Kent County elementary teachers transform learning through flexible seating

Flexible seating is a broad term for classroom seating that offers choice and movement.

In 2005, Yoder was named Teacher of the Year for Kent County and she used part of a related grant to purchase the first of the flexible seating she uses in her classroom. In 2015, she moved to Worton Elementary School and brought the flexible seating initiative with her.

“In order for flexible seating to be successful in the classroom, rules and routines need to be set in advance. Students need to understand that the seats are in place to help them to focus and engage in the lesson,” Yoder said.

Haley Smith, a second-grade teacher at H.H. Garnet Elementary School in Chestertown, implemented her flexible seating plan this year. In her research, she found that by increasing oxygen flow to the brain through movement, student focus improves and their likelihood of success increases. Not only has Smith seen an improvement in student engagement, she said, but students also take responsibility for their behavior so that they do not lose the privilege of their favorite seat.

Rebecca Heriz-Smith, whose son Cannon attends Millington Elementary school, said that he has benefited from access to flexible seating.

“My son Cannon always has to move. If he needs to pay attention to something, he'll do better if he can move. ... In school they gave him an inflatable ball to sit on at his desk and he said it was so much easier to concentrate in class when he gets to sit on the ball,” Heriz-Smith said.

Gina Jachimowicz, Kent County Public Schools supervisor of elementary education, said, “A small portion of the funding for these transformations is from the school budget but the classrooms that offer the most have supplemented it with grants, fundraisers and personal creativity.”

Yoder has spent the last 12 years acquiring pieces and sourcing materials to use in her classroom. Smith funded her flexible seating through campaigns with Go Fund Me, Donors Choose and by contacting Walmart and Target directly for contributions. Other pieces are repurposed furniture and household items.

A majority of Kent County’s elementary school classrooms have some aspect of flexible seating. In some classrooms, that may be a reading corner with bean bag chairs or a rug area for group interactions. Others, such as Yoder’s and Smith’s classrooms have been completely transformed to gain the full benefit of flexible seating.

Smith said, “The students take pride in their classroom and feel responsible for keeping it nice. The kids are excited to be here.”