While many elementary schools may prohibit jumping, skipping and crawling on the way to class, at Kenneth L. Rutherford Elementary School and George L. Cooke Elementary School in Monticello, it’s encouraged!
When students at these two schools returned for the 2019-20 school year, they found that some of their hallways had been transformed into “sensory pathways.” In these areas, the floors are decorated with brightly colored stickers that instruct students to perform different tasks as they move from class to class. Students might tiptoe along a curved line, jog along a set of footprints, hop across a set of logs or even strike a calming tree pose.
It’s a way to help students get moving; expelling extra energy that they may have built up while sitting still for one lesson so that they can refocus for the next. It also helps students develop gross motor skills as they follow along with each task.
According to Kenneth L. Rutherford Principal Michelle Knowlton, it’s been a smashing success.
“All of the kids from kindergarten through fifth grade are excited to use it,” she said. “It’s the little things like this that help keep students excited to come to school each day.”