A report in the New York Times suggests that a newly designed desk for young students may be making a difference is quality learning.  According to the article, veteran teacher of 20+ years was inspired to create a workspace for her students that will allow them the wiggle room they need.  It's true that some people think better is varying positions, some while shaking their leg, some while standing, some while sitting with their legs folded underneath, some while leaning on an available surface.  This design was created with those people in mind. I think the idea has merit and I am sure that the research will support the theory that these kid-friendly desks improve classroom behavior.  As I mentioned in an earlier blog, kids have excess energy, or at least more energy than the classroom knows what to do with.  By asking students to sit still in traditional desks, we are not allowing the students to expend any of that energy.  This new concept of a convertible workspace, which can be used while sitting, standing, leaning, or with one leg propped up, is helping students use up some of that energy while still concentrating on the subject at hand. I can think of two potential problems: teachers who don't like fidgeting will hate this, and students who require a calm, still, quiet atmosphere will be easily distracted.  Some teachers, especially older teachers who have been trying to teach the wiggles out of kids for years, probably won't make the transition well to this sort of workspace.   I would also be concerned about student with attention issues.  This type of workspace make create additional distractions for those kids who already struggle to focus on their assignments.