As the hands on the clock slowly tick toward noon, stomachs grumble, legs stir underneath desks, and eyes stray from the whiteboard to watch every minute go by. Kids lose focus from the day’s lesson plan and start dreaming about what’s for lunch and the friends they get to hang out with in the hour of freedom and fun to come.
We can all relate to this nostalgic feeling of desperately waiting for lunch or snack time at school. For millions of kids around the world, lunch is one of their favorite parts of the school day. Lunchtime serves as an opportunity for social connection, storytelling, decompression, play, and nourishment to fuel a long school day. During lunch, the silence of the classroom is replaced with effervescent chatter and giggles. Due to the mental and physical significance of mealtime, one could argue that lunch is just as important as the academic portion of the school day!
“Lunchtime is such an important time of day for students. It gives them an opportunity to socialize with peers, take a break from academics, and fuel their bodies.” – Kristie, a teacher in Ohio
For children that are disabled, eating at school is often a much different experience than the one described above. Instead of an hour of freedom, social connection, and joy, lunchtime can be an isolating experience being fed by an aide in a different room from their peers, with no sense of independence or control. There is little opportunity for social connection with friends and the vital time for bonding is virtually non-existent. – this type of environment is not okay!
Independent Eating is Possible for Students
So, what is the solution? For students who have a condition that impacts their upper extremities, they may want to explore assistive technologies and adaptive eating devices. One example is Obi Robot, a feeding device which allows users to eat with independence and ease! There are many school-age individuals from elementary level to university who are using Obi to eat on their own at school! 
Kristie explains how an eating assistive device, Obi, positively impacted one of her students: “We had a student that was eating the same meal daily from the school lunch options because it was the only one he was able to feed himself with a fork. Once he started using the Obi, it opened up possibilities of so many other foods he could feed himself, as he could eat foods with a spoon independently. He was especially excited about eating ice cream with it!”
Another student, Tenley, was never able to enjoy the social experience of mealtime at school until she started using Obi. Since she needs feeding assistance, Tenley was always pulled to another room for her lunch period and ate with a teacher or an aide. However, this all changed when her parents learned about Obi, an independent eating device! Tenley now uses her Obi every day at school and is finally able to enjoy eating with independence amongst all her friends!
“It has really empowered her and changed her as a person… with this [device] she’s in the lunch room visiting with her peers, eating all the same foods they’re eating at her own pace.”
Obi is even being used by college-age students in their university cafeterias.
Wright State University in Ohio offers their students who need feeding assistance an “Obi Robot Program” where they can ask to eat with an Obi that is set up by a staff member.
A Wright State University student stated her thoughts about using Obi in the cafeteria: “It was like, ‘Hey, I might be able to use this to go eat with my friends and not have to rely on other people to help feed me.’” Obi allows college-age students to network and enjoy meals with professors, potential employers, or friends!
Simple, Easy & Intuitive for All
Obi is super simple, intuitive, and easy to set up and use. Teachers, parents, and students are able to quickly set up Obi so that the user can begin their meal within minutes!
“We have had a great experience using Obi with some of the students in our district. It was very easy for them to learn how to use and helped them to be more independent during their lunch period,” says school teacher, Kristie.
“One of our students uses a communication device, and he found that using the Obi kept his hands free and clean to communicate with others using his device while eating. One of our high school students that has been using the Obi didn’t have to rely on a staff member to stand beside her to feed her bites of food, and she appreciated the independence she had while using the Obi for lunch.”
Funding an Obi Robot for School
A school’s special education or assistive technology department may have funds to help purchase an Obi for students. Obi could also be covered by an IEP or even the student’s health insurance. The Customer Experience Team at Obi can help answer any questions related to funding for Obi!
Lunchtime should be equally enjoyable for all students, no matter what! Obi makes it possible for those with upper extremity limitations. Curious if Obi is right for you or a student? Inquire about our free trial program!
Let’s make lunchtime fun, joyous, AND independent again for ALL!
