As a special education teacher, your goal is to provide a safe and welcoming classroom experience for your students that also allows you to customize your approach to teaching. And at School Outfitters, it's our job to provide you with the innovative furniture and special education classroom products you need to do all of the above.
Today, we'll share special education classroom additions to inspire how you'll improve your student learning experiences this upcoming school year. Bring these products to your class and watch your students thrive!
1. Introduce classroom inclusion tables and desks
Inclusion tables and desks are a great first step toward creating a supportive environment in any special education classroom. These specially designed furniture pieces accommodate students with diverse needs. But they also ensure that every learner has equal access to educational materials and activities.
Use inclusive tables and desks to promote physical comfort and ergonomic support and enhance students' focus. These tables also boost collaboration and social interaction among students of varying abilities and promote a sense of belonging and mutual respect. Outfit your special education classroom with inclusion tables and desks like:
2. Find adaptive seating to meet your students' unique needs
Adaptive seating is a cornerstone in today's special education classrooms. Versatile seating options accommodate students' unique physical needs and sensory sensitivities. Offer your special education students comfortable seating with supportive properties, like back support, tilt features, and height variations.
Adaptive seating promotes proper alignment and reduces physical discomfort. Students can focus more effectively when they're comfortable. Adaptive seating also encourages independence and mobility. This can be empowering for special education students to participate in classroom discussions and activities.
Need ideas? Check out these adaptive seating options for your classroom:
3. Make outdoor learning inclusive with these products
Make the great outdoors "great" for your special education students with innovative furniture and play equipment that caters to their unique profiles. When you choose the right outdoor learning equipment, you can accommodate a wide range of physical and sensory requirements, making it fun for everyone to play.
From wheelchair accessible swings to sensory-rich tactile panels, make outdoor learning an exciting and welcoming place to explore for all your special education students. Bring in one piece of equipment at a time or outfit your entire outdoor learning space and empower your students to engage in meaningful play, socialize, and enjoy the "great" outdoors.
Explore these must-have additions for outdoor special education learning:
4. Explore visual sensory classroom products
Visual timers, color-coded schedules, vibrant whiteboards, and interactive visual aids can all be helpful in engaging your learners. And students with more diverse sensory profiles can positively benefit from the visually stimulating output.
Visual sensory products also promote independence and self-regulation skills by providing students with visual cues and prompts to manage their tasks and routines independently. Overall, these types of products contribute to a more inclusive learning environment where students of all learning profiles can focus, engage, and learn.
Consider adding these visual sensory products to your classroom:
5. Get mobile and flexible classroom seating
Mobile seating options enable easy reconfiguration of the classroom layout to accommodate different activities and group sizes, fostering collaborative learning and interaction among students. But they also promote sensory integration and motor skills development, both important for inclusive learning environments.
How you outfit your special education classroom can help to reduce student disruptions, improve focus and productivity, and boost student outcomes in a big way.
Start by considering with these popular flexible seating options:
6. Discover tactile and weighted sensory classroom additions
Many special education teachers are requesting tactile and weighted sensory products for their classroom environments this year. These types of learning tools offer sensory stimulation that can help students regulate their emotions and improve their attention and focus during lessons.
Weighted sensory products, like weighted blankets or vests, can provide a calming effect and help students feel grounded and secure, which is a game-changer for reducing anxiety and promoting relaxation. Tactile and weighted sensory products can also be used to create environments that support sensory processing and motor skills development - both must-haves in the modern special education classroom.
Check out these sensory products to elevate learning experiences for your students:
7. Outfit a calming corner or Zen den
These dedicated spaces provide a quiet and calm environment where students can retreat to regulate their emotions and reduce sensory overload. By incorporating elements of mindfulness and relaxation, Zen dens promote stress reduction and emotional well-being among students. They provide a safe space for students to practice self-regulation techniques and develop coping strategies for managing anxiety and other challenging emotions.
Zen dens can serve as a therapeutic space for sensory integration activities, too. Maybe you have students who could benefit from a quiet nook to practice deep breathing exercises or guided meditation. Outfitting your classroom with a Zen den will help you to achieve that more inclusive and supportive learning environment where students can feel empowered to self-soothe and engage in activities that promote emotional resilience.
Zen dens and sensory room kits come in all shapes, sizes, and price points:
School Outfitters can help transform your special education classroom
What you really want for your special education students is a positive classroom environment outfitted with all the tools, products, and resources you need to be your best. Get inspired by these classroom additions, large and small, and let our School Outfitters furniture experts help you Experience Positive!
When you're ready to start exploring your special education classroom design and furniture options, contact our expert team for help or get a quote!
