Most children referred to psychologists are not clinically hyperactive.

They often are normal children in need of mobility.

Truth is, the less interested the children are in what is being taught, the more mobility they need.

A disquieting point is that such youngsters are “almost always boys.” Over 95 percent of hyperactives are males and that very same characteristic, when observed in girls, is correlated with academic achievement.

Boys are expected to be passive in school and are rejected for aggressive behaviors, but are encouraged to engage in typical male aggressions in the world at large. Conventional classroom environments do not provide male students with sufficient outlet for their normal movement needs.

Boys labeled “hyperactive” in school often are fidgety because their teachers provide experiences for them “to think about something” instead of “to do something”. This is the conventional learning belief that activities prevent — rather than enhance learning!

SIT STILL – NOT!

Not being too simplistic, researches validate the theory that students’ hyperactivity in school is equated with their normal need for mobility. Thus, educators need to provide students many opportunities for learning while engaged in movement.

No amount of persuasion can increase students’ interest in movement, whereas it is also impossible for some to remain seated passively for extended periods. These are cases of a child’s style governing his interactions with and within the environment.

Add to all that the knowledge that almost 40 percent of many secondary school youngsters require informal seating while concentrating, and it is not difficult to understand why so many — particularly boys — squirm, sit on their ankles and calves, extend their feet into aisles, squirrel down into their seats, and occasionally fall off their chairs.

Almost 50 percent of a large, urban high school population could not sit still for any appreciable amount of time. Twenty-five percent could remain immobile if interested in the lesson, and the remaining 25 percent preferred passivity. When students’ preferences and their environment are matched, they achieve significantly higher test scores than when they were mismatched.

Students who require mobility move from one part of the room to another in order to master all the information in the lesson and perform better than when they sit for the entire period.

On the other hand, students who dislike moving will perform worse when required to learn while walking, and significantly better when permitted to sit quietly and read.

TEACHERS MUST PROVIDE MOVEMENT OPPORTUNITIES

For educators, it is suggested to establish varied areas in the classroom so that mobility-preferenced youngsters who complete one task may move to another section to work on the next. Experiment with independent study for students who work best by themselves and with small group techniques for the peer-oriented who need mobility.

They need to incorporate many kinesthetic activities into each lesson so that, while acting, building, role-playing, interviewing, or observing, students may move. Permit students who require mobility to move to the library, a resource center, an office space, a media area, or a sectioned-off corner of a hall to work.

Students become trustworthy to a greater degree than previously when they see that you recognize their needs and are aware that they will lose a privilege if they abuse it. Many of the most difficult to contain youngsters are precisely those who cannot sit, and thus, require opportunities to stretch.

The author Henry S. Tenedero is the president of the Center for Learning and Teaching Styles, an affiliate of the International Learning Styles Network, based at St. John’s University in New York. He is a graduate of the AIM Masters in Development management and of the Harvard Graduate School for Professional Educators. He can be reached at htenedero@yahoo.com