Gym Mat
A gym mat is a very versatile sensory tool. It can be use for
practicing yoga or s'cool moves, made into an awesome tunnel, or used to block
off an area that is too distracting or a child who is too distractable.
Music
I have only started using music frequently in my classroom over
the past couple years. Last year I used it for a student who would continually
chatter during group work. We felt he was doing this because he was trying to
cancel out some of the other classroom noises and it was like he was creating
his own "white noise". Although this chattering may have been calming
to him it was awful for the rest of us to endure! Playing steady, calming music
through headphones on low enough volume that it gave input but he could still
hear me teach did the trick. I also use this calming music for kids whose
engines are too revved up or for a calming break between activities.
Light Covers
A lot of my students are sensitive to the awful
fluorescent lights that every school seems to have. In my little classroom I am
able to switch off one of the light switches and my room is still lit fine
throughout. However, in some of the bigger rooms switching off lights means a
whole section of the room is dark. These blue light covers are perfect for
this. Another option if you can get maintenance to do it is taking out some of
the bulbs from each of your lights. I have one student who is still sensitive
and he is allowed to wear a baseball cap all day.
Noise-Cancelling/Reducing
Headphones
School can be a noisy place! Especially during
assemblies or for my students with autism who are super sensitive to noise. Over
the years I have had students who were "screamers" and I wish I would
have had a set of noise-cancelling headphones for the whole class (including
me!).
Tent
It is common for kids with sensory issues to
need a safe place to "escape" from the stressful school environment.
Scheduling time for a student to have a tent break is a great way to provide a
place for this escape. The tent can block out all of the visual stimulation of
the classroom. I have
had several students who were not quite ready for the classroom due to their
sensory defensiveness. Typically these kiddos were kindergarteners with autism
who had had limited experiences outside of their own homes. For these students,
I allowed them use a tent within my classroom. At first, they would spend a lot
of the day within the tent coping with the new environment. The tent was a safe
place for them in the stressful new environment. Gradually we worked on getting
them more accustomed to us (either by sharing
the tent with them for play activities) or by setting up opportunities that
were fun and not threatening outside of the tent. This eventually led to less
and less time in the tent and eventually full inclusion within our classroom.
1 comment:
Thanks for sharing these resources.
Post a Comment