Why I Like My Smart Space

Kids bouncing in their seats, getting up to sharpen pencils and rocking back and forth are only a few of the things going on in a classroom during my independent work time. This coupled with the triumphant fist pumps of the lightening fast kids buzzing along through the assignment, seemingly with ease as I struggle to even get started has me near frozen in my seat and my focus everywhere but on my assignment. I know I can do it but I’m so worried now that I’ll be the last one done and I’ll look stupid I consider just starting to push buttons so I’ll finish close to when everyone else does.

My teacher crouches down next to me and says she’s noticed I seem a little nervous and offers the option of working in my own private space. I leap at the chance and in a quick minute I’m in my own little world, everything else cleared out of view. I put my headphones on and get to work. I work the whole time and quickly get my assignment done after doing my very best work. My score comes in and I’m proud of how I have done on my assignment and confident it will show the teacher really what I know.

I was able to breath. I was able to concentrate. I wasn’t worried about any of the other kids, when they finished or what they would think of me based on how long I took on the assignment. Inside the space I feel safe. I feel calm and unrushed.

Private Work Space = Success!

All students can learn if given the right tools to succeed. I am a 5th grade teacher in a Title 1 school. In my class I have many who struggle with both innate attention disorders and also embarrassment issues that keep them from completing assigned tasks. In both cases, they are unable to perform at optimal levels and continue to not only not do work but stop others from doing it as well with distracting behavior. A few months in I brought in some Smart Spaces and offered them as options to students, what came next was incredible!

My first friend that we’ll call John could not sit still and was diagnosed with ADHD. If there was anything going on around him his attention would be sucked right to it. If there wasn’t anything going on around him he would fidget and create the distraction himself. If I had an aide in the room he could complete an independent work task with constant redirection. I only had an aide for about 30 minutes per day so this was not a sustainable solution. I would move him to sit right by me, but it only made anything I did his main focus.

We were doing Math one day and by the way he was responding during the group lesson I knew he was catching on to the subject matter. When it was time for him to do his own work he just sat there, staring off, ripping paper and would refocus only when directed when I walked by but would not apply himself. I offered him the smart space and he was open to the idea. Once it was up and around him, he curiously calmed down. He picked up his pencil and began working out the problems! He started seeing success and would ask for it when it was time to do work. Others saw and wanted to give it a try. It slowly became something students would ask for and they would fight over.

My next friend we’ll call Jane. She was shy and reluctant to ask for help. She struggled and would embarrass easily. These issues kept her from trying in fear of failure and that someone would see. I offered her the Smart Space and we would work together quietly on problems she was working on and she had the privacy she needed to feel safe to work independently. She began to flourish!

Being in a classroom full of other students is so good in so many ways such as collaborative, hands on learning opportunities. However, it can also be draining for those who do not do well in large groups or have stimulation sensitivities. The Smart Space provided them with the best of both worlds! The opportunity to learn among peers but also moments in their day where they could be removed from the hustle and bustle of the busy classroom and be in their own space. These students saw amazing academic gains and improved attitudes towards learning!