• Head and Neck
• Back
• Arms and Hands
• Knees and Feet

Head and Neck

The Ideal:

• The eyes should be level with the top of the screen. You should be able to see the top of the monitor.

  Looking slightly downward is better than looking up. It helps prevent eyestrain, because more of the surface of the eye is covered by the eyelid.

  This position also helps prevent neck and shoulder strain caused by leaning the head back.

• The head should be centered in the middle of the shoulders.
• The chair should be adjustable in height.

Tip

With young children it is more probable that the monitor will be too high than too low. A whole host of common household objects can be used as booster chairs, to raise the eyelevel of the user. If the monitor is too low the choice is to raise the monitor by placing it on something strong and stable or lowering the chair, which might require readjustment of other body positions and equipment.

Some common items to use to raise eye level:

• Phone books
• Booster chairs
• Cushions

Back

The ideal

• Hips should be well back in the chair
• Body should be leaning slightly forward no more than 15 degrees from straight up.
• The chair should support the upper and lower back and be adjustable
• The back should rest against the back of the chair without compressing the back of the knees or straightening the legs.

Tip

Many chairs are too deep for young children to acheive the correct hip and knee position. Use cushions to support the back. Lumbar supports may also be needed.

Some common items to use for backrests:

• Pieces of foam
• Cushions or pillows
• Folded blankets

Some common items to use for lumbar support:

• Rolled up towel
• Rolled up sweater or sweat shirt
• A bike bag (pictured to the left) stuffed with rags or paper
• A small backpack

Arms and Hands

The ideal

• The wrists should be flat and parrallel to the keyboard
• Elbows should be at a 90 degree angle or more

Tip

Wrists should be paralel to the keyboard, but do not necessarily have to be parallel to the floor. If the forearms are bent upward because the table is too high, tip the keyboard up so that the keyboard is at the same angle to the floor as the forearms. Most keyboards have feet that can be adjusted, however more adjustment may be necessary. Many common household items can be used to prop up a keyboard, but make sure that the keyboard remains stable.

Common items to use to adjust keyboard angle:

• Books
• Pieces of foam
• Note pads

Knees and Feet

The ideal

• The thighs should slope gently downward
• Knees bent at an angle of 90 degrees
• The feet should be able to rest flat on the floor
• Legs should be able to move freely

Tip

Althought he ideal position is with the feet flat on the floor and knees bent at a 90 degree angle, no one position should be held for very long. The legs should not be restrained from moving. Footrests can be used to bring the knees into the proper position and support the feet. It is very important that the legs be supported to keep the nerves and blood vessels in the back of the legs from being compressed. however, footrests can limit the movement of the legs, so they should be used only if the workstation cannot be adjusted for the feet to be flat on the floor.

Common items to use as foot rests:

• Sturdy boxes
• Bundles of newspapers
• Phone books