My students are resilient, yet struggling learners. Our community has very high poverty rates and many students do not have basic necessities including food, clothing, and medical care. Many of my students struggle with attention during lessons. I try to engage students with experiential learning activities as much as possible, but there are times where they have seat work and pencil and paper tasks. I believe children do best with this work when they can still have some form of movement.
My students work so hard to pay attention in their classes!
It is a struggle to keep their focus with traditional seating. I would love to provide some resources for them to have in the classroom so they can continue remain at their desks yet still move their bodies. I tried an under the desk peddle bike for students last year and the results were unbelievable! They attended to lessons, were active listeners, and produced great work. All while peddling a mile a minute with no disruption to others. The ability to move improved their concentration, success, and subsequently their self confidence.
My Project
Many of my students struggle with inattention. We recently had 3 ball stools donated through Donors Choose and the change in the kids' ability to maintain through work was immediate. The time they were able to spend on writing and fact practice doubled.
Our most recent round of MEA testing had the best focus I have ever seen.
Sadly, 3 ball chairs were not enough to provide seating during testing for all of the students who could have benefitted from this alternative. I hope to be able to provide enough seating for all of those students to help them succeed!
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 Ms. Meehan-Poulin and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
