Seats that let kids bounce could helpthem learn better in class

Students sit on chairs donated though DonorChoose.org during second-grade reading class at Hexter Elementary in

Dallas, Texas. Photo: Ting Shen/Dallas Morning News/TNS

DALLAS, Texas — Many classrooms are changing. Teachers are using different chairs.

Some are not using chairs at all.

Kids have different ways of learning, scientists say. Some learn best when they are sitting

on a chair. Some kids learn best when they move around.

Some kids sit on big bouncy exercise balls.

Others kids use springy chairs. These chairs move like spring animals at a playground.

Some kids sit on pillows. The rest lay down on their stomachs.

Bouncy Seats Could Help Kids Learn

Qualyon Perkins is in second grade. He likes his "bouncy ball" seat.

It helps him when he "gets wiggly," he says.

The new seats might help students work. Teachers hope so.

By The Dallas Morning News, adapted by Newsela staff on 11.11.16

Word Count 359

This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com. 1

Scientists are studying this. They want to know if the bouncy seats help students.

Not many studies have been done on the new seats. Scientists are not sure if the wobbly

seats help kids learn. Still, many teachers think they do.

Whatever Works Best

Jennifer Cass teaches at a school in Dallas. She says that some students cannot sit down

all day. They move around as they work.

She let kids sit on the floor. Some sat on bean bag chairs.

The students sit where they can learn best, Cass said.

There are rules for the new seats. Both feet must be on the ground. No spinning is allowed.

Some of these new chairs cost a lot of money. One of the chairs costs nearly $70.

The company says its chairs help kids. Kids rock back and forth on them. It calms them.

They say their brains work better.

Moving Helps With Paying Attention

Scientists in California studied kids in classrooms. Some children have trouble paying

attention.

The scientists discovered something. When kids move, it can help them think. It can help

them pay attention.

Other scientists still are not sure about the seats. They want to study more classrooms.

Not everyone likes to wobble or bounce. Ella Greenman is a second-grader. She likes to sit

on a floor pillow.

"The pillow is squishy. Sometimes it's hard to work and bounce," she said.

Some kids want to stay still. They sit on regular stools.

This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com. 2

Quiz

1 What is the introduction [paragraphs 1-5] MOSTLY about?

(A) what teachers think about new chairs

(B) different ways that kids are sitting in school

(C) why some kids sit on pillows

(D) schools that have animals on their playgrounds

2 Read the sentence from the section "Bouncy Seats Could Help Kids Learn."

It helps him when he "gets wiggly," he says.

What does the student mean when he says "gets wiggly"?

(A) starts dancing

(B) walks around the classroom

(C) bounces on his seat

(D) jumps up and down

3 Read the sentences from the section "Whatever Works Best."

Kids rock back and forth on them. It calms them. They say their brains

work better.

What does the word "calms" mean in the sentence above?

(A) It makes it easier for them to learn.

(B) It makes them feel too sleepy to learn.

(C) It gives them extra energy for school.

(D) It gives them a way to exercise in school.

4 What is the focus of the section "Moving Helps With Paying Attention"?

(A) where to buy chairs that let kids move

(B) what scientists and kids think of the new seats

(C) why students have trouble paying attention

(D) which kids want to stay still in class

This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com. 3

Answer Key

1 What is the introduction [paragraphs 1-5] MOSTLY about?

(A) what teachers think about new chairs

(B) different ways that kids are sitting in school

(C) why some kids sit on pillows

(D) schools that have animals on their playgrounds

2 Read the sentence from the section "Bouncy Seats Could Help Kids Learn."

It helps him when he "gets wiggly," he says.

What does the student mean when he says "gets wiggly"?

(A) starts dancing

(B) walks around the classroom

(C) bounces on his seat

(D) jumps up and down

3 Read the sentences from the section "Whatever Works Best."

Kids rock back and forth on them. It calms them. They say their brains

work better.

What does the word "calms" mean in the sentence above?

(A) It makes it easier for them to learn.

(B) It makes them feel too sleepy to learn.

(C) It gives them extra energy for school.

(D) It gives them a way to exercise in school.

4 What is the focus of the section "Moving Helps With Paying Attention"?

(A) where to buy chairs that let kids move

(B) what scientists and kids think of the new seats

(C) why students have trouble paying attention

(D) which kids want to stay still in class

This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com. 4