OVMS Students Manufacture Posture Stools to Help Keep Kindergarteners Comfortable, Focused and Learning
Click here to see a photo gallery of the gift-giving
“Pete the Cat!” The cry came instantly from kindergarten students at Grenloch Terrace Early Childhood Center when they recognized a sketch of the beloved character, from a book that they knew and loved, etched into a wooden stool. Twenty Orchard Valley Middle School students, who manufactured the 60 stools, recently hand-delivered them to GTECC, bringing a project that spanned a full marking period to fruition.
The stools were requested by GTECC principal Christina Cox as another way to address seating ergonomics and to keep kids comfortable and focused while learning. The project was funded through a Washington Township Education Foundation (WTEF) grant, the third such woodworking project that Frank Libbi’s students in his “Engineering in Our World Class” tackled. Previous classes crafted animal-shaped chairs and wooden block classroom sets.
“We took an older stool that had been in the school for at least 15 years, brought it back to our shop and redesigned it,” Libbi said of his students’ efforts. “We made it a little bit larger, a little bit sturdier than the original one, and spent a marking period designing, cutting out wood, sanding, using power tools and hand tools, putting in the hardware.”
The students then customized the stools, transferring literary characters like the Hungry Caterpillar, the Cat in the Hat, and Mary Poppins, and even included words from the books, onto the stools. OVMS school counselor Dan Jedwabny then painstakingly wood-burned the sketches and/or words permanently into the stools.
“The WTEF does such a great job of taking a project like this, that might not have been possible through traditional budget means, and giving us the funds we to need to make something like this a reality,” Jedwabny said. “It’s a great opportunity for our middle school students to work together and see tangible results from their thoughts and skills. This allows them to see a final product, as a result of their collaboration, in an actual setting where it will be used and enjoyed.”
“This project helps to create a real connection between the schools,” Libbi said. “My students were so glad that they could give back to their old school in this way.”
“This is so nice,” said an excited Cox, who introduced all of the student-woodworkers to her classrooms of young learners, explaining the gifts to them. “We are so grateful to have these stools. They are practical and personal. We will cherish them.”