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Goal

If I asked you to associate a theme with your time in middle school, you might flashback with visions of “transition”, “change” or “trying to fit in”. Rarely do people remember middle school as a time of self-realization or celebrating choices, mostly because we were all far too busy being awkward adolescents. While as a teacher I cannot eliminate all the awkward aspects of middle school, I can use the tools of my classroom to craft a classroom culture that allows my student to learn about themselves and what will make them better learners. The goal of this grant is to do that through the use of flexible seating.  

What will be done with my students

Pre-pandemic, if you walked into my classroom, you might mistakenly think you had walked into a Starbucks. Students in my classroom would be collaborating at standing tables, rocking on yoga balls during discussions, laying on the floor writing lab reports, sitting on couches while taking notes. Regardless of their positioning, one thing was guaranteed and that was productivity. My students worked and they worked hard. Flexible seating made our learning environment one that was responsive to student needs and conducive to student learning.

2020 forced us to adjust… and pivot… often. In terms of classroom set up, many of our flexible seating choices were eliminated or manipulated in a way that would render them pandemic-friendly. All of the soft surface seating had to be removed, desks needed to be reorganized, spread apart and forward facing. Traditional lab tables and stools had to be added to replace some of the seating my students loved for years. Maintaining student and teacher health was paramount so we did what needed to be done. However, the experience lent tremendous validation to my belief that flexible seating makes a difference in student learning and in classroom culture.

Thankfully, this school year, my classroom will be able to return to its norm and I will be taking what I have learned over the last year to improve and expand my flexible seating options, augmenting with options that will also work should we ever face a scenario like last school year. Research shows a correlation between the subtle movements that flexible seating allows and an increase in student focus and engagement. It also makes classrooms more accessible for students, increases student engagement, and opens the room to a variety of learning styles. We will be tapping into that by expanding our standing work options, with balance boards and a stand up desk. We will also add active seating stools (ball and accordion base) that allow students to subtly shift and move regardless of the table height they are working on. These stools also help them strengthen core muscles that lead to better posture and stamina when writing.
 

Benefits to my students

The benefits of flexible seating in my classroom can be categorized as follows:

Choice - Students feel empowered by having some degree of choice and control over their environment. Flexible seating allows students to choose where they work and with whom. It also allows them to change their location and positions as needed.

Health - Flexible seating allows them to wobble, rock, bounce, lean or stand, which increases oxygen flow to the brain, blood flow and core strength. In turn, this burns more calories and increases metabolism. It also helps keep adolescent minds more alert and focused. Studies suggest that children who participate in short bouts of physical activity within the classroom have more on-task behavior, too. I have seen this repeatedly in my intensive classes.

Community - Flexible seating encourages students to share space and supplies. It encourages them to take turns in different locations and with different seating options. When preparing kids for the real world, we want students’ learning environment to reflect the environment of the real world and the kind of choices they need to learn to make.

Collaboration - Flexible seating allows students to quickly and easily pair up, work in small groups, or discuss as a whole class – without moving mountains of heavy desks to establish eye contact. It also requires introducing higher-order thinking skills, like problem-solving, and emotional skills, like conflict resolution. There’s tremendous value in fostering turn-taking and patience – especially for a generation of kids immersed in immediate gratification.

Commitment to learning – When I compare student commitment to learning in my room last year vs. years prior, I witnessed a change in their commitment to learning and behavior. In the past, by making the room ‘ours’ instead of ‘mine,’ the students had a sense of ownership that made them more invested in their own education.
 

Budget Narrative

For more detailed information on each of the items above, please follow the links below.

Twixt Active Seating - https://www.amazon.com/Safco-Products-Zenergy-4750BL-Profile/dp/B00OLGEZRI/ref=as_li_ss_tl?keywords=zenergy+ball&qid=1563312576&s=gateway&sr=8-1&th=1&linkCode=sl1&tag=wear03e-20&linkId=c5d2feeb194359f4d8a842234814f36f&language=en_US
Zenergy Seating - https://www.amazon.com/Safco-Products-Zenergy-4750BL-Profile/dp/B00OLGEZRI/ref=as_li_ss_tl?keywords=zenergy+ball&qid=1563312576&s=gateway&sr=8-1&th=1&linkCode=sl1&tag=wear03e-20&linkId=c5d2feeb194359f4d8a842234814f36f&language=en_US
Floor Seats - https://www.lakeshorelearning.com/products/classroom-furniture/chairs-seating/flex-space-comfy-floor-seats/p/LC405
Wobble Board - https://www.amazon.com/Standing-Desk-Anti-Fatigue-Mat/dp/B07HD838VP/ref=sr_1_12?dchild=1&keywords=witt+fitt+balance+board&qid=1627408885&sr=8-12
Standing Desk - https://www.amazon.com/Safco-Products-1201BE-Alphabetter-Stand-Up/dp/B003QXLR0A/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&qid=1510687498&sr=8-1-spons&keywords=alphabetter+stand-up+desk+with+swinging+footrest+bar&psc=1&linkCode=sl1&tag=wear03e-20&linkId=68b09776c09e91267c93aa2cdee2a20c&language=en_US

Soft Rockers - https://www.moving-minds.com/classroom/seating/studyrocker-floor-chair
 

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