Students standing up at North Liberty school's desks

Sometimes Kobe Burns likes to stand when he's working on school work. Other times he sits. And then there are times he just wants to swing his feet back and forth while he figures out the answer to a problem.

Luckily, all three options are OK in his classroom at Garner Elementary School.

Kobe, 10, is a fifth-grader at the new school, which uses the latest piece of education furniture – stand-up desks.

Principal Mindy Paulsen first learned of the innovative teaching tool two years ago from story on “ABC World News.” The desks are taller than traditional school desks, allowing students to stand and complete their work without hunching over. Those who rather sit can do so on the height-adjustable stool.

The desks even include a movable footrest, which students can swing back-and-forth without disturbing the class.

“The teacher in the story said she found that the desks keep kids active and more focused,” Paulsen said.

Then principal at Roosevelt Elementary School, Paulsen asked the Parent Teacher Organization to purchase three desks. They were a hit with students, so much so that when it was time to order furniture for Garner, Paulsen knew what she wanted.

“I think they're cool,” said sixth-grader Lulu Berryman, 11. “I like that it has a bar we can swing and stuff.”

The concept is simple. Students have energy. When they can't find an outlet for that energy during the school day, their learning suffers.

The desks first appeared on the education scene in 2007. Abby Brown, a sixth-grade teacher at Marine Elementary School in Minnesota, saw how sitting all day was a struggle for some of her students. Unable to find a workstation that met their needs, she designed her own. Partnering with Sunway Inc. in Wisconsin, Brown unknowingly launched a movement that is making its way throughout the country's schools.

“I like the desks,” sixth-grader Jadyn Collins, 11, said. “You have options of sitting down or standing up.”

Not that there hasn't been some adjustments.

The storage area underneath the desks is not as large as those in traditional desks. The footrests, which are supposed to be silent, tend to squeak after prolonged use. And the stools, while cool, aren't as comfortable as chairs.

“I wish they were softer,” Laudia Martinez, 11, said.

The sixth-grader often drapes her jacket over the stool for extra cushioning.

Derek Smith, also an 11-year-old sixth-grader, wishes the stools had backs – although he said leaning against the desk behind him works, too.

Still when asked to raise their hands if they like the new desks, only two students in Sabrina Whitlock's class kept their hands lowered.

“The desks have been an adjustment for me, but they are working out well,” said Whitlock, a fifth and sixth grade teacher. “We have only been in school for one week, but I am seeing increased time on task from students as compared to previous years.”

Whitlock is also able to work with her students at a normal height level – no more bending over or kneeling down to help.

Paulsen chose the school's oldest students as the group to use the new desks to spotlight their place in the school hierarchy.

“We recognize that our students, especially our sixth-graders, are growing up,” she said. “The desks are a way to acknowledge their different needs.”

It's something younger students can look forward to, like choosing where to sit at lunch, Paulsen added.

Several school furniture companies now offer stand-up desks. Paulsen purchased Garner's through Iowa Prison Industries. The company worked up its own design and has just started showing it to other schools in the state.

“It's an interesting idea, something I would have liked when I was in school,” said Michael O'Brien, Iowa Prison Industries' Eastern Iowa sales representative. “I think the Iowa City schools will be a good test for them. I'm interested to see what will be said at the end of the year.”

He's not the only one. Testing related to the health and academic advantages of the desks, including increased caloric burn, the ability to keep the body and mind awake, and the potential for children exhibiting ADHD, is in progress at the University of Minnesota.

But Kobe doesn't care about that.

“It's better than sitting on the floor,” he said.