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Tennis Balls
Increase Children’s Attention
by Carolyn Edwards from Hands & Voices <www.handsandvoices.org>
For more articles visit
www.bridges4kids.org.
Children hear more poorly than adults in noisy situations.
Although there is a gradual improvement through the elementary
years, children are thirteen to fifteen years of age before
they can cope in noise as well as adults do. Children with
recurrent ear infections, language disorders, English as a
second language, hearing loss in one ear, and any degree of
hearing loss in both ears, have even more difficulty
understanding speech in noise than their peers.
Classrooms are noisy places and the noise is primarily
generated by children talking and chairs moving on uncarpeted
floors. To give you an idea of sound levels, teachers' voices
are often at a loudness level of 65 dB. During activity times,
loudness Ievels range from 70 to 85 dB. The sound of one chair
scraping on the floor of a portable classroom was measured at
85 dB. (The sound of a motorcycle or a jackhammer is about 100
dB.)
Noise interferes with children's comprehension of speech.
Studies have consistently shown decreases of 35% to 40% in
children's speech recognition from a fairly quiet room to the
typical noise levels experienced in today's classroom.
Tennis balls are an inexpensive solution to decrease chair
noise in the classroom. Take an exacto knife and cut an X in
the top of each tennis ball. The X should be just large enough
to insert the metal leg of the chair. Each chair requires four
tennis balls.
CONSUMER INFORMATION
Durability: Tennis balls have lasted two to three years in a
classroom, before losing their effectiveness.:
Sound Reduction: Sound from chairs moving is reduced to a
minimum.
Price: Varies with source.
Color: Ranges from fluorescent yellow to pink.
Where to Obtain: In addition to purchase, some teachers have
approached local tennis clubs for donations of used tennis
balls. Of course there are always the tennis balls from the
roof of the school. Some teachers have put a box at the front
of the school for donations from students and staff. Finally,
some communities now include tennis balls as an item for
recycling.
Teacher Comments: When teachers on the second floor have used
the tennis balls on chair legs, the teacher underneath on the
first floor has been delighted with the reduction in noise.
Paradoxically, the elimination of noise has made the children
more aware of noise, and communication has been easier in the
classroom.
Children's Comments: They don't want to remove the tennis
balls once the balls have been installed. Children say it is
easier to hear other children, and easier to pay attention in
the classroom.
Try it - One of the easiest improvements to the Classroom!
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