Improving Classrooms for Neurodiverse Students and Different Learning Styles

December 6, 2023

In a world of unknowns, K–12 educators know this: There are infinite variations of the student brain, both neurotypical and neurodivergent. Given this learning landscape, how can schools ensure their classrooms are inclusively equipped for different learning styles?

A good place to start is “the third teacher,” better known as the physical learning environment. This blog provides the basics of how the right K–12 classroom furniture from Smith System can help create neurodivergent-friendly learning spaces for students and teachers.

Keep in mind, the root of this topic is about accommodating (and normalizing) all learning styles to improve student wellbeing. One experienced elementary school teacher who is neurodivergent herself put it this way in her blog, “Neurodivergent Friendly Classrooms:”

“A neurodivergent friendly classroom meets the needs of all children and does not see the needs of autistic, ADHD, dyslexic pupils, or any other neurodivergence a pupil may have, as a problem to be fixed,” said blogger Helen.

Apple or Microsoft? An Analogy for Understanding Neurodivergent Learning

Furnishing classrooms to support neurodiverse students means understanding what neurodiversity is and isn’t.

Neurodiversity is based on the idea that everyone has a differently-wired brain with their own unique way of thinking, communicating, learning and perceiving the environment. A good analogy is that neurodivergence is a difference in processing, like a computer program. Some people run on Apple; others are on Microsoft.

Thankfully, today’s narrative around neurodivergent students has changed. Educators and fellow students no longer automatically equate learning differences as deficits or equate them with lower intelligence. Hardly so. They are often seen as big plusses – by employers, too.

How Active Learning Classrooms Act

Look into a classroom. Do students appear engaged? Have they moved their desks, tables, chairs and tools to work through an assignment? Are the students actively participating? Or, in contrast, are they parked in rigid desks, passively absorbing knowledge for hours?

Research has shown that learning should not be a spectator sport. Students and teachers thrive when classes are designed with an active, student-centered approach, based on constructivism. Meaning, it’s the students’ job to participate in the construction of knowledge; teachers facilitate the journey. EdApp, an online training platform, believes in the results.

Types of Neurodivergence and Learning Styles

Statistics vary on the number of kids and teens who are neurodivergent. Some sources say it’s as high as 1 in 5. One survey by Learnfully, a personalized learning platform, found that 41% of kids may have learning differences.

The most common types of neurodivergence in children are autism, ADHD, and learning disabilities, like dyslexia. Also included are social anxiety, cognitive challenges, intellectual disabilities (like Down Syndrome) and mental health conditions (like OCD).

Making the landscape more complex is the overlay of different learning styles: visual, aural, read/write and kinesthetic, with visual learners accounting for about 65% of the group. What does this mean for educators faced with furnishing inclusive classrooms?

“As teachers … what we can practically do in school to support neurodivergent children and enable them to access an education that meets their needs and allows them to thrive?” Helen explained. “It does not mean putting the needs of neurodivergent pupils above everyone else. [But rather], that neurotypical pupils will not miss out or be hindered.”

Granted, there’s still great need for special ed classrooms and for students with less severe needs to receive additional support.

Set Your Classroom Goals: Comfort, Calm, Calculated for Productivity

Over 90% of teachers believe classroom design has a strong impact on student learning. That confirms how vital classroom furniture is in creating inclusive classrooms for differentiated learning. The furniture shouldn’t distract, but create comfortable, student-centered spaces designed for listening, engaging and allowing students to be themselves – not mask it.

The aim, according to a recent eSchoolNews article is to, “optimize comfort, limit sensory overload, and increase productivity.”

Furniture to Support Neurodivergent Students and Learning Differences

The inclusive classroom provides options for student seating, work surfaces, activity zones and more. This empowers kids and teens to discreetly find their best personalized learning spot and position.

Here’s a broad how-to framework paired with Smith System furniture recommendations:

Create Comfortable Learning Spaces

We’re creatures of comfort, especially kids and teens adjusting to their growing bodies. Choose right-sized classroom furniture that blends functionality with physical comfort and support.

Ergonomic Student Chairs

Smith System’s Numbers™ Cantilever Chair elevates comfort with a durable chair shell ergonomically sculpted for good posture, which improves breathing. The design also gives students optional 360-degree seating – front, back or either side – in five heights: 12-inches, 14-inches, 15-inches, 16-inches and 18-inches.

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Ergonomic Student Desks

Pair the Numbers chair with any of the adjustable Numbers™ Desks to complete the more- traditional classroom layout. Each desk – single-student or two-student – has discreet setscrews to quickly adjust desk height to students. Standard inserts range from 24.5 to 30 inches; low-range inserts are 19 to 24.5 inches, and shape options include triangle, petal, trapezoid and rectangle.

BONUS: The Numbers Chair and Numbers Desk meet rigorous classroom furniture requirements in three global markets: The Americas, Asia-Pacific and EMEA (Europe, the Middle East and Africa).

Minimize Mental Distraction

Neurodivergent students may struggle with executive functioning skills, like organization and time management. Creating predictable routines and structure, and knowing what to expect (and what is expected of them), can decrease anxiety. So can minimizing classroom clutter.

Classroom Storage

Intentional classroom storage, like Smith System’s Cascade® w/ Totes & Shelves provides a practical way to keep classrooms organized. Open shelves can store dimensional teaching materials; the removeable totes house the smaller stuff or are labeled by student.

The Cascade storage line-up includes many mobile, mix-and-match options with shelves, drawers, totes and cubbies with the optional Cascade® Spiral Noteboard, or consider the Cascade® Two-Sided Whiteboard Unit. The case goods also do double duty as partial dividers.

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Create Calm-Down Spaces

Sensory processing disorders are common among neurodivergent kids. They might by highly affected by color, sound, smell and space. When creating learning zones, be sure to include refuge areas. That means designing low-stimulation spots to decompress, without feeling ostracized or punished.

Quiet Zones

Smith System’s Flowform® Learn Lounge offers casual tables and upholstered lounge-style seating (single and double) in organic shapes and calming colors. Add a Flowform® Learn Lounge Screen as a partial divider to block distractions and reduce noise. Together, the pieces intuitively convey that students have a special spot to “chill.”

Many teachers use Flowform Learn Lounge to create literacy zones, too. Flowform pieces make a cozy nook for reading and studying that’s relaxed, yet ergonomically supportive.

[See this previous blog on How to Create a School Calm Room Students Want to Visit.]

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Offer Options for Movement

Sitting “still as a statue” isn’t the resting state of most kids. Instead of being overly focused on staying still, they need the freedom to move so their attention is on learning.

Research has shown dynamic movement’s physical and cognitive benefits. Movement can help kids, especially autistic students and those with ADHD, focus and integrate information.

Active Seating

Smith System has many seating options that help promote active seating – a culture where fidgeting and movement is common and accepted. It’s embraced as productive, not problematic.

Smith System’s upholstered Flowform® Soft Rocker is a safe option for students who want/need to rock. In addition, the previously mentioned Numbers™ Cantilever Chair has enough flex to let kids turn, twist, fidget – and above all – find their favorite sit.

[See this previous blog on Active Sitting: Creating Comfort and Concentration for Fidgety Students.]

Keep Classrooms Flexible

Expectations in education are higher than ever. Districts and parents expect more differentiated learning from teachers; students expect more choices in what works best for them.

Mobile Classroom Furniture

Teachers deserve flexible, affordable furniture options that let them quickly arrange and re-arrange their classrooms throughout the day. Select classroom furniture that’s durable, mobile and versatile, with options for casters and adjustable heights. Also look for other practical features such as light-weight desks and tables, chairs that stack smoothly and have one or more hand-holds, and easy-to-clean surfaces.