Help me give my students an opportunity to incorporate exercise and movement through out their day to help them be less fidgety and more focused on their work.
I currently work with special education students in a Resource room at a Title I school in a suburban district. I currently service students in Kindergarten, First, Third, Fourth and Fifth grades. The majority of my students however are in grades 3-5. My students' disabilities vary from Specific Learning Disabilities, Speech/Language Impairments, Emotional Disturbance, Autism, Visual Impairments, and Traumatic Brain Injuries. My student spend the majority of their school day in the general education classroom and come to me for targeted support in Reading, Writing, Math and Behavior.
During their time with me, I work on compensatory strategies to help students "close the gap" between their abilities and the abilities of their grade level peers.
I use a variety of strategies, interventions and alternative materials/manipulatives to help foster learning. Most of the students that I work with are below grade level by one or more grade levels. The students often struggle to meet grade level expectations and therefore get frustrated often which results in significant behavior problems.
My Project
Exercise and movement allows students to take charge of their learning and make the choices that work best for them. During independent work times they choose a location in the classroom with the materials requested to give themselves a movement break, get the "wiggles out" and regain focus in order to attend to tasks at hand. Currently my students are choosing to work in a variety of locations in our room such as: at different tables, sitting/laying on the floor with clip boards, or sitting on "wobble stools" with a clip board. Making sure students are comfortable is an essential component in motivating them. I have noticed amazing differences in my students when they are given brain breaks and movement breaks when working on seat work. They tend to make better choices behaviorally, are more engaged, and get more work completed than when they are just sitting at their desk.
Adding physical movement helps facilitate the brain's readiness to learn and retain information.
Students with attentional difficulties, such as ADHD, truly benefit from these movement breaks the most. Twisting boards, yoga balls and yoga ball chairs will help provide that needed movement that will help increase concentration, comprehension and focus. They can also be used as an alternative chair if needed!
I have seen how brain breaks and movement breaks can positively affect my students work and demeanor and hope that the additional options will help us grow even more!
Gaiam Classic Backless Balance Ball Chair – Exercise Stability Yoga Ball Premium Ergonomic Chair for Home and Office Desk with Air Pump, Exercise Guide and Satisfaction Guarantee, Purple
• Amazon Business
$45.99
2
$91.98
Simply Fit 30044 The Abs Legs Core Workout Balance Board (Orange)
• Amazon Business
$29.88
2
$59.76
PROMIC Professional Grade Static Strength Exercise Stability Balance Ball with Foot Pump,45cm,Blue
• Amazon Business
$11.99
2
$23.98
Materials cost
$175.72
Vendor shipping charges
FREE
Sales tax
$12.39
3rd party payment processing fee
$2.64
Fulfillment labor & materials
$30.00
Total project cost
$220.75
Suggested donation to help DonorsChoose reach more classrooms
$38.96
Total project goal
$259.71
How we calculate what's needed
Total project goal
$259.71
6 Donors
-$209.71
Donations toward project cost
-$178.25
Donations to help DonorsChoose reach more classrooms
-$31.46
match offer
-$50.00
Match offer toward project cost
-$42.50
Match offer to help DonorsChoose reach more classrooms
DonorsChoose is the most trusted classroom funding site for teachers.
As a teacher-founded nonprofit, we're trusted by thousands of teachers and supporters across the country. This classroom request for funding was created by Mrs. Scruggs and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
