When I tried to come up with a creative name for my blog, I was stumped for hours. I kept trying to come up with some sort of IEP pun, but everything was a failure. Then, I started thinking about names that have to do with behavior, since that's the main thing I deal with in my current position....and I started thinking about some of the accommodations my kids have on a regular basis. I tossed around names like "My Sticker Chart is Full" and "I Deserve a Dojo Point for That"...and finally landed on "Tales from the Sensory Room."
Some of you might be asking, "what's a sensory room!?"
In my five years of teaching, I've taught at 3 schools and 1 summer school, and my current school is the only school with a sensory room. (So don't feel bad if you have no idea what one is!) My school is so huge that we actually have TWO sensory rooms on opposite sides of the building. A sensory room is a room where students can go to get sensory input.
But what's sensory input?
Sensory processing is the brain's ability to organize sensory information for use in daily life. You may have seen the phrase "sensory processing" in a student's psychological report, or "sensory breaks" as an accommodation in an IEP.
A child's ability to process sensory stimulus can greatly affect them academically and behaviorally. If their brain doesn't appropriately act as a sensory filter, their body can't decide if a stimulus is relevant or not, and the child will respond to ALL of the stimuli around them. Picture a child in your class who seems to be distracted by things as little as a tiny corner of a poster on the wall no longer being stuck to the wall. A child like this likely has a deficit in the area of sensory processing.
Everyone has different sensory likes and dislikes based on our individual sensory processing ability. I personally have MAJOR issues with a lot of textures and don't like eating certain foods or wearing certain types of clothing because of this. Until I became a special ed teacher, I always thought I was just weird for no reason, not that it was a sensory issue!
Some people are made uncomfortable by certain sounds, tastes, textures, lights, pressure, etc. so they try to avoid these stimuli whenever possible. Other people seek out certain stimuli such as pressure on their hands, repetitive noises, or flashing lights because they like how those stimuli make them feel.
So what exactly is in this mysterious sensory room? I'm intrigued!
The sensory rooms at my school are places where students can have sensory opportunities to help them self-regulate their emotions and bodies during the rest of the school day. In our sensory rooms we have a variety of equipment ranging from stimulating things like treadmills, trampolines, stationary bikes, and jump ropes to relaxing equipment like a tent, weighted blankets, and a resistive tunnel.
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That's a resistive tunnel! It's a stretchy tunnel that students can climb through. It provides deep pressure and heavy work for kids who seek that type of sensory input.
This is a body sock. This deep pressure item is one of my students' favorites! They get to put their entire body inside of it and penguin walk around the room or lay on the ground and make snow angels in it.
The sensory room isn't the only place in a school building where a student can take a sensory break or participate in a sensory activity. Inside my classroom we have sensory-type areas and activities for students who need a quick break, but don't need to leave the room or use equipment like a treadmill.
One of my students and my paraprofessional built a "Zen Garden" in the back of my classroom around my "Fix It" table. Stay tuned for another blog post about what my Zen Garden and Fix-It table is, and how you can build them in your classroom out of materials you already have!
