Always on eye level

The work of teachers in kindergartens and day care centres involves a wide range of different physical and psychological strains which make great demands on the health of the employees and can lead to serious illness.

Many kindergarten teachers suffer from progressive deafness, caused among others by the noise children make. The measured noise level exceeds 85 dB(A) with peaks of even 113 dB(A).

Working "on eye level” with children also puts a burden on the spine

Another problem is backache. Kindergartens are furnished with small tables and chairs for the children so that when the teachers sit with the children, they have a bent, twisted posture. Social contacts for example in play situations with children sitting at the table make these critical problems inevitable, while teachers also often have to bend down when standing.

Back problems together with painful, muscular complaints, degenerative changes to the spine with cervical/lumbar syndrome, shoulder/arm syndrome and slipped discs are therefore part and parcel of the everyday working situation facing many kindergarten teachers. Staffing departments complain about the high and long-lasting periods of absence for sick leave among kindergarten teachers.

Alternative - wiggle for the strong back

So-called active chairs can also offer an alternative for nursery school teachers, day parents or primary school teachers. They offer a lot of flexibility and they are available in different concepts. For children and young people, for example, there is also a variant for institutional and domestic use. And so that the educators use at least optically the same seat opportunity as the small ones, a variant of it is also available for the large ones. Further information under active chairs

For use in the office and when working with children

A working chair that is kind to the back makes a considerable contribution to relieving the situation: the teacher sits correctly but still on the same level with the children. The special kindergarten design lets the chair be used both in the office and at the children's low tables.

Conclusion

The kindergarten workplace could be made more staff friendly and also healthier with only minimum financial outlay. Both employee and employer would benefit from an effective contribution to improving the health situation, thus helping to reduce the number of days absent on sick leave. This would already make the investment pay off quickly. At the same time, all our children would benefit as pain-free teachers can respond differently and better to the little ones in their care rather than if they are constantly struggling with backache with all the corresponding distractions.

Back-friendly sitting should be facilitated as far as possible when working with children; this also includes dynamic sitting to a certain extent. The teacher does not have to sit straight and upright all the time, but the chair should allow the teacher to change position time and again including back-friendly upright posture, while encouraging natural movement sequences. In principle, a good chair for kindergarten teachers should fulfil vaguely tasks and requirements as a good office chair or active office chair or a good active chair. In order to work on eye level with the children, it is extremely important to be able to adjust the chairs to the individually required sitting height, which can vary between 35 and 45 cm. This kind of height adjustment is an indispensable feature which is used all the time.

Minimum requirements

• Synchronous adjustment of seat and backrest
• Opening angle (seat/backrest) of at least 110°
• Backrest with balanced support
• Large individual support of the upper iliac crest
• Individual adjustment of the backrest pressure
• Backrest height min. 45 cm
• Freedom of movement for shoulder joints and arms even when in contact with the backrest
• Anatomic seat
• Low seat suspension
• User-friendly controls
• Climate-friendly seat and backrest upholstery
• Adjustable seat height (approx. 35-45 cm)
• Suitable castors

• Sedus early bird Kindergarten

Manufacturer

Sedus Stoll AG
Christof-Stoll-Str. 1
79804 Dogern
GERMANY
Phone +49 7751/84 300
Fax +49 7751/84 61 300
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
www.sedus.com