The modern classroom is often more than just a classroom. Classrooms are where students go to study, where they go to relax; they’re used for tutoring, social club meetings, drama rehearsals, parent-teacher meetings, open houses, staff events, and after-school programs. Schools are also the hub of the community, offering their classrooms and spaces for senior programs, summer camps and voting centers for local and federal elections. Educational facilities from primary to university need solutions to maximize their square footage without redesigning their floor plan and that can adapt to the demands of our busy, multipurpose classrooms.
1. CREATE EASE OF MOVEMENT
We think of classrooms as four rigid walls, but what if those walls could be tucked away? Flexible space management solutions—also referred to as movable walls or operable partitions—allow school staff to reconfigure their spaces by sub-dividing or expanding classrooms as they “move” these movable walls into or out of place. Operable partitions between classrooms create the opportunity to separate or combine classroom space. But that’s not the only place where space management can enhance a classroom’s flexibility. Installing operable partitions in place of fixed walls shared with a hallway or atrium allows for the classroom to transform into a flowing event space as the operable partition opens onto larger spaces in the school.
Automated operable partitions that function with a simple keypad, like Skyfold, give teachers the ability to reconfigure their classrooms themselves, without the help of janitors, and within a matter of minutes, making it easy to transform spaces according their minute-to-minute needs.
With acoustic ratings of up to 60 STC (Rw 59), Skyfold’s operable partitions in the down position act as a two-sided rigid wall and acoustic barrier between rooms, thereby creating a space where students can focus on lessons and personal work without distractions from the adjacent spaces.
2. ADD FUNCTIONALITY
Operable partitions can be more than just room dividers; they can help create connected spaces where students can learn, focus and collaborate. A white marker board finish transforms your operable partition into a writing surface to be used by teachers and students for an integrated and flexible learning environment.