My students are eager middle school students who love to learn and have their sights set on high school and beyond!
My students come to school from across the city of Chicago.
While a few students walk from the neighborhood, the majority endure long daily commutes on the bus, train, or in the car to attend our school. Students come from neighborhoods throughout the city, creating an environment rich with the diversity. The students' eagerness to attend the school is evident in their commitment to learning, innovating, and supporting each other.
My Project
Over the last couple years my students and I have been working to create a classroom with various flexible seating options. When students come to my classroom they can choose between standing desks, bicycle desks, bean bags, wobble chairs, and traditional desks. I would love to add these wheeled desks to the mix so that all of our seating will be mobile. These mobile desks allow students to group up in various ways and move around the classroom to work with others easily. These desks will also allow us to quickly organize desks into a circle for meaningful class discussions where students can actually make eye contact with each other. Lastly, if we want to move all the desks out of the way to reenact a historical event, we won't have bulky desks and tables to move! Instead we'll just be able to wheel the desks to a corner! These desks allow for endless, flexible learning opportunities for my students.
I am amazed by the way flexible seating has supported students in developing many college and career skills!
First, students learn better when they can choose to sit, stand, bike, or get comfortable on a beanbag! In addition, by having to choose their seating style, students are developing self-awareness to determine how they learn and work best. Lastly, students are constantly negotiating and compromising with each other because of the diverse seating. They have to share the equipment, make schedules, and be generous to ensure that everyone gets a turn to learn the way they'd like! It's amazing to watch middle school students interact in this way! The materials in the projects will allow for more flexible seating options in our classroom.
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. Rose and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
