'Coping' in open plan classrooms

[LizK]

DS's primary school is largely open plan classrooms aside from two year groups which are in mobiles. The years in the mobiles often changes. DS is in year one. His classroom is open plan as the curriculum is more topic and play based and the central area of the classroom is set up for choosing, sand, water and role play so both classes can access this area. It's a nice spacious room but very busy, walls covered with multicoloured art displays as well as hanging from the ceiling. There are several doors leading into the classroom and all the tables have pens, pencils and other paraphenalia on them

 

DS has various sensory issues typical of autism including oversensitivity to noise and difficulties discriminating between noises and sensory overload. I sometimes go in and help and when both classes are in the classroom it can be very noisy especially if the children are choosing in the afternoons . DH was in this week and came home saying he thought it was an awful classroom environment for an autistic child too visually stimulating, too noisy. The other class were doing singing apparently! He felt DS was overwhelmed, distracted and overloaded by it all:( . DS is very interested in doors too and would turn his attention to whoever was going through the door rather than the task at hand. DS gets fulltime 1-2-1 support and his LSA and class teacher are excellent but DH felt this and the therapy he is having at school is a waste of time if the actual environment is so poor. DS often comes home from school utterly mind blown and overloaded. The few times he hasn't has been when he's been out of the classroom most of the afternoon. As well as the impact at home and the inevitable stress at school dealing with this I wonder how much it is affecting his ability to learn. He has fallen behind his peers this year, he had been keeping up and been told he is fairly bright but he is struggling.

 

I don't know whose bright idea open class rooms were but I can't imagine my son is the only child in his class whom it does not suit. Everyone says to me 'oh he copes so well' and he does at school but why should he have to cope? His peers don't. I'm fed up of people being pleased because he 'copes' . His having to cope means he gets anxious, distracted and his brain is too busy coping than dealing with and learning about whatever is going on around him. Then of course we get the fall out at home when he is obviously not coping so well. In fairness his school is very good as far as the staff are concerned, it's the physical bricks and mortar that is the problem

 

Wondering how many others here have had children in open plan classrooms? How did they find it? Is it easier as they get older and hopefully lessons more structured and quieter? Any advice for helping DS manage better in an open plan class? Unless we change school which is not a feasible option open plan is going to feature in his primary school education and need strategies to help him. He does have a work station against a blank wall but prefers to sit on a table with the other children and actually benefits from seeing them do their work. His LSA tries to take him off to a quiet room for 10 relaxation (fibre optic lights in darkness with music) in the afternoons.

 

Lx

[Ian Jordan]

very simply

 

the school has to make reasonable adjustments for disability - and that includes asd

 

this means that they are obliged to adjust for his sensory problems - you must insist that they are addressed - school may be an abusive environment for your child, and if so it is a totally unacceptable situation.