The Walkabouts Platform Helps Build Gross Motor Capacity (Michigan)

Profile

Webster Early Childhood Center (Webster ECC) is a high-quality early childhood center that serves approximately 130 children from birth to four years old. The center is operated by Hazel Park Schools in Hazel Park, Michigan.

Dana Pendley is a PreK-4 teacher at Webster Early Childhood Center in Hazel Park, MI. Pendley’s instructional experience spans early childhood to elementary grades as she has taught students from two-and-half years old through fifth grade.

“Walkabouts are especially good in the development of gross motor capacity.” - Dana Pendley

Goals

Pendley first learned about the Walkabouts platform from a district email letting teachers know they could access the platform at no cost courtesy of a grant provided by the Michigan Department of Education. After exploring the platform, she believed it would be a great tool to integrate into lessons on phonological awareness for her young students. Additionally, she believed the platform could be used to weave academic content into the center’s physical education classes.   

Outcomes

While her students had engaged with other movement programs, Pendley says her students loved the “newness” of Walkabouts and immediately engaged with the content and adventures. She explains, “they love the little games [in the lessons] and it is a fun way of learning because it is a break from some of the other programs they’ve been doing.” Pendley says the platform “is especially good in the development of gross motor capacity” and appreciates that the lessons help her easily observe which students may need a little more attention in order to grasp the academic content. Overall, Pendley has also noticed improvement in student engagement and behavior when students interact with the lessons in the platform.

Recommendations

Pendley began using the platform later in the school year, but she plans to share it with other teachers and continue to explore its expansive library of lessons over the summer. In addition, she plans to use Walkabouts’ 180s (designed for students in 3^rd – 5^th grade) during the summer with her own child who is in 4^th grade.