We can appreciate any teacher uses some imagination to help students. Bethany Lambeth, who teaches math at Martin Middle School in Raleigh, North Carolina, did just that. Ms. Lambeth installed pedaling bikes underneath the students desks hoping it would channel their energy, improving both their concentration and quality of work.
Bethany Lambeth had the idea of giving students more exercise after she switched from teaching elementary school to middle school and saw the decrease in concentration as a result of not having recess. Ms. Lambeth heard about Desk Cycles while reading an article, and she immediately thought they would be perfect for her classroom. However, she had one problem — who would fund it?
Luckily, their school had the opportunity to apply for a $2,000 grant from 4C for Children, a non-profit organization that strives to help child care providers prepare our youth for the future. The four C’s represent creativity, collaboration, communication, and critical thinking, and Lambeth proposed that the pedaling desks would combine all four.
And as it turns out, she was right. Ms. Lambeth told CBS News, “I have noticed an increase in the quality and the quantity of student work. Last year I noticed an average of a 50 percent decrease in the amount of missing work for my struggling students.”
Win-Win!
Would you encourage the use of pedaling desks? Let us know in the comments below!
H/T: CBS News
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