Meeting the Challenge of Body Awareness After Remote Learning (Virginia)

Profile

Thomas Jefferson Elementary serves around 600 students in Pre-Kindergarten through 5th grade in Louisa County Public Schools in Virginia.

Chesney Thompson is a second grade math teacher in Louisa County, VA, with 24 years of instructional experience.

“The best advice is just ‘Give it a shot.’ It’s amazing to see the movement incorporated with academics.”

“[Walkabouts are] an easy way to look at a snapshot and see who’s getting a concept and who’s not in a very informal, non-intimidating way.”

– Chesney Thompson

Challenge

With COVID-19 restrictions, Thomas Jefferson Elementary looked for in-person resources to reacclimate their students to life in the classroom. Second grade math teacher, Chesney Thompson, observed that her students struggled with the COVID-19 restrictions that required 3 to 6 feet of space between students, noting that these same restrictions also limited her students’ abilities to move their bodies throughout the day.

Solution

Louisa County Public Schools presented Thompson with the opportunity to use the Walkabouts platform. After hearing about Walkabouts and its accompanying Walksheets, Thompson decided to give Walkabouts a try. She noted how easy it is to find a standards-aligned lesson and began using the platform and Walksheets several times per week with her math students. The more she used the platform, the more excited her students were to practice math skills. 

Additional Outcomes

While the education landscape has changed, students in Thompson's second-grade math classes remain both excited to practice math skills and highly engaged and excited while doing so. She notes that thanks to Walkabouts, now her students “absolutely” have better body awareness. They also have the time they need to get up and out of their seats with a fun, collaborative learning experience.