audible.
wisselen: short i; the -en at the end is usually a very light schwa or almost silent.
iedereen: stress usually on the last syllable: ie-de-REEN.

Can I use om ... te instead of zodat?

Yes, if the subject is (effectively) the same, you can express purpose with an infinitive:

We wisselen van plaats om het scherm te kunnen zien. Difference:
zodat can express purpose or result and allows a different subject in the subclause (zodat iedereen ...).
om ... te only expresses purpose and normally shares its subject with the main clause.

What about omdat or opdat?

omdat = because (cause). It does not fit here if you mean purpose. Example: We wisselen van plaats omdat het licht hinderlijk is.
opdat = so that (purpose), but formal/old-fashioned. In everyday language, prefer zodat.

Where would I put niet if I wanted to negate?

It depends on what you negate:

Not everyone: ... zodat niet iedereen het scherm kan zien.
Everyone cannot see (nobody can): ... zodat iedereen het scherm niet kan zien. Position niet just before the part you want to negate (before the subject for “not everyone,” before the verb cluster/object for “cannot see”).

Can I say plek or zitplaats instead of plaats?

Yes:

van plek wisselen is informal and very common.
van zitplaats wisselen is more specific (seat). All of these are fine in this context: We wisselen van plaats/plek/zitplaats ....