Relief for Fidgety Kids – Bouncy Bands Review
Some kids act like sitting still is pure torture. Take Baloo (10) for instance. He isn’t a sitter. It is always a challenge to get him to sit, even for activities he loves. He just needs motion. I’m sure this contributes to the issues he has with writing, which I’ve talked about quite a lot.
Baloo does not have ADD, ADHD, or any other medical reason for his fidgetyness (Did I make up a word? It’s fitting…). He’s just a 10 year old boy that prefers to be moving. And even though we don’t do a lot of seat work, I need him to be still some of the time. So when I was connected with Scott from Bouncy Bands, I literally jumped for joy (more of a hop, in my seat, with lots of grinning and hand clapping). Finally, someone has come up with a tool for fidgety kids that doesn’t involve bouncing up and down on an exercise ball (we tried that and we had kids bouncing across the room instead of fidgeting at their seats. Not an improvement at all.)
The Bouncy Bands arrived, we installed them as far as possible, and they were set.
This post is a review of Bouncy Bands. I was compensated for my time in reviewing the product The opinions in this post are my own (and my kids).
My initial thought was the bands would be great for writing and worksheet type activities. But we use the same chairs at the table as we do at the computer, so the Bouncy Bands inevitably ended up at the computer. The difference was astounding.
First, Logi-Bear (5) ended up with the Bouncy Band at the computer. He’s the kid that tilts his chair back, forward, to the side, etc. He’s up, down, up, to the bathroom, to another computer, in the kitchen. With the band, those movements were significantly reduced. He was sitting longer, not bothering his brothers (or me…), and the best part was that he didn’t even realize what was going on! I asked him at one point how he liked the Bouncy Band. With his feet on it and bouncing he said “What Bouncy Band?” He was engaged in his work and without the fidgety distractions, didn’t even realize he was doing something else.
Quick Facts about Bouncy Bands
- They are made in the USA.
- Latex-free
- Noise -free (even when bouncing, they are silent)
Benefits to Bouncy Bands for Fidgety Kids
I thought Bouncy Bands would help us get more “desk work” completed, but the benefits have been far beyond that. We don’t do a lot of desk work and I was surprised that we didn’t add any more desk work when we started using Bouncy Bands. However, I didn’t realize how easy computer work could be. We use the computer for so so much. Math fact practice, videos to reinforce what we are learning, distraction while I work one-on-one with another child, etc. And it’s the last one where I need the other children to be busy and not fidgeting and running around.
It used to be that I would have interruption after interruption when working one-on-one. Logi-Bear was especially difficult. He was so easily distracted. Every noise would grab his attention or he would feel like he needed to walk around. Now, with the Bouncy Bands, he will sit at a computer much longer.
What Does the Science Say?
I love science and I really love being able to use techniques that are rooted in fact. So when I say that Bouncy Bands had sent out an informal survey to students and teachers, I was excited to see the results. And the results speak for themselves.
Check out the survey results here.
In summary, an overwhleming amount of students loved Bouncy Bands. And an overwhelming amount of teachers said that the students were more focused, calmer, and stayed on task longer.
See Bouncy Bands in Action
We did a video in which you see myself, Baloo, and our cat Tinkerbell (briefly) but most importantly, the Bouncy Band in action.
How to Share With Just Friends
How to share with just friends.
Posted by Facebook on Friday, December 5, 2014
Where to Buy Bouncy Bands
The TLDR Section
- Bouncy Bands stop fidgeting
- Easier schooling, especially for seated activities
- BouncyBands.com
