Flexible seating allows students to be initiative seekers and meet their basic needs while subconsciously exercising self-care. Today there is so much screen engagement and the inability to take time to be comfortable and relax in our busy society. Flexible seating will allow students to have down time while still being productive in a learning environment. Currently students are sitting at desks with chairs, tables with stools, or on a rug on the floor. Often when doing walk thrus in the middle school I find students tucked away under a lab bench working on a clipboard doing a worksheet with their peers. The classes that do have differential seating seem to be more relaxed and are better with their peers. Students within our district are well behaved and respectful as that is one of our core values. However, as mentioned earlier we allow students to advocate for their education and have a voice in the classroom and the bean bags have been something students have requested for more access to in their learning environment. I am one of the School Counselors for the district and I am excited to see students starting to see the value in advocacy and self-care through flexible seating.
Through my work in alternative and varied roles of meeting the needs of the student as a whole child, the behavior is drastically diminished when allowed flexible seating. Therefore, I have seen how choice can positively change my students’ demeanor and classroom performance with strengthening relationships between student and teacher! As a rural district students often don’t get to see differences in education due to the lack of resources, transportation, and ability to explore alternatives. These alternatives are great for students as they are lightweight, easy to store and move, and little to no maintenance for educators.
About my class
Flexible seating allows students to be initiative seekers and meet their basic needs while subconsciously exercising self-care. Today there is so much screen engagement and the inability to take time to be comfortable and relax in our busy society. Flexible seating will allow students to have down time while still being productive in a learning environment. Currently students are sitting at desks with chairs, tables with stools, or on a rug on the floor. Often when doing walk thrus in the middle school I find students tucked away under a lab bench working on a clipboard doing a worksheet with their peers. The classes that do have differential seating seem to be more relaxed and are better with their peers. Students within our district are well behaved and respectful as that is one of our core values. However, as mentioned earlier we allow students to advocate for their education and have a voice in the classroom and the bean bags have been something students have requested for more access to in their learning environment. I am one of the School Counselors for the district and I am excited to see students starting to see the value in advocacy and self-care through flexible seating.
Through my work in alternative and varied roles of meeting the needs of the student as a whole child, the behavior is drastically diminished when allowed flexible seating. Therefore, I have seen how choice can positively change my students’ demeanor and classroom performance with strengthening relationships between student and teacher! As a rural district students often don’t get to see differences in education due to the lack of resources, transportation, and ability to explore alternatives. These alternatives are great for students as they are lightweight, easy to store and move, and little to no maintenance for educators.