Sound Machines in the Classroom to Increase Productivity and Decrease Distractions
Why You Need a Sound Machine In Your Classroom
So, here’s a weird concept. My husband has been working in the construction field as an electrician for the past five years. He has wired offices from Sales Force to Facebook, Twitter to We Work. A common thread amongst a majority of the office projects has been overhead sound machines built into the ceilings. The speaker system emits a hum throughout the common work space. One barely even notices the steady thrum unless it is unexpectedly turned off. This got me thinking, what if I added a sound machine to my classroom? We received a ‘Lectrofan for Christmas a few years back, but I had already grown attached to our toddler’s Skip Hop Owl sound machine for sleeping. The 'Lectrofan sat in my junk drawer gathering dust for over a year before my husband filled me in on the sound machines in the work place tid-bit. I dug through the drawer, grabbed the ‘Lectrofan, and brought it to my classroom. Each time that my students were reading silently or working on their writing, I would turn on the sound machine and watch the magic happen.
Writing has always been a challenge for my 7th graders. The few that love to write have no problem getting straight to work and staying motivated throughout the writing period. It’s the other fifty percent of my students who work quietly for five minutes before losing focus and causing mischief that makes it a pain in my butt to manage. Don’t they get that I’m trying to meet with each of my 30+ students individually to discuss their writing? I decided why not try this newfangled idea of the sound machine. If it works for Sales Force, Twitter, and Facebook employees, why wouldn’t it work for unruly 7th graders?
The result? IT WORKS! Oh My Gosh teacher friends…this machine is magic
Now listen, the sound machine is not a magic pill. It definitely does not fix all writing woes nor does it make every student magically focus. But for the majority of my class, it allowed them to hone in on the task at hand and quietly work for longer stretches of time with no distractions.
Also, It took a bit for my students to get used to the hum of the machine. Eventually they forgot that it even was on. Now I can turn it on or off at will with no one even saying anything. I have it set at a pretty quiet decibel, so its really only noticeable when I turn it off. If I know that my students need to be productive for the day, the sound machine is already going before they walk into my class. That way they don’t even realize that it has been turned on. It does a great job of blocking the outside noises and distractions, like students at lunch or walking by my classroom.
I do have to say that the sound machine may not work for everyone. I was such a believer that I shared my good fortune with Denise. She added the Lectrofan to a grant that she was writing, and when she got her grant funded, she was super excited to try out the sound machine. Her students have not taken to it as much as mine have. It could be because she started using it in the middle of the first semester, where as I started mine from the the first week of school. She hasn’t given up hope yet though. She will try it again a few more times this year to see if her students will fall under the spell of the magic humming machine.
What do you think? Have you tried adding a sound machine into your class before? If you want to give it a try, I have added a few links to some highly rated sound machines. Some are pretty expensive, but I have also added in a few that have gotten amazing reviews but are a lot cheaper. (This is NOT a paid advertisement, nor do we get any affiliate funds for linking to Amazon - I’m just a teacher trying to help out other teachers). The goal is to try to find a machine that does not have a noticeable loop. Students, or teachers, who are sensitive to sounds will immediately recognize the loop and it can drive them crazy! (It drives me nuts…so there is no way I could have a machine that has a sound loop).
Aurola Sleep Sound Machine- Non looping and only $19.99!
Big Red Rooster 6 Sound White Noise Machine- I have heard a lot of great things about this sound machine. It has over ten thousand reviews and it has a solid four stars. I’d say it is worth a shot for only $19.99.
Marpac Dohm Sound Machine- This bad boy is the most expensive out of the bunch at $44.95. My friend swears by this little machine. I believe it only has one sound, and she uses it for sleep. But, if you happen to have one laying around the house- bring it your class and give it a whirl (no pun intended).
Lectrofan sound machine- the one that started it all! It’s on sale right now for $39.00!
Let us know if you give it a try- I would love to know if it works for your classes too!
Until next time teacher friends.
Bottoms up!