Bouncy Bands

Aloha friends!  I hope the weekend is finding you well rested and ready for a new week.

This year, like most years, I have some wiggly boys who have an incredibly hard time focusing and finishing their work.  They are highly capable, but spend more time out of their seats getting drinks, going to the bathroom and wandering around the room.

I came across this site for Bouncy Bands and read all the information about this simple tool that could help my students stay seated and focused.

I spoke with Scott over at Bouncy Bands and he sent me a set for a 

chair and a desk to try out and review in my classroom.

They were super simple to install and I had them on each one in less than 5 minutes.

The rubber band is pretty thick and I can see that they are very well made and will hold up a long time.

When my kiddos came in the next day they immediately sat down and started bouncing their feet on the bands.  I didn't say anything, I just watched them play around with them at first.  

I then told them to get started on their morning work and they did as their feet kept wiggling the whole time.

I talked with them both later and I told them the bands were there to help them wiggle and move while they were working.  I wanted to see how they used them throughout the week.

On Friday I asked them if they liked the bands and they both said yes. I'm not sure they knew that the point of them was to keep them both in their seats, but I noticed they didn't get up as much as usual.  They also didn't tip their chairs like they always do. I don't think anything could keep either of them in their seats for a very long time, (maybe duct tape) but they were both definitely more focused!

The kids around them were a bit jealous and they all wanted to have bands on their chairs too.  I am planning to write a Donor's Choose project to get bands for all of my chairs.  The Bouncy Bands site has a sample application to make the process really simple.

They also have some great statistics on how the bands have helped teachers and students across the country.

139 Teachers and 686 K-12 students from throughout the U.S. completed online surveys asking them about their results with Bouncy Bands. 

• 88% of students reported that Bouncy bands helped them focus in class.
• 84% of students stated that Bouncy Bands made it easier to do their work.
• 87% of students felt calmer when they took tests. 
• 92% of teachers reported that Bouncy Bands help students release energy.
• 76% of teachers stated that students using Bouncy Bands tend to stay on task longer. (17% didn't know)
• 91% of teachers said that Bouncy Bands are quiet. (6% didn't know)
• 71% of teachers reported that students using Bouncy Bands tend to be calmer when they take tests. (24% didn't know)
• 87% of teachers stated that movement helps students focus better. (10% didn't know)

I would definitely suggest checking out their site and finding out if these little bands could help some of those active students in your classroom. ----> Bouncy Bands

If you decide to order you can use the code 15OFF to receive 15% off of your purchase for the next 7 days!

I'm looking forward to using these for the rest of the year and hoping to help my students get their wiggles out while they work!