Crunchy Lights and Wobbly Seats: Designing Better Classrooms for Neurodivergent Learners

Introduction

As someone with a sensory processing disorder, I experience the world in a way that amplifies every detail. Looking back at the learning spaces of my childhood, I remember classrooms that were not designed for me. What others may have dismissed as background noise or minor discomforts became an inescapable storm of sensory stimuli.

I remember Mr. Allen’s 7th grade algebra classroom well. The flickering fluorescent lights weren’t just distracting- they pulsed in the corner of my vision, paired with a buzzing electricity that was impossible to ignore. The ceiling of the room felt low and gray, somehow constricting. The classroom was positioned next to the bathroom, interrupting my thoughts with slamming doors and groups chatting. Even the smell was exhausting, with harsh industrial cleaning products feeling draining. These sensory stimuli layered on top of each other, being a chronic distraction and source of discomfort. This classroom had built-in barriers for me that others seemed to not take note of. I dreaded going to class for a mix of reasons that I didn’t fully understand at the time. 

I’ve experienced more comfortable learning spaces too. After switching to a different school for high school, I took architecture classes with Ms. Shakespear. The classroom had large windows on the south side that let in an energizing natural light. The room was large and somehow felt isolated from the outside world- its concrete bricks and furniture against the walls acting as sound barriers. The desks were large and spread out, creating a feeling of openness that didn’t exist in other physically larger rooms. Instead of creaky plastic seating and desks, the space had real wooden drafting tables and metal stools. This classroom became a retreat space for me. When I was averse to the sensory experience of the school cafeteria, I’d go to the architecture room and have lunch there with my friends. 

Over time, I’ve learned how I learn best. By senior year in college, I have it down to a system in which I know how to carve out comfort for myself in spaces that don’t meet my sensory needs. I work best in a quiet space with dim lighting, listening to repetitive music, and rocking on a wobbly chair. 

As I re-enter the world of education, now as a designer and educator, I ruminate on these experiences throughout my childhood and young adulthood. I question how we as designers can better design these spaces to reduce barriers for learners with sensory differences.

This paper will outline existing research on the design of sensory regulatory spaces, while bringing new life to it through case studies, interviews, and personal experience.

Sensory Processing

“Neurodivergent” is a term used to describe those whose sensory perception and information processing is different from what is considered typical. These individuals with autism, ADHD, PTSD, and other processing disorders, face greater discomfort and distractions in spaces that don’t accommodate for the regulation of their sensory needs. 

Sensory regulation is when the body adjusts levels of sensory input in order to maintain balance in the nervous system. The brain and body adjusts to automatically filter out background noise or focus more on details. When this balance is maintained, people are able to process information more effectively. When sensory regulation is not maintained, people disengage from their surroundings, resist learning, and process information less (Porges). Processing of information is essential for learning (UDL). Studies have shown that people learn best when their senses are regulated and they are physically comfortable (Porges).

While learning spaces should be designed for the sensory regulation of all people, it is essential for those who struggle to regulate their senses. By employing the purposeful design of sensory regulatory spaces in our classrooms and reducing overlooked barriers we can enhance access to education for everyone.

Steven Porges’s research shows the changes that happen in the brain and body when the nervous system is activated. At a state of calm, people are most socially engaged, open to learning, and in the present. 

Sensory Regulatory Behaviors

All people need to regulate their senses to best function. To regulate, people consciously and unconsciously respond to stimuli in the brain. The brain automatically filters information to what is necessary, maintaining balance. For people with differences in sensory processing, the automatic processes of sensory regulation may be less automatic or less effective (Linehan). 

All people respond to stimuli with different sensory seeking or sensory avoidant behaviors. These behaviors help to regulate the body’s response to stimuli. Some of these behaviors may include playing with a fidget toy to provide tactile stimuli, pacing to provide proprioceptive stimuli, or wearing headphones to avoid auditory stimuli (Linehan).

Under-stimulation is a state where the body needs more stimulation and must actively or passively seek out stimuli in order to regulate. These are called sensory seeking behaviors. These behaviors may include doodling in a notebook, tapping fingers, talking to oneself, or rocking back and forth.

Over-stimulation is a state where the body needs less stimulation and must actively or passively avoid stimuli in order to regulate. These are called sensory avoidant behaviors. These behaviors may include squinting to avoid bright lights, covering one’s ears when it is too loud, or refusing to wear certain clothing due to unbearable textures.

Stimuli are picked up by the body in a number of different ways across the senses- sight, hearing, touch, smell, taste, balance, and more. The below section outlines strategies for design elements that respond to these different senses.

Visual Stimulus

1. Fluorescent and Natural Lighting

Research shows that fluorescent lighting can negatively affect the vision of some autistic people. Autism rights activist Donna Williams describes the ideal autistic learning environment as “...one where the lights were soft and glowing up upward rather than downward projecting light.” 

Over the last four summers, I’ve worked at a Montessori arts camp called Buck’s Rock. There I manage a book arts studio, teaching topics in bookbinding, collaging, and papermaking. In this space, a neurodivergent learner once described the harsh fluorescent overhead lighting as “the evil light.” Two other kids joined in, describing the lighting as “draining,” “cold,” and “crunchy.” To make the space more accessible, we decided to keep the overhead lights off and use only natural lighting and our warm floor lamps as much as possible. As a result, people felt more comfortable in the space and better able to engage in their projects. Kids would stop in just to take a break between tasks, with the studio becoming a retreat space. 

Susan Fitzell, an expert on design for neurodivergent people, uses this image on her blog as an example of a classroom that has had its harsh flourescent lighting transformed to help learners.

2. Use of Color

Research shows that different colors engage people in different ways. Muted colors in blues and greens are usually the most calming, while vibrant reds and oranges the most stimulating. Vibrant colors can be useful for identifying spaces, though may become overwhelming if overused (UTAS).  

Research also shows that use of stimulating color can increase student engagement. The mental stimulation passively created by color in a room can help learners stay focused, improving both attention span and sense of time (Publicolor).

These two perspectives, seemingly contradicting, reflect the personal and fluid nature of sensory seeking and sensory avoidant needs. Different people have different sensory needs and there is no one-size-fits-all answer. The best spaces for responding to the sensory needs of all people are adaptable spaces with multiple zones of varied simulation.

I interviewed Ruth Lande Shuman, founder of Publicolor, a nonprofit that has for the last 30 years been painting schools in vibrant colors to increase student success. A few times during the interview she repeated a phrase that summarizes her mission, “color is healing.” 

When asking if Ruth considers diverse sensory needs during her design process, she responded, “You’re not going to like this answer, but I have to be practical and choose generalized solutions.” There seemed to be a belief that designing for neurodivergent people is inherently more expensive or inherently less achievable using the same methods. She also stated that when she founded Publicolor 30 years ago, there was not a widely available understanding of diverse sensory needs or how to design for them. This conversation was both greatly inspiring and disappointing, reinforcing my belief that there needs to be greater knowledge available about designing for diverse sensory needs. 

A hallway painted by Publicolor, a nonprofit that paints schools to increase student engagement and success.

Auditory Stimuli

1. Personal Noise Reduction

Many people with sensory processing disorders struggle to filter out background noise. In a crowded room, most people may be able to focus on certain conversations, while many neurodivergent people will be unable to not hear everything. This can be a very intense source of over-stimulation that can cause disengagement and irritability. It is common for people with sensory processing disorders to wear headphones or earplugs as a means of preventing this auditory over-stimulation.

Over the past few years at my arts camp job, I’ve seen an increasing number of people carry noise protection earmuffs to self accommodate for noise reduction. During big events, some that did not own their own would borrow from the woodshop. 

The normalization and acceptance of personal accommodation is extremely important. It is easy to assume that the wearing of these devices is closing oneself off, when it is often a tool that helps people be more engaged with the world around them.

2. Environmental Noise Reduction

Classrooms can be designed to reduce noise. Carpeted floors can reduce background noise, such as many people stepping or chairs scraping. Acoustic panels or sound-absorbing materials may be used on walls. Spatial layouts and physical barriers like walls and furniture can change how noise flows through a space, such as placing bookshelves against shared walls to block out noises from other classrooms. Doors and windows in high-traffic areas can be made more soundproof (Scottish Autism). Most of these changes are widely invasive and incredibly monetarily inaccessible. Focusing on the spatial arrangement of elements already owned is more accessible. 

New Struan School, a Scottish school designed and constructed for autistic learners.

3. Noise Replacement

Another strategy is to create intentional, calming noise that blocks out unintentional, stimulating noise. This can be white noise, recordings of rain, or repetitive music. 

In a talk with a friend who teaches puppetry and mixed media arts, she discussed the importance of intentional noise during work time in the learning space. We talked about the effects of music on the space and decided to try an experiment. On different days, she tried out playing lo-fi music (a genre known for being more calming) and metal music (a genre known for being more stimulating). Comparatively, during days with more relaxed music, she noticed kids being calmer, more cognizant of each other’s needs, and better concentrated and engaged in tasks. I was able to notice similar results in my studio.

Tactile Stimuli 

1. Sensory Toys

Toys marketed as being intended for sensory regulation have emerged as an industry in the past few decades, reflecting the market’s growing understanding of sensory regulation as a need. These toys provide various tactile stimulation in ways that may help with concentration or stress relief. Some examples include fidget spinners, stress balls, or stretchy slime.

As with any toys, these may also create distraction in the classroom. This may happen especially in elementary school and early middle school settings, in which the collection and sharing of these toys is a developmentally appropriate way of play. Learning spaces may be able to circumvent these issues by providing set sensory toys and not allowing for outside toys.

A fidget spinner, a popular sensory toy fad from 2017.

2. Material Concerns

Different materials may be considered comfortable or uncomfortable by many people who are sensitive to tactile stimulus. While many have strong material preferences, these preferences exist in a variety of needs. 

Adaptability and providing multiple options are again the best way to design for the diverse tactile needs of neurodivergent people (Mostafa). By providing a range of seating options, tools, and physical media, neurodivergent people can self-select for their best learning. 

In my teaching space, many neurodivergent learners have an extremely strong aversion to sticky substances, avoiding glue in favor of other methods. Others love the sensation of glue, wanting to spread it on their hands and pick it off after drying. By providing multiple types of glue and tape, the same tasks can be accomplished in ways that meet the different sensory needs of individual people.

Proprioceptive Stimuli 

Proprioception is an often forgotten sense, described as the body’s feeling of being in space. Designing for proprioception means to design for movement and bodily stability.

1. Flexible Seating

Different types of seating can accommodate different needs for movement. Standing desks allow people greater mobility and ability to pace. Swinging seats and rocking chairs allow for rocking movements. Various “wobble chairs” allow for rotating and rocking movements, while fitting into a more traditional classroom setup and not being disruptive. 

In the studio at Pratt, I often will check a few seats before purposefully choosing one that is wobbly or uneven. Rocking on these seats while working provides me with a background stimulation that helps me concentrate and engage in tasks.

A classic shop stool, with rarely even legs.

2. Embodied Learning

Research shows that bodily movement and physical activity lead to better learning outcomes for all people. For information to be retained, it must be processed. Activities that require moving across the room, physically making things, or role-playing are means of embodying learning that result in better processing. 

Cast’s Universal Design for Learning guidelines offer strategies for embodied learning to be employed in all classrooms. Many of these strategies include modeling, role-playing, and physical explorations (UDL).

The Future of Classroom Design

There is no one-size-fits-all approach to designing learning spaces for the sensory regulation of neurodivergent people. Instead, spaces should be designed to adapt to the needs of individual people through self-selection. The offering of “retreat spaces” or zones that are designed to be sensorily less stimulating, are essential to the accommodation of people with diverse sensory needs (Mostafa). By offering a range of furniture, tools and materials, background noise, decoration, and class layout, the most people can learn most effectively. 

Creating sensory-regulatory learning environments is not just an accommodation for neurodivergent individuals, but a practice that benefits all learners. Through recognizing the diverse sensory needs of learners, we can create spaces that reduce discomfort, enhance focus, and improve engagement. These considerations go beyond inclusivity- they actively contribute to better educational outcomes by removing barriers to success. The design of accessible classrooms is an issue of social justice. 

There are currently very few learning spaces that are intentionally designed for the sensory regulation of neurodivergent people. Research on these topics are new, with design guides only first being developed recently and not yet reaching widespread use (Mostafa, Shuman). 

As these spaces are being created and adapted, they first reach communities with the greatest financial access. Many of these strategies first reaching private schools for autistic children will take decades, if not longer, to reach public schools in lower class neighborhoods. It is essential for design guides to be established for the financially accessible adaptation of spaces, not just creation of spaces. 

Sources:

Missimer, Arianne. 2020. “How to Map Your Own Nervous System: The Polyvagal Theory.” The Movement Paradigm. March 22, 2020. https://themovementparadigm.com/how-to-map-your-own-nervous-sytem-the-polyvagal-theory/.

Dr. Ceridwen Owen. 2016. “Design across the Spectrum: PLAY SPACES.” https://www.utas.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0006/930246/UTAN-Playspaces.pdf.

“Color Research.” n.d. Publicolor. https://www.publicolor.org/color-research.

Scottish Autism. n.d. “New Struan School.” New Struan School. https://www.scottishautism.org/new-struan-school/.

Chip Wood. 2017. Yardsticks. Center for Responsive Schools, Inc.

CAST. 2018. “Universal Design for Learning Guidelines.” CAST. 2018. https://udlguidelines.cast.org/.

Roman Mars. 2024. “Autism Pleasantville.” 99% Invisible. March 26, 2024. https://99percentinvisible.org/episode/autism-pleasantville/.