Business Letter from Mrs. Unger's RRW Class

Please enjoy the business letter written by students in Mrs. Unger's class.  RRW - Real World Wabash focuses on literacy instruction through project based learning.  This semester the project is to find support (in dollars) from local business partners to redesign the RRW classroom.  Groups have researched learning environments, created business plans, and are now approaching businesses for support.

This business letter highlights the entire project, and illustrates the learning and creativity of our students.

Traditional classrooms are not ideal for some students, so a select group of sixth grade students from Wabash Middle School decided to make our classroom the exact opposite of orthodox.  

Dear Business Owner:

Research shows that classroom designs need to be reevaluated. The main ideas that must be considered when evaluating classroom design include focus, guide and discussion. New York reporter Susan Saulny states, “Students lose potential if they are stuck behind desks all day.”  Saulny also believes that furniture within the classroom needs to be taken seriously.  Kids will burn more calories by standing and there has been some confirmation that standing has affected the performance of children within classrooms.  Many people have a habit of sitting at their workplace, but standing is much better.  We have decided that we want the freshest, newest furniture by utilizing standing tables.   

Many colleges and universities make designs for classrooms and some of these designs are based on floor space and ceiling space. We believe that the actual furniture used in the classroom is the most important aspect in creating a new design. “Evidence suggests that the classroom environment limits cognitive functioning, deters creativity and collaboration , and perpetuates negative health habits,” says Martin Keen, a furniture maker from Rhode Island.  While classrooms have evolved a lot recently with introduction of new technology and new classroom designs, we want to evolve it with fun to ensure that there are no limits on cognitive functioning and creativity.

We believe that having standing tables in the classroom will help students relax during tests, promote learning, give students a safe environment, create more room in the class, and develop a sense of being part of a small community.  It is our hope that you will be able to make a monetary contribution toward the purchase of these standing tables for our classroom. Our classmates don’t want to learn another second with these boring, hard chairs.  

Our group has narrowed down the choices to three standing tables that would be brilliant to put in our classroom. The 46” tall table is $155.88. The 42” standing table costs $156.00. Finally, the third standing table is $99.00 and stands 36”.  Each table fits 3 kids comfortably. Any of these would work stupendously. If you choose to donate money for a standing table, our group will put your logo onto the table top.      

It would be very nice if we could make an appointment with you at Ford Meter Box. We hope the dates of the appointment would be between September 23rd - 28th.  The time slots we are available are: 7:45 a.m. Monday-Friday, 10:30-11:00 Monday-Friday, and 4:00-5:00 Monday-Friday.

We hope you will consider supporting our idea because Eric Seamen, a reporter for the Wabash Plain Dealer, is going to write an article about our project. Our group has done a lot of writing and research, and we hope with all of our hearts that it will pay off.  We thank you in advance for your time and consideration.

We look forward to meeting with you!

Truthfully,

Maggie France, Madison Bartoo, Brooke Bowling, Sheldon Jones, Curtis Johnson, Taliyah Hunt, Charlie Smith, and Braden Schuler