What kind of seating do you have in your classroom?
I stumbled upon a great seating solution and wanted to share with you how it is working in my classroom!
Ta-Da!!!! Have you seen these before?? They are totally funny looking, right?
These are Stabili-T-Stools and my kids and I love them!
I teach special education resource classes, which means I see several groups of students ranging from Kindergarten to Third Grade. My students are struggling in math and/or reading and come to me for about 45 minutes per day.
I noticed that many of my students were having a hard time sitting still during our classes. They would wiggle in their seats, rock in their chairs, or even completely fall out of their chairs from sitting incorrectly. Needless to say, it's super hard to work when you can't sit still.
So I did a little research and started looking for an alternative seating solution. I had tried exercise balls in the past, but honestly I got tired of them rolling around the room.
Enter the Stabili-T-Stool. Funny name. Funny looking. But oh-so-effective!!!
I purchased mine from Abilitations. Stabili-T-Stools are made of hard plastic. One end is flat and the other end is rounded. They come with a circular rubber spot to place underneath. This is important, because otherwise the stool could slip out from under the student.
The awesome thing about the stools is that they allow the students to move while they are working. These Stabili-T-Stools are great for strengthening students' cores and helping them to perfect their balance and coordination. Some of my students were able to sit on the stool and get to work right away. For others, it took a little bit of time for them to get used to balancing and working at the same time. It was interesting to see how different students adjusted differently.
In my classroom, the stools are an option. I give students a choice of sitting in a regular chair or using one of the stools. Most of the time, they choose the stools.
Have you tried any alternative seating in your classroom? How did it work out and what has been your favorite option so far?
How can you figure out which alternative seating will work with what grade. Like I teach special ed resource reading/language arts for 4th, 5th, & 6th grades - so obviously my older students would typically be bigger/taller on average.
ReplyDeleteI teach music (K-6) 45 minute lessons. I'm considering going flex seating for my room. I'm going to start with chairs, stools, an area to sit on the floor and a "mosh pit" ( an area designated where kids can stand and move. I'd like to add yoga balls as my budget allows. Hopefully this will work while I teach. Honestly, I'm a bit scared.
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