In Josh Clancy’s third grade class at Pleasant Grove Elementary School, students sit on furniture with a variety of heights and shapes depending on what is most comfortable for them.
They use Chromebooks that are synced to a SMART Board television at the front of the room. As students answer questions about polygons on their laptops, information on who got the question correct is instantaneously reported to the teacher. Students can adjust that television screen to match their height and can draw and write on it using a marker that makes digital illustrations.
Those third graders are getting a preview of what every elementary school student at Center Grove will soon have, as the district is in the process of rolling out new technology in its classrooms and flexible seating for its students.
The new technology and furniture is funded by money left over from the Walnut Grove Elementary construction project. The building will open this fall and will be the district’s sixth elementary school. Center Grove already budgeted $570,000 for technology and flexible furniture at Walnut Grove, but with the Walnut Grove construction project coming in under budget, the district will be able to equip all elementary school classrooms with the upgrades. The district will spend about $1.8 million of that money on the other five elementary schools, with most of it going to the furniture, spokesperson Stacy Conrad said.
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“The ultimate thing is we want kids engaged with what we’re teaching,” Clancy said. “It won’t be immediate with the furniture, they have to use it the right way to make them feel comfortable. (Principal Trael) Kelly walks in (to my class) and it’s a different arrangement. It feels like Starbucks in here. It’s cozy, comfortable and calm.”
The chairs have wheels on them that lock and some of the furniture can be stacked to fit different students’ heights. With students more comfortable where they’re sitting, they can concentrate on learning, which is enhanced with the new technology, he said.
“The SMART board, number one, is engaging for kids,” Clancy said. “They’re used to iPads and touchscreens, it goes from a PC or a Mac and displays it on the board. You can have two different things at the same time. I can access anything I want on the SMART board; it replaces the dry erase or chalk board. I can write on the TV (and) have that freedom.”
Using Quizizz review tools, Clancy’s students get multiple choice options on their personal screens and are able to click on their choice for the question. That question is displayed on the SMART board with diagrams.
“If they’re not understanding the lesson we’re going to stop and we can draw a number line (on the television),” Clancy said.
Clancy’s class is one of the two in Pleasant Grove that has the chance to experience the new technology and furniture before the rest do in the fall. Katie Nikou’s kindergarten class is out trying out the new gear.
Along with the SMART board, Nikou has had access to the miniature microphone that teachers in all Center Grove elementary schools will be able to use this fall by wearing them around their necks. The microphone, which allows all her students to hear her voice equally as loud, is especially useful when talking to kindergarten students, she said.
“I think I have a louder voice, but this winter I got sick and I didn’t have to yell,” Nikou said. “I can put the microphone on and project through the entire room. When (my students) are up at the front of the room, I’ll put it on them.”
The new furniture in her classroom helps students who are active. While some might choose to stand, other can use wobble stools that move around or sit on mobile chairs. The room still has its traditional immobile seats, however, Nikou said.
“(This was something) that sold itself to teachers,” Kelly said of the upgrades. “We’ve been progressive with technology as a corporation, with the academic resources available online to kids. The teachers utilize that to differentiate remediation for some kids or enrichment for others. They can break down instruction to meet the level of need for each kid.
“They can utilize the interactive TV, they have one-to-one correspondence, moving something on the TV to teach them a skill helps them understand and have a deeper knowledge base.”
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$2.4 million in new technology and furniture is coming to Center Grove elementary schools this fall, including:
- Flexible seating
- SMART Board televisions
- Wearable microphones
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