Look Up and Breathe: How Painted Ceiling Tiles Are Changing the Mood in One Middle School Classroom
“This act of kindness is the reason I have hope. The art is wonderful and it lets me feel like I am in nature. ” (7th grade student)
When students enter room 160 at Nellie N. Coffman Middle School and start to feel overwhelmed, they no longer put their head on their desks or stare aimlessly at the clock. Instead, they look up – and find a canopy ceiling mural with green trees, sunny blue skies, and a window to the outside.
In an era of growing concern over student mental health, one company’s creative solution—decorating ceiling tiles with calming visuals—has turned a standard classroom into a peaceful haven for learning and self-regulation. It is uncanny how such a simple feature has transformed my classroom, and it makes so much sense.
I was introduced to Nature in the Classroom when my Aunt Linda insisted I visit a preschool on Catalina Island where her friend, Ernie Rodriguez, had created this innovative idea for the classroom. She tried to explain it to me, but to be honest, it wasn’t until we walked into the classroom that I totally understood. I was taken aback. It was breathtaking and jaw-dropping all at the same time. I literally just wanted to sit down and look up. My heart was at peace; I knew this was something my middle schoolers desperately needed. We had just returned to school from COVID, and it had taken a toll on my students. Most of them literally did not go to school for a year. They returned with angst, anxiety, and to some degree anger; they didn’t have the endurance to read novels or work on writing, and as an English teacher, I wanted them to find the joy in reading and find their voice in writing. I have an inside classroom with no outdoor windows, and I knew these tiles could be a catalyst in getting them to focus and feel a sense of calmness. On a selfish level, I spend eight hours a day in this room; I wanted the tiles for my peace of mind!
The day I visited the preschool on Catalina Island, Ernie informed me that there was a Foundation with Nature in the Classroom, and my classroom would be able to apply for the project. I was beyond elated, to say the least. I did research on the tiles, looked at the gallery to pick the “just right” set for my students, and set out to get the project affirmed with my school district. I wrote to our district cabinet and explained how the tiles had 50 years of research and that not only would my students feel a sense of calmness that was the SEL focus after returning to school but also the Nature in the Classroom research showed that the ceiling tiles “boost academic achievement, creativity, problem solving, focus, attention, engagement, and language skills in students.
My project was immediately approved. All the work to get the project started was completed just in time before the start of the new school year, and Ernie literally came to the Coachella Valley to install the ceiling tiles himself the day before school began. By the first week of school, I had heard the most amazing reactions from students:
“It helps me feel calm and focused.”
“Looking up in the classroom feels more calming to see nature.”
“Where did you take that picture?”
“It gives peaceful vibes.”
“Meditation.”
“It feels like the fresh air in my face.”
“I feel calm and meditated when I look up, and I know it will be good for my classmates.”
“I feel like I am cared for because it is there to calm me and my classmates.”
“I like the vibe of the ceiling tiles.”
“I like the branches. It’s like roads to a great journey.”
The “journey” is exactly what I want my students to take: a journey in a book and a journey in their writing. All of it feels like a great place for a reading and writing workshop to occur. I have noticed less behavior problems and more willingness to work since the tiles were installed nearly two years ago. Just the other day, a student from another class popped into my room to drop something off, looked up at the ceiling, and she said, “Whoa! This room is cool!”
For now, the clouds on the ceiling may not solve everything—but for a 59 minute period each day, they give middle schoolers permission to pause, breathe, and just be.
Leslie Snyder
Nellie N Coffman Middle School — Cathedral City, CA
Middle School
