School Spotlight: Meadowbrook Elementary
At Meadowbrook Elementary in Golden Valley, you won’t find rows of desks in classrooms. Instead, you’ll find flexible space for kids to learn.
“There are high tables and low tables and stand-up desks and regular sit-down desks a few and some no desks. They might be on a scoop chair or on a rug with a clipboard,” said Greta Evans-Baker, principal at Meadowbrook.
Student Dallas Downey is a fan of the different classroom space.
“I think it gives kids more freedom to sit wherever they want instead of just sitting at a normal desk where your legs are cramped under it,” said Downey.
But that’s not the only way Meadowbrook tries to innovate. The classroom day is structured with several “brain breaks” to allow kids to get refreshed. Students practice yoga to get their bodies moving and blood flowing.
“If they get more exercise, they get more blood that goes to their brain and the better they can think,” says Evans-Baker.
Emphasis is also placed on good nutrition and making food from scratch with some locally-sourced ingredients. Some of the vegetables are grown in the school’s garden. And just like the school’s produce, the school’s population is growing. Plans are underway for the school to add another wing to accommodate growth.
