Bald Eagle, PA: "Increasingly common for students to have sensory processing differences"

Dec 28, 2017, Lock Haven (PA) Express: New Sensory Room at Wingate Elementary helps students remain calm and focused http://www.lockhaven.com/news/community/2017/12/new-sensory-room-at-wingate-elementary-helps-students-remain-calm-and-focused/ Weisbrode, Bald Eagle Area’s occupational therapist, knows that it is increasingly common for students to have sensory processing differences. This impacts their ability to focus and to be in control of their bodies and emotions.... For example, these students may find it hard to remain seated, become distressed with loud sounds, or have a low frustration level. They may avoid touching certain textures or need to touch everything, and everyone, in the classroom. Children with sensory differences may bump and crash into people or walls, and use excessive force when using classroom tools. Classroom teachers do make needed accommodations for these children within the classroom, like implementing quiet-times or offering flexible seating options. But Weisbrode says that some students require more intensive sensory input throughout the school-day to maintain a well-regulated physical and emotional state. Students need this sensory input before they can become engaged and learn. In an effort to help these students get their sensory needs met, Weisbrode turned the empty classroom into a “Sensory Room.” ...