“Sit still.”
Like many children, Sandra Turner was told that as a child, despite struggling with attention issues. Fast forward a few decades, and she has launched a product that moves beyond the norm, beyond the stiff four-legged classroom chair with a straight back.
The Vidget® actually moves, from side-to-side and front-to-back, quietly and safely, with a rocking motion that helps release energy and allows children to be in control of their own physical movement. It cannot tip backward and ultimately helps children and adults self-regulate and focus.
“This is the first time a seating device is working,” said Turner, who invented the Vidget® and founded Rochester-based company Viggi Corp. with Christalyn Snyder, and with support from Rochester business Richard Kaplan.
Together they have helped students nationwide, from age 2 through adult, get the sensory input they need to match their output abilities. The end result is improved focus and attention; increased time on task; and reduced frustration and feelings of confinement.
“It’s not just about getting the movement but it’s about inspiring and encouraging the movement,” Turner said. “When I was a kid I felt like I was different because my body needed to naturally move.”
The Vidget® stemmed from Turner’s thesis research for her MFA degree while studying at Rochester Institute of Technology. She worked to find the balance between a child’s need for a spontaneous release of energy and that same child’s need for perceived control.
“We needed to inspire natural movement and I believe we’ve accomplished that as a company,” Turner said, noting there are hundreds of Vidget® chairs in classrooms around the Rochester area and in classrooms across 48 states.
“I wanted to design a seating device that would not stigmatize a child or any person,” she said. “The Vidget® is colorful and looks fun rather than therapeutic.”
Turner tests The Vidget® at local BOCES, where she lets the teacher and student experience the chairs organically grow in the environment. The ladies at Viggi Corp. get feeback on The Vidget that when using it, children feel free to explore and feel physically and cognitively safe.
Research proves that sitting for more than 10 minutes at a stretch reduces our awareness of physical and emotional sensations and increases fatigue. Playing, running, jumping, and feeling a sense of freedom is not only a desire but a human need, Turner noted.
She is the mother of three, adopting her three-year-old and six-year-old children during the time she founded and has grown her six-year-old company — three years spent researching and developing and then selling the products since fall 2015.
“All children need to move, but some kids with ADHD, autism, and sensory processing disorder need more movement.” she said. “Another ‘aha’ moment was to add recessed handles on the sides with sensory bumps on the top surface — kids’ fidgety fingers naturally find the bumps which provide a temporary sensory input for children needing to promote calmness and focus.”
Teachers who have incorporated flexible seating in their classrooms have noticed positive results. Dan, a sixth-grade special education teacher, saw changes in less than a week.
“I have observed a noticeable increase in on-task behavior from students who use them,” he said. “Students who sit in the chairs participate more and demonstrate greater self-management. I am extremely excited and grateful to have these ‘tools’ as part of my classroom.”
Turner wants children to embrace the idea that a chair doesn’t have to be just a chair and inspire them to use their imagination, perhaps also using the chair as a desk. And rather than telling students to sit still, teachers instead can encourage quiet fidgeting to help students learn.
“With the Vidget®, we are not just moving our bodies, we are changing the way we look at the learning environment,” she said. “Creating healthy and flexible spaces that inspire collaboration, creative and critical thinking, is what builds innovative spirits and ideas. The Vidget® is just one tool that helps in the process.”
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