(COLORADO SPRINGS) — A teacher in District 49 is taking flexible learning to a new level. Tai Rodney’s 5th-grade class at Falcon Elementary School of Technology uses “flexible seating,” which mimics an “at-home” setting that helps students think and focus more easily than when they were seated at the same desk for eight hours.

“I started bringing a little bit of comfort into the classroom,” she said. “I noticed that it helped students think a little more.”

The classroom is filled with dining room tables, tall chairs, yoga mats, carpets, and soft comfy seats. The students are encouraged to move around and sit where they like. Rodney said the main ingredient to making the arrangement successful is classroom management.

“You have to build your relationship with the students to respect you, to respect each other, to respect the furniture, and respect the situation that we are in,” she said. “You don’t have that structure of rows and desks, everyone facing the same direction, so you have to have rules in place.”

She said when the students help create and take ownership of classroom rules they are more willing to follow them.

“Their peers keep each other in check if they are goofing around,” Rodney said. “Because they know everyone at the table will have to move. I don’t have to intervene. That’s their ownership.”

Rodney has noticed that flexible seating gives the kids in her class more chances to interact, help one another, and take initiative. “I see a student sitting over there, listening, and then come and sit next to the student looking, asking for help, grab a whiteboard, and just start explaining,” Rodney said. “That is awesome.”

“When flexible seating is modeled well, it’s powerful because students can find places in the classroom where they can operate best,” Principal Ed Kulbacki said.