The Future of Education and Interactive Learning:

At Eastern Suffolk BOCES, they are fully immersed in shaping the future of education. Witness their narrative of usage in an insightful Q&A session with Colleen Kennedy-Dietrich, Special Education Teacher and Tara Rogers, Public Relations Specialist / Communications & Research from Eastern Suffolk BOCES. Q) What was the motivating factor for your school to focus on new ways of learning? A) Eastern Suffolk BOCES is an inclusive educational coop- erative that works with over 51 Long Island Districts. ESBCOES provides direct instruction, behavior management and various support for students with multiple disabilities. Nicole Drinkwater, Principal at Brookhaven Learning Center (BLC), was interested in providing her students with a new and innovative way of learn- ing-- the ActiveFloor was the perfect fit! Q) Why did you choose to implement ActiveFloor? A) After researching different interactive learning devices, the ActiveFloor seemed like the best fit for our program. It allows all students, both ambulatory students and student in wheel- chairs, to access the floor and participate in interactive learning. It included academic material, sensory integration, as well games that promote social interaction. At Brookhaven Learning Center, we are a developmental program and focus on life skills in addi- tion to academic curriculum. The floor allows us to create games that pertain to both areas. Q) How many units have you purchased? A) Brookhaven Learning Center started with one unit in our main building, and gained a second unit a year later. After see- ing the floor in use, Eastern Suffolk BOCES decided to add several more units to other buildings within the organization. Q) Where are they located? (classroom, media center, activity room, etc) A) Our main unit at BLC is located in a section of our cafeteria that is now designated to our ActiveFloor. The unit in our second building is located in a communal classroom. Q) How often are you using ActiveFloor? A) At Brookhaven Learning Center, we use the ActiveFloor throughout the entire school day. Each classroom teacher re- ceives a 30-minute time slot, once a week. Our speech teachers are able to sign up for the remaining 30-minute time slots and provide group speech sessions on the floor. Q) How many students are using ActiveFloor at one time? Do you work in small groups or one-on-one with a student? A) For the most part, the floor is used as a group activity; class- es bring anywhere from 5-12 students down to use the floor. During speech sessions, a therapist may bring 1-4 students. The floor is occasionally used for individual sessions as a reward/earn- ing incentive for specific students. Q What kind of improvements have you noticed among your students since using ActiveFloor? A) The floor has helped students with turn-taking skills; our students need to wait patiently while other peers are using the

floor. The floor has also promoted socialization. Our students love pairing up with other peers to play games in a team format. The students will cheer on one another and be involved in the game as a spectator. Additionally, the floor is used to reinforce content material learning in class. Classroom teachers are able to imple- ment follow up lessons on the floor and provide their students with a fun and interactive way of learning. Q) Do you have specific examples of areas of improvement? A) Many of my colleagues have stated that the ActiveFloor has been instrumental in teaching turn taking. Kerrie Clark, a fellow special education teacher states, “Overall the ActiveFloor has helped my class with turn taking and waiting patiently as each student takes a turn. The ActiveFloor has also been instrumental in teaching my students to be part of a team. The students cheer each other on and are learning how to work together in small groups, as team.” Q) Now that you have created games in MyFloor, do you have any new game template suggestions? A) Folders within folders was a big request among our teach- ers. I am happy to see that ActiveFloor has now added this fea- ture to the floor. Additionally, being a teacher at a school that focuses on life skills, I would love to see a sequencing game; a game in which creators can make all different type of sequencing activities. The students would select pictures in order of occurrence, text could be added too for higher level learners who are able to read. The games can be general life skills (brushing teeth, making recipes, etc.), academic (sequencing the life cycle or a butterfly or chick- en), or teachers can make sequence strips that are specific to their students (ex: reinforcing the daily schedule of a student, or reinforcing school day events for students)

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