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How Sensory Processing Disorder Affects Students
Leanna Cernohous
Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota
Schools of Graduate and Professional Programs
Portfolio Entry for Wisconsin Teacher Standards Three and Five
EDUW 694 Classroom Environment
Instructor: Catherine Anderson
March 8, 2015
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Wisconsin Teaching Standard #3: Teachers understand that children learn differently. The
teacher understands how pupils differ in their approaches to learning and the barriers that impede
learning and can adapt instruction to meet the diverse needs of pupils, including those with
disabilities and exceptionalities
Knowledge: The teacher understands and can provide adaptations for areas of exceptionality in
learning, including learning disabilities, visual and perceptual difficulties, and special physical or
mental challenges.
Dispositions: The teacher believes that all children can learn at high levels and persists in helping
all children achieve success.
Performances: The teacher can identify when and how to access appropriate services or resources
to meet exceptional learning needs.
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Wisconsin Teaching Standard #5: Teachers know how to manage a classroom. The teacher
uses an understanding of individual and group motivation and behavior to create a learning
environment that encourages positive social interaction, active engagement in learning, and selfmotivation.
Knowledge: The teacher recognizes factors and situations that are likely to promote or diminish
intrinsic motivation, and knows how to help students become self-motivated.
Dispositions: The teacher is committed to the continuous development of individual students'
abilities and considers how different motivational strategies are likely to encourage this
development for each student.
Performances: The teacher analyzes the classroom environment and makes decisions and
adjustments to enhance social relationships, student motivation and engagement, and productive
work.
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Danielson’s Framework of Teaching
Domain 2: The Classroom Environment
Component: 2d Managing Student Behavior
Element: Monitoring Behavior Monitoring by teacher is subtle and preventive. Students monitor
their own and their peers’ behavior, correcting one another respectfully.
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Pre-Assessment
Self-Reflection Assessment of Classroom Environment Related to WTS 3&5
I serve as the Special Education Emotional Behavioral Disabilities teacher at St. Croix Central
Elementary (SCC). SCC is a rural elementary school, which is nearing suburb status to the Twin
Cities, located in Roberts, WI, but also serving Hammond, WI. The district is in a very agricultural
area, and has a small town ambiance. Agriculture is a large component to the local economy, and
most district residents are middle class. Despite the agricultural economy within the district,
approximately 15% of the student body comes from farms; however, the majority of the student
body is middle to lower middle class. The community as a whole exemplifies many small town
values including generosity and support to education. We have many volunteers in the school, and
after the fire at school two years ago, the amount of donations that came in were amazing. We still
had materials to use at the start of this school year. Even this last week a family had a house fire,
and just a couple hours afterward, an email arrived in our inboxes to refrain from clothing
donations because other community members had alleviated that need already. Much of the
community investment in the school is derived from the fact that many teachers and administrators
are part of this community and have/had their own children attend school in the district. Several
staff members living out of the district, including me, use the open enrollment option. There are
three separate school buildings: the elementary (houses kindergarten through fourth grade), the
middle school (grades five through eight), and high school (grades nine through twelve). Each
grade consists of approximately 80 students, with a few exceptionally large classes having 100
students, and one class of over 130 students.
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Of the approximate 80 students in each grade, on average 5% (or less) are on my caseload, which
consists of students in kindergarten through fourth grades. The chart below shows the
demographics of my caseload.
Grade
Number
of
Students
Autism
Cognitive
Disability
Emotional
Behavioral
Disability
Other
Health
Impairment
Significant
Ethnicity
Development
Delay (up to
age 6 only)
Kindergarten 3
1
0
0
0
2
3 white
First
5*
1**
2
0
1
0
4 white
1 African
American
Second
2
1***
0
1
0
0
2 white
Third
5
1
0
4
0
0
5 white
Fourth
2
1
0
1
0
0
1 white
1 African
American
TOT
1
5
2
6
1
2
1
ALS
7
5 white
2
African
American
*One student utilizes the district’s virtual education program. Beginning January 26, 2015, this student
will be on site for social skills instruction thirty minutes on each of Mondays and Wednesdays.
**This student receives five hours of support each day
***This student receives five and a half hours of support each day at a minimum, as determined by
behaviors.
The students served by my program vary in need based on age and disability. Although they may
come from varied socioeconomic backgrounds (ranging from below the poverty line to upper
middle class), the needs at school are met to the best of our ability based on each student’s
individual needs. Age and disability tend to be the governing factors for most of them. The
average support per day per student in my program is approximately 60 minutes for math and/or
reading. My kindergarteners have a higher academic support need, and they are kinesthetic
learners. Two of them qualified for special education due to a significant developmental delay. An
assessment determines if a delay is present. One of these students will be undergoing an autism
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evaluation this spring, and this student has fine and gross motor skill deficits. This particular
student does at times show an auditory preference versus the kinesthetic, but really does enjoy
classroom activities. Academic support is also the greatest support need for my first graders;
although, one of them has a higher behavioral support need. The preferred learning style is
kinesthetic, with one student being an auditory learner. Second grade brings much the same, with
kinesthetic learning preferred, but the primary support is behavioral. Both of my second graders
can have strong behaviors. One started the school year needing 60-180 extra minutes of behavioral
support during the week, and around October, the tables turned, and the other student’s behaviors
amplified. The second student’s behaviors are more extreme than the afore mentioned student’s
behaviors, and this student has taken approximately twenty additional, unscheduled hours, since
coming back from Christmas break. Of the five third graders, one has heavy academic needs, three
have behavioral needs, and one is doing so well that an academic check-in from staff while
supporting the classroom is all that is required. As for learning styles, they all would fall into the
Abstract Random category, with one of them also having some characteristics of the Concrete
Sequential style. Fourth grade has only two students. One has behavioral needs outside the
classroom, and the other has behavioral needs in the classroom in terms of self-regulation, and
social skills. Both students would fall into the Abstract Random learning style. In general, the
autistic students need a varied sensory menu, some with proprioceptive breaks scheduled into their
days, and calming strategies are an important component for three of them. One student has a
picture menu on the desk with various calming strategies that can be used. Both of the Cognitive
Disability (CD) students are very nice, social, and typically polite. They look and usually act
developmentally appropriate. They have a similar interest in farms as well. The Emotional
Behavioral Disability (EBD) students often need re-direction within the classroom, are challenged
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with managing their own thoughts and feelings, and are easily bored. These students benefit from
differentiation in the classroom as traditional assignments and/or assessments may not hold their
interest and therefore may produce a poor performance. One of my EBD students is not a
behavioral issue in school, but often is at home, but exhibits high anxiety at school. Another
special education category is Other Health Impairment (OHI), and I have one student that falls into
this category. He also has ADHD, but the medical condition takes precedence. This student is not
atypical from the rest of the class. Without the obvious difference in stature, an underlying
condition would not be suspected. Another category of students is Significant Developmental
Delay, which I mentioned with the kindergarteners. This qualification category only serves
students up to age five. This is a very diverse category as it encompasses delays in the areas of fine
and gross motor skills, academic skills, speech skills, and social skills. The students that I have are
fun-loving kindergarteners, whom are always happy to wave as you pass by, or yell out to you.
Recess is their favorite part of the school day. The students on my caseload overall are quite
diverse, even to quantify each of them into categories is challenging because they are all so unique
in who they are and in their needs.
Of all the students, my caseload is almost proportionate between students with EBD and those with
autism. Due to the complex nature of autism, I have selected it as my exceptional condition. I
have five students with autism, and they are all different. Each one of them is a different age and
grade, but each of them is also different in academic and social ability as well. I have one student
that is very nice, but going through academic challenges. One has a hard time with personal
boundaries, does really well in math, but reading can be challenging. Another student is an
average academic student, but has some extreme behaviors. A fourth student is doing really well
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academically and pretty well socially too. My last student is again a good academic student, but
sometimes struggles with learning new content, and is working on social skills, but is socially okay
most of the time.
Due to the diverse nature of the students with the same disability, I elected to look into autism as
my exceptional condition. Autism is a spectrum, and that is evident just by looking at my caseload.
I will be better able to serve each of those students individually with the knowledge that I will gain
from this research. My hopes are for one student in particular, with the extreme behavior. so that
my team and I can better understand the functions of his behaviors, and therefore, serve him better
to be more successful in school and at home.
With this diversity, my Special Education Director and Principal are both very willing to assist and
provide support as they are able. In the last few months, for example, we got a safe room (padding
is ordered for it) and a window has been put in the door. Despite the tight budgets, they still keep
the best interest of the students in mind.
The safe room is beneficial in the management of behaviors, and in keeping students and staff safe.
Managing behaviors is part of my classroom environment philosophy. One behavior that is not
tolerated in the classroom is threatening behavior. When a student throws something, or uses an
item as a weapon, that student goes to the safe room; the students are well aware of this
expectation. We, as a staff in my room, abide by the policy to not touch the students unless they
are injuring, or at risk of injuring, themselves or others. My classroom room is set up with a
teacher desk, three paraprofessional desks, three cement cubbies with five-foot walls without
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ceilings, two student computers, smart board, two rectangular tables with four chairs at each, and a
kidney-shaped table with five chairs. Seeing there is a lot of “stuff” in the classroom, we do not
allow throwing. I also have an expectation of respect, which goes three ways between staff and
students, between students and students, and between staff and staff.
When a student has a bad day, they come back the next day knowing it is a new day. Students are
not penalized the next day for the previous day’s choices. My para professionals are very good
about keeping each day new, and they are very flexible, making changes as needed to serve the
students. We all put students first. For example, the para that serves my student with the extreme
behaviors called in sick and did not get a sub. I manipulated each one of the paras’ schedules to
make the day work, and received assistance from my co-worker. Again, keeping the best interest
of the students in mind, we had a day with atypical schedules, but it went well! That is our main
goal: to have a good day with few, or no, behavioral issues.
My philosophy of classroom environment is one where students feel welcome, safe, and able to
learn so they can grow as a person and grow intellectually; and where staff feels they are also
welcome, safe and allowed to learn while growing professionally, all within a space that allows
these components to take place. I try to make the room welcoming with pleasant pictures, I turned
my desk so I am facing the door, my paraprofessionals and I always greet the students when they
enter the room, the room is neat and organized, and I never send them away (or at least not without
due cause and an explanation). I treat the students with care and understanding, beginning each
day as a new day, and I try to keep a pleasant disposition. Each one of my students has their name
on a classroom bulletin board, their birthdays are displayed in the room, and we give each one of
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them a little gift for the main holidays and their birthdays. We deliver these personally. My
program also utilizes a positive behavior reward system known as the Link system. Students start
each day with ten links, and their goal is to keep all ten until the end of the day. They may earn the
links back for exceptional choices/behavior, as long as the links were not lost for physical
aggression that resulted in physically touching another student or damaging property. The students
earn tickets and/or stickers for eight, nine, or ten link days. The tickets are saved until Store Day.
Every other Friday, the Store is open and students count their tickets, and “shop” in the store for
prizes of varying costs, sizes and values. Some students choose to save their tickets for big items.
The stickers go on their charts, and when they have accumulated 42 stickers, the student selects a
party to have, and one friend may join them. This party lasts approximately a half hour, and can be
anything from an ice cream party to a Lego party. As for the staff component, the
paraprofessionals and I have a high communication expectation, where thoughts are allowed to be
shared, expressed and received, with professionalism and tact, recognizing that constructive
criticism allows us to move forward in building a quality program. I have both given and received
constructive criticism since beginning this position in August. At this point, the paraprofessionals
openly share their thoughts and concerns with me. I value their inputs, and seek those out. Next
week, we are meeting to go over classroom placements for my students. That is something that I
cannot do by myself as some of them spend more time with certain teachers and students than I do,
and therefore, it would be foolish of me not to seek their input. My paraprofessionals are included
in many decisions, and I keep them informed as best as I can about students, my schedule, and
happenings at school. One of them made a point to tell me that she feels the communication we
have in my room is not an issue, whereas the last building she was in, it was a large issue. Having
been a substitute teacher/paraprofessional for eight years, and having held several management
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positions, I understand the significance of the communication that must take place to have a
successful team. Running a special education program is not one person’s job, but the job of many
people working together. Coincidentally, one person is responsible for the paperwork,
environment and everyone in the program (staff and students alike), and that just happens to be me.
Managing four paras in a classroom can take skill and finesse; this can be a real skill at times!
Being the new person this year, in a new job that I have not done before (I taught Agriculture to
grades 7-12), with an age group that I have not worked with before (aside from my own four kids
who range in age from two to eight) and being the youngest of everyone, we have had our
challenges. With five different, female personalities, it can be like oil and water at times, but it has
been an effort from the team that has made this work, all in the best interest of the students.
Aside from managing staff, one area where I excel in Danielson’s Domain 2 is 2e (Organizing
Physical Space). I re-arranged the classroom when I got the position, and have moved things
around a few times since then to make it a safer, more functional classroom. For instance, my desk
was in such a position that I would not always see people coming into the room, or if I had a
student in my room taking a break, I would have to be in an awkward position to see them, and I
would not be able to utilize my computer. As a result, I moved my desk. There were two, very
large book shelves along the wall when walking into my room, and one day when a
paraprofessional and I were escorting a student out of my room, he kicked up his feet and used the
book shelves as a brace to push from. He slammed the paraprofessional’s back into the cement
block wall corner that protruded just opposite the book shelves. That night after school, I unloaded
all the books and moved the eight-foot tall shelves myself, and had to re-arrange the room to find
them a different location. The tall bookshelves are now in the back corner, which really opened up
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the room and allowed for a safer exit/entrance into the classroom. I also had a wood piece (which
served as a desk) removed from one of the cubbies as a safety measure too. To increase the
ambiance, I brought in some plants and put light blue light covers over the majority of the lights.
Fluorescent lights can often be over-stimulating for many students, so by utilizing the light covers,
it softens the intensity and the blue hue has a calming effect. I asked to have the room painted light
blue, but that will wait until summer. Presently, the room is white, and we are only allowed to
have 20% of the walls covered in flammable materials per the Fire Marshall. Again, the blue is
calming, and seeing we are limited to the amount of flammable materials on the walls, I would like
to paint a tropical/oceanic underwater mural around the room, again increasing ambiance, but also
displaying key concepts of my program such as our school’s CARES program (cooperation,
acceptance, responsibility, empathy, and self-control).
As everyone has a skill area, everyone also has an area of challenge. My area of challenge in
Danielson’s Domain 2 is 2d (Managing Student Behavior). Student behavior in my room ranges
from complete compliance to times of complete defiance. Some behaviors I have not experienced
before, and am learning the best way(s) to handle those. For instance, complete defiance via
refusal to communicate and act. Just this past week, many hours were spent with one student on
one day to overcome that very situation. In the end, we were able to surmount that behavior with a
gradual introduction of academics by means of me going through one of his favorite (nonacademic) books with him. I opened the book and started to go through the pages, talking about
each one. After about four pages, he started to engage with me. After fifteen minutes, he was able
to clean up the mess he made earlier in the day, and began his academics. This student received an
autism diagnosis this past summer, and as I am looking for insight into function and management
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of behaviors that may be associated with autism and sensory needs, I chose Sensory Processing
Disorder for my exceptional condition.
Essential Question to Guide Learning Process and Growth
How can I support the sensory needs of my autistic students to be sure they receive the
necessary sensory inputs each day to reduce behaviors?
Synthesis of Research
“… the sensory issues are a serious problem in many, many cases of autism, and they make it
impossible to operate in the environment where you're supposed to be social” as stated by Temple
Grandin, world renown autism advocate and animal handling activist (‘Temple Grandin Quotes at
BrainyQuote’, n.d.). Temple Grandin was diagnosed with autism when she was two years old, and has
spoke numerous times at events from the perspective of an autistic individual. She has an impressive
repertoire of accomplishments to include a PhD in animal science, honorary degrees, she has written
several books, and has been a keynote speaker at many autism events (‘Temple Grandin’, 2015).
Autism is a diagnosis that has many facets, and each diagnosed individual may exhibit various
characteristics of the disorder. The students in my program seem to be more negatively affected by
sensory issues than the autism itself. Ms. Grandin stated it well when she explained how sensory
issues make dealing with environments extremely difficult. When a student with autism is in school,
they struggle from the social side. More often than not though, students suffer more from the sensory
side of the disorder.
A student with SPD may be recognized by hyper- or hypo-sensitivities to stimuli. When a
student has sensory needs, the student will exhibit behaviors that are sensory seeking or sensory
avoiding. Sensory seeking is when a student engages in tasks that provide stimulation to the given
sense. Sensory avoidance is when a student avoids stimulation to a given sense (If a student will not
eat gelatin due to the texture, that is avoidance). If a student is jumping up and down, pushing on their
desk, or pressing hard on a pencil, the student may have some proprioceptive sensory needs.
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One of my students, for instance, has very high proprioceptive sensory needs. When those
needs don’t get met, he becomes aggressive, disrespectful, and seemingly angry. As long as his
sensory needs are met, he is a very capable, compliant, happy individual. Early in February, he began
to exhibit some behaviors that were new this school year such as pushing, tackling, and punching
other students. When I spoke to his mom, she indicated they were seeing the same issues at home,
and stressed his sensory need for heavy work (proprioceptive inputs). As we tried various tasks to
provide the student the necessary heavy work, nothing seemed to click, and he refused to leave the
classroom for breaks, or have anything in the classroom that other students may not have. The
behaviors were escalating. I obtained a resistance bike, and since receiving that item, the behaviors
have significantly decreased. His mom informed me that he loves to ride bike. With his passion for
riding, he is taking more breaks in my classroom and getting the necessary proprioceptive sensory
input that his body needs. This is a true demonstration of how the behaviors from sensory needs
significantly surpass the behaviors of the autism disorder.
Sensory issues are often part of Sensory Processing Disorder, SPD, a disorder that is comorbid (exists in conjunction with other conditions). Many doctors and researchers are looking to
designate it as its own disorder so it can be medically diagnosed (Bunim, 2014). Looking further into
what SPD is, the symptoms, treatments, and causes, will allow teachers to better serve their students,
both on and off the autism spectrum.
SPD was formerly known by several other names such as Sensory Integration Dysfunction (SI
Dysfunction), Sensory Integration Disorder, and Dysfunction in Sensory Integration (Sensory Processing
Disorder (SPD), no date). Despite the various names, the condition remains the same. An individual with
SPD is unable to process sensory stimuli, that is picked up from the environment by the senses into
appropriate behavioral responses. The stimuli may be from any of the body’s senses. For example, if
an individual really liked loud noises and jumped up and down upon hearing that, but hated to have
his/her hands dirty and had a meltdown if that occurred, the responses are not typically appropriate
responses. There are two different senses stimulated, with two very different responses.
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An exact response or other response action does not define individuals with SPD. The
symptoms vary greatly from person to person. Individuals may respond to the same stimuli differently,
or they may respond the same (no date a). However, those individuals with similar responses to a given
stimuli may also have other sensory stimuli and/or responses that are not shared. It is not uncommon
for individuals to have significant responses to some stimuli and no, or very little, response to other
stimuli. This variation is called Hyper- and hyposensitivity. See the table for examples of each (n.d. a)
(n.d. b).
Hyposensitivity (under-responsive)
Plays roughly
Aggressive
Likes loud music
High pain tolerance
Excessive energy
Socially awkward
Hypersensitivity (over-responsive)
Very selective eater
Avoids loud noises
Avoids messy hands
Wears select clothing
Dislikes being touched
Anxious over changes in body position
Hyper- or hyposensitivity to stimuli does not just emerge without warning. Individuals with SPD are
often identified at an early age. As babies, those individuals were likely fussy, did not like change, and
were anxious. They likely exhibited atypical symptoms of varying degrees in response to a variety of
stimuli.
As atypical responses to stimuli vary across a spectrum, so can treatments. Most often,
occupational therapists are involved in producing a sensory menu/diet for a particular individual.
Treatments are individualized, and often include modifications and/or adaptations to the individual’s
environment through the use of a sensory menu/diet. A sensory menu is a list of tasks, activities, or
tools that an individual may use to gain the needed sensory input, or to handle what is perceived to be
as excessive sensory input. The menus range from a list of words on a page, to having a color coded
chart that an individual may use to correlate their feelings and needs. A number of therapies also exist
so that occupational therapists may incorporate them into an individualized treatment plan.
A sensory room in a school is one form of treatment that may be incorporated into a sensory
menu and/or treatment program. A sensory room may be set up in a variety of ways, or have different
facets to it to provide a variety of sensory inputs. There may be various stations where a student could
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receive visual, proprioceptive, or audio inputs (or many others). Some have large bubble tubes with
colored lights shining through them, some have stations where students may color over sandpaper, go
through tunnels, wear compression vests, and the list can go on. A sensory room is like an autistic
student: they come in many varieties with many different needs to serve.
Our school just had a referendum passed last November, and they will be making a space for
OT (occupational therapy) as well as sensory. I am very excited about this space as so many of my
students have sensory needs that I have a hard time meeting in my current space. Students could
easily go to the sensory room when their breaks are scheduled, and swing, bounce, climb etc. and
then listen to some music, color, or engage in some other calming sensory activity. After a few
minutes, the students could go back to class. Being that it will be an extension of the OT room, I will
not have to worry about the behaviors of other students infringing upon the needs of sensory students
being met, as is the current situation. In theory, with this increased access to sensory stimuli, the
behaviors of those students should decrease.
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A sensory room aids in treatment of the symptoms of SPD,
but the actual cause is under investigation. The SPD Foundation
noted that preliminary findings show it is hereditary, and that prenatal
and birth complications, as well as environment, are influential
factors (n.d. c) Additional research can be reviewed in Sensational
Kids: Hope and Help for Children With Sensory Processing
Disorder (New York: Perigee, 2006). An interesting study at the
University of California-San Francisco in 2014 looked at brain
waves of several groups of boys to evaluate the correlation of
autism and sensory processing disorders and when the two are
comorbid, in comparison to a group of boys of the same age that
are average. The results were interesting, and more evaluation
will go into the data collected to produce a more refined
summary of the findings (see graphic). The recent findings from UC-SF provide evidence that more
understanding of this disorder is possible. With time, we as educators should be better able to serve
our students with the knowledge we will gain as a result of the research.
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Professional Implications of Research
Better able to serve students is a phrase that I would use to summarize the professional implications
of my research. I will be better able to provide ideas of sensory breaks (sensory menus), identify
when students need sensory breaks, and identify the types of sensory breaks students need. I have
a knowledge base to provide explanations and justifications to staff and parents. My classroom
will be re-evaluated to identify the types of sensory materials I currently have, and then create a list
of items still needed to accommodate the needs of all of my students. By supporting my students’
sensory needs more effectively through identification, proper sensory breaks, and helping my
student s to recognize when they need sensory breaks, the behaviors should reduce.
Research-based Action Plan
Action Plan Summary
I will create a classroom, and instruction, that supports the sensory needs of my students to
decrease behaviors.
Anticipated Implementation
To create a classroom that supports the sensory needs of my students, I first need to evaluate the
individual sensory needs of my students, autistic and non-autistic. I will do so by observing
behaviors, speaking with classroom teachers and guardians about behaviors, and talking to the
students. Once I have acquired this knowledge, I will be better able to determine what type of
sensory needs that student has. My next step would be to create instruction on sensory needs to
educate the student in what their body is telling them and how to make it feel better. Once they
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have that understanding, we will look at various ways to meet their sensory needs. The students
will experiment with the different options to find what works best for them, and put it on their
individual sensory menu. Depending on the student, we will create a break schedule together,
leave it up to the student to come in for breaks or take them in his/her general education classroom.
The instruction that I will create will consist of pictures, tables, and examples to show the
relationship of sensory needs, sensory seeking/avoiding behaviors, and product behaviors. When it
is put into a chain of events, students are more apt to understand and appreciate how their body
works, and ultimately take ownership in meeting its needs. I will also share this information with
guardians so the sensory needs can be met at home and at school, making for a well-balanced
student. A third use of this information is for teachers. I will summarize the needs of the students,
along with seeking/avoiding behaviors of the student, appropriate responses for the teacher, and
forms of meeting the needs in the classroom, or in my room.
Anticipated Outcomes
My anticipated outcome would be that students with sensory needs would have a decrease in
behaviors because of their sensory needs being met. This will ultimately make them better students
by allowing them to be more engaged in the classroom activities, apply themselves more to their
work, and increase their social relationships due to decreased behaviors in the classroom and/or at
school. One of the most significant impacts to students with behaviors is the social component.
Children are resilient, but they do not forget. When a classmate is exhibiting unexpected
behaviors, it produces an awkward, uneasy feeling in most peers. The students often do not know
what to do, and they feel uncomfortable as a result. If you feel uncomfortable, the probability that
you would seek out the cause of that feeling is quite slim. By enabling students to manage their
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own bodies more, the number of behavioral incidences will decrease, and therefore, increase the
positive social experiences.
Another positive experience would be that of increased academic scores. Students whose sensory
needs are not being met are much less likely to pay attention and be engaged. This may have a
negative effect on their academic performance and test scores. When students focus more, engage
more, and feel better the result is often increased academic performance, including test scores.
They are better able to absorb and process the information that they are surrounded by.
Post-assessment: Reflection
What Worked (or anticipate what will work) and Why
1. Teaching students the cause and effect of sensory needs will be beneficial. They will be
able to understand why they have the feelings they do, and are less likely to worry about meeting
those needs in the presence of others, or leaving the general education classroom to meet the needs.
2. Looking into student behavior and seeking data from both guardians and staff to create a
more accurate depiction of the student’s sensory needs. When students exhibit behaviors in
multiple settings, the significance of the behavior is increased. When a particular behavior is
displayed at both home and school, it would present as a strong sensory need. By catering to the
strongest needs first, behaviors should be reduced quite rapidly. Once the more significant
behaviors are under control, it will make it easier to meet the other sensory needs that the student
may have.
What Did Not Work (or anticipate what will not work) and Why
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1. I am not sure how information sent home will be received. Some parents/guardians are
very supportive and aware of the student’s needs, where others are not. Some may feel
offended even with the mention of such information.
2. Staff education is another area that I see as a potential struggle. Unless they have a
good understanding and acceptance of individuality, they may not accept my
information as valid. There are still teachers that look at some students and say that
there is no reason that he/she needs an accommodation, or if they have one, then they
should not receive an equivalent grade to a student who does not use the
accommodation.
Insights
When we went through the course material, we talked about types of learning a student may
possess, and it was not until going through the information on SPD that I realized its value.
Students with SPD, or any sensory disorder, also have learning styles, and while sensory issues
may be present, to be able to present the information in an appropriate style to the student is
significant. Although the sensory issues may be overwhelming to them at times, if the information
is presented by means of an appropriate learning style, less effort will be needed to learn.
Therefore, increased learning will be plausible despite sensory issues.
My Next Steps
1. I will provide this information to the paraprofessionals that work in my program to
enable them to help me identify students with sensory needs.
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2. I may approach my Special Education Director and/or Principal about
presenting this information to the rest of the faculty at our next professional
development day, providing an example of pro-prioceptive brain breaks (Artifact B) and
the handout I developed on SPD (Artifact C).
WTS Five
Examples of Artifacts
Artifact A
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WTS Five
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Artifact B
Brain Break #1: Yoga Stretch
Standing Forward Bend
Materials:
None!
Approximate Time: 5 seconds to several minutes
Grade Level:
All
Instructions: 1. Place feet together
2. Bend down to touch your toes (keep legs straight)
3. With both hands, reach to your left ankle
4. Hold for 5 seconds
5. Slowly stand back up
6. Bend down to touch your toes (keep your legs straight)
7. With both hands, reach to your right ankle
8. Hold for 5 seconds
9. Slowly stand back up
10. Playing yoga music (or other form of relaxing sound) would be a nice touch
(Repeat as needed/wanted)
Purpose: Many students need proprioceptive inputs (a physical/heavy work-type activity). Doing yoga
stretches is a way for students to get those inputs, without having to leave the classroom. This simple
stretch is not complicated and is suitable for students of all ages. The crossing of the center of the body
also occurs, making the brain connections.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Brain Break #2: Windmill
Materials:
None!
Approximate Time: 10 seconds to several minutes
Grade Level:
All
Instructions: 1. Space students out so they can stretch out their arms and not touch someone
2. Place feet square below shoulders
3. Stretch arms out to sides
4. Reach right hand down to left ankle, keeping left arm straight
5. Return to starting position with arms out stretched; do not move feet.
6. Reach left hand down to right ankle, keeping right arm straight
7. Return to starting position, do not move feet
8. Repeat as needed/wanted
9. May play fun music for steps to mesh with the beat, or changes of the music
Purpose: Many students need pro-prioceptive inputs (a physical/heavy work-type activity). Doing the
windmill is a way for students to get those inputs, without having to leave the classroom. This simple
stretch/exercise is not complicated and is suitable for students of all ages, and they are crossing their
center! As there are no materials needed, this is an option that is always available.
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Artifact C
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WTS Five
Artifact C (continued)
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Bibliography
Bunim, J. (2014) Kids with Autism, Sensory Processing Disorders Show Brain Wiring Differences | UC San
Francisco, University of California San Francisco. Available at:
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‘Sensory Motor Activities | Promoting The Development of Motor Skills’ (no date). Brain Balance
Achievement Centers. Available at: http://www.brainbalancecenters.com/ourprogram/integrated-approach/sensory-motor/ (Accessed: 16 February 2015).
‘Sensory Processing Disorder: Causes, Symptoms, and Treatment’ (no date). WebMD. Available at:
http://www.webmd.com/parenting/sensory-processing-disorder (Accessed: 16 February 2015).
Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD) (no date). Available at: http://www.sensory-processing-disorder.com/
(Accessed: 16 February 2015).
‘Temple Grandin Quotes at BrainyQuote’ (no date). BrainyQuote. Available at:
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(Accessed: 16 February 2015).
"Temple Grandin Quotes." BrainyQuote. Xplore. Web. 28 Feb. 2015.
"Sensory Processing Disorder Foundation | Research, Education and Advocacy." Sensory Processing
Disorder Foundation | Research, Education and Advocacy. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Feb. 2015.
Beath & Park. Making Sense of Sensory Behaviour. Children with Disabilities Team. Oxgang Road
Grangemouth. 16 Feb 2015.
Blengs, Diane. Sensory Diet In The Classroom. 1st ed. Chelsea: Diane Blengs. Web. Feb. 2015.
www.village-therapy.com/pdf/Sensory_Menu.pdf