Autism and Kids in Motion! Sensory Integration Disorder
Help me give my students trampolines to get their energy out, weighted puppies to cuddle and help them calm down, and chew tubes to meet their oral sensory needs.
$344 goal
Hooray! This project is fully funded
Hooray! This project is fully funded
Celebrating Hispanic & Latinx Heritage Month
This project is a part of the Hispanic & Latinx Heritage Month celebration because
it supports a Latino teacher or a school where the majority of students are Latino.
Teaching is my passion. I am a second-year teacher and I am loving it! My students have autism, intellectual disabilities, and sensory integration disorder. They attend a public day school for students with autism in Lawrence, MA. Our school utilizes the strategies of Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) and the values of the University of North Carolina TEACCH Autism Program. I have six students in my class: four boys and two girls. They are in second, third, and fourth grade. More than three-quarters of my students come from a low-income household. One hundred percent of my students receive free breakfast and lunch.
According to Autism Speaks, 1 in 68 children in the United States has autism.
The prevalence is 1 in 42 for boys and 1 in 189 for girls. Autism is one of the fastest-growing developmental disorders in the U.S. There is no medical detection or cure for autism.
My Project
The classroom can be challenging for students with sensory integration disorder (SD). My students struggle with vestibular dysfunction—this impacts how they process movement. It is my goal to create an environment where my students feel safe and calm. Part of creating this environment is having a sensory space that my students can either get their wiggles out or calm down as they need to.
Students with the vestibular-type sensory integration dysfunction are either under- or over-responsive to movement, which will impact their overall activity.
If they are under-responsive to vestibular input, they may be able to tolerate a lot of movement before it registers; therefore, their body may be in constant motion.
If they are over-responsive, or hypersensitive, to vestibular input, they may not be able to handle movement at all! Because of this difficulty, they may avoid activities that challenge their balance and coordination.
My students benefit from movement breaks throughout their day to help them either calm down when they are extra wiggly or get energized when they are feeling tired. The weighted puppies will help my little friends who need to have the input of the deep tactile pressure while they are working to help them stay calm and focused. The chewies help them meet their oral sensory needs. All of these items will help my sensory seekers stay calm and focused throughout their day.
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As a teacher-founded nonprofit, we're trusted by thousands of teachers and supporters across the country. This classroom request for funding was created by Ms. Kelleher and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.