Upper Elementary and Middle school students spend a sizeable chunk of their day on screens. Schoolwork, private messages, videos, games, and social feeds all layer on top of each other. Even when the content on its surface is enjoyable, the nonstop switching can leave them feeling scattered or tired.
Students across America are waking up to this fact. Many of them describe tech fatigue; feeling pulled toward their devices but also depleted by them. Some scroll to escape stressors, but end up feeling increasingly alone. Others report missing being around people and doing things IRL. To balance this, many teachers are offering assignments that involve building or making things instead of only typing on a laptop or other device. These shifts are small, but they help students feel more present and connected.
This is one of the reasons SHoMA leans toward physical materials and in-person work. I fondly remember my own experience as a girl in Virginia, attending a weekly painting class with my mentor, Mrs. Avery. When kids get to work with yarn, paint, clay, or participate in sewing, drawing, or hand-building, their focus shifts. Their heart rate slows down, and breathing deepens. There is a greater attention to detail, and they start chatting to the people next to them. The environment becomes more grounded and less frantic than the digital pace we’ve all become accustomed to.
Why Hands-On Work?
Hands-on work allows the brain to recover from constant digital input. It improves focus, strengthens patience, and makes it easier to stay with a task. It also creates a natural social setting. Middle schoolers often open up more when they are engaging in parallel work/play than when they are expected to sit face-to-face and talk directly.
At SHoMA, this happens within a matter of minutes. The room becomes calm and lights up at the same time. It’s hard to explain, but when young artists get absorbed in their process, they listen better, they make inquiries, trade ideas, and find an easy rhythm. There is no pressure to perform. It is simply a place where attention gathers instead of scatters.
I get it, screens are part of modern life, but they have limitations when it comes to learning and creativity. Real materials, real conversations, and real presence strengthen something in them that digital spaces cannot touch. That is the work I care about, and that is what SHoMA exists to protect and nurture.