My special needs students (Kindergarten through 5th grade) need sensory equipment to help them succeed in school! We need a tunnel for crawling activities, a therapy mat and other strengthening materials.
Most of the children at my school live in the public housing project in the neighborhood.
It is a Title 1 school with a special needs population of approximately 30%. These children face such challenges as learning disabilities, speech and language disorders and emotional disturbances.
Most of the children on my caseload have sensory regulation problems. A child faced with this challenge has difficulty focusing in the classroom and may become extremely distracted by the sound of another child’s pencil writing or seeing a car pass outside the classroom window. A child with sensory regulation problems may become extremely irritable when another child bumps into him/her in line, or not feel it at all! Sensory regulation problems can be an enormous impediment to learning and academic success.
My Project
These resources will help my students better regulate themselves during school, so that they can pay attention and learn in the classroom. For example, children whose systems that are over stimulated by lights, sounds, and touch can become much calmer and more prepared to learn when they do rolling activities on mats, and crawling activities through tunnels. Children whose systems are under active and need a "jump start" will benefit from a working with Shape Shifters resistive Lycra material to increase their energy level.
Special needs children literally have "special" needs...they often require different and more preparation before academic instruction to facilitate their learning process.
As an occupational therapist, it is my job to make sure that my students have the tools they need to become successful learners in the classroom. As a donor to this project, you could improve the confidence and academic success of at least 40 children who are in desperate need of help to reach their potential. Please help us!
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