Calming Cafeteria Chaos
Many of you know that the lunchroom may be the one of the most hectic parts of a school day. Most classes have a very finite time allotted to get in, get served, eat and get cleaned up. Add in the...
View ArticleHelp! It’s Too Loud In Here!
You know that child. The one that lives in fear of the next fire drill and runs screaming when the alarm goes off, the one that always has her hands over her ears when walking through the halls, the...
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Preparing Your Classroom: A Few Things Your Student with Special Needs Wishes...
1. Fluorescent lights bother me! It seems like they are blinking and/or buzzing and they make for extra glare on my paper. If you have a classroom with access to natural daylight (windows or...
View ArticleBack to School Means Backpack Awareness
School is back in session and the backpacks are in full force! Remember that the 3rd Wednesday in September of each year is designated Backpack Awareness Day so this year it falls on September 16,...
View Article3 Ways to Improve Focus & Attention in the Classroom
Just in time for back to school check out these great tips on how using sensory strategies may help with attention and focus: Allow opportunities for movement! Many students today do not get enough...
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5 Tips for Art Students with Special Needs
Do you have a student with special needs in your art class? Check out these five tips from School Specialty’s Occupational Therapist Cecilia Cruse MS, OTR/L for some innovative ideas for support. 1....
View ArticleSportime Innovations Leader Passes
Barry Traub, longtime Sportime development leader and product innovator extraordinaire, has passed away after many years of battling the effects of a serious diving accident in the early 1990’s. The...
View ArticleA Harrowing Pumpkin Tale
This time of year is a sensory dream for teachers and therapists, but possibly a sensory nightmare for some of our students. Years ago in a pre-school setting, the teacher, the speech therapist and I...
View ArticleA Sense-sational Fun House
As Occupational Therapists, we often look at adapting classroom, home and community activities to promote inclusion. Since October is National Sensory Awareness Month, it makes ‘perfect sense’ to...
View ArticleHelp! My Art Student is Having a Meltdown!
Did you know that October is National Sensory Awareness Month!? It is estimated that about 5-15% of children today (even those that may not be categorized in special education) have significant enough...
View ArticleLet’s Talk Turkey
Right on the heels of Halloween comes another possible sensory challenging celebration: Thanksgiving! This relevant and timeless blog from Melanie Potock (a Speech Language Pathologist that...
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Universal Design for Learning (UDL): Healthy Changes in Educational Design...
In addition to the use of interactive technology and flexible multipositional furniture and work areas, the concept of Universal Design (UD) is becoming a key component for designing 21st Century...
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Special Needs Holiday Gift Guide
Finding that just right gift for a child with special needs can sometimes be a challenge. Standard toys and activities often have too many sequential steps to follow or require more precise fine...
View ArticleBenefits of Swinging
Some of our fondest memories are often associated with swinging. When you think of a swing you might think of child’s play, but the benefits of swinging are truly therapeutic and transcend all ages....
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Last Minute Holiday Gifts for your Artist with Special Needs
This time of year is stuffed full of arts and crafts projects from ornament making to baking, to cutting out snowmen and drawing winter wonderlands. A busy happy time for most, but for our kiddos...
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The Wonders of a Multi-Sensory Environment
The gentle hum of an illuminated water column, touch and sound wall panels, a soft lounge chair that vibrates with music. These are just some of the options available in a Multi-Sensory Room or...
View ArticleSenseAble Sensory Spaces to Fit Your Budget
We know what a challenge it can be to keep children happy, active and engaged in learning! We have compiled several simple, creative ideas for sensory solutions for everyday activities. Our...
View ArticleMore SenseAble Sensory Spaces to Fit Your Budget
In our last post we looked at simple ways to create sensory spaces including study, writing and creativity concepts. Let’s continue the journey down sensory lane with these additional options: Wiggle...
View ArticleWhat Sports Athletes Know: Chewing Makes Good Brain Sense!
Watch any of the great baseball pitchers and you will see that they usually have a wad of chewing gum in their mouth. Or how about the football players that chew on their mouth guards between plays....
View ArticleSensory Spaces – Touch-Pressure-Vibration
Hot, cold, bumpy, soft, hard, shaky? A good touch can be texture to our fingers like music is to our ears and it is at the foundation of our learning experiences. Young to senior, our fingers and our...
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