Creating Sensory Smart Classrooms – Merging Sensory Processing
and Universal Design
Presented at: NJOTA 39th Annual Conference “Shift Happens: Implications for OT Practice”
Sunday October 27, 2013
Andrea Carr Tyszka, MS, OTR/L, SIPT
Salus University, Occupational Therapy Department, College of Education & Rehabilitation
Karen Amariti MS, OTR/L - Colleen Carroll MS, OTR/L – Cynthia Abbott-Gaffney, MA, OTR/L, CBIT
Haddonfield School District
Background Information
Incidence:
 Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD): 5-13% of the typically developing
Kindergarten aged population (Ahn, Miller, Milberger & McIntosh, 2004).
 Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD): 8% in children and youth
(ADHD, 2011).
 Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD): In 2008, 1 in 88 children, 23% increase
over 2006 data; 78% increase over 2002 data. (Centers for Disease Control
[CDC], 2012).
SPD: a taxonomy that encompasses sensory modulation disorder, sensory-based motor
disorder and sensory discrimination disorder. This taxonomy was developed for the
inclusion in several diagnostic manuals. It is rooted in the historical work of Ayres, but also
includes other contemporary models of sensory processing (Lane, Roley & Champagne,
2014).
ADHD: defined as “ a specific developmental disorder of both children and adults
that is comprised of deficits in sustained attention, impulse control, and the ability
to regulate activity level to fit situational demands” (Hanschu, 1997, p.6).
ASD: “Autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) are a group of developmental disabilities
characterized by impairments in social interaction and communication and by
restricted, repetitive, and stereotyped patterns of behavior” (CDC, para. 1).
UD Principles of Learning:
 Principle 1: Equitable use
 Principle 2: Flexibility in use
 Principle 3: Simple and intuitive
 Principle 4: Perceptible information
 Principle 5: Tolerance for error
 Principle 6: Low physical effort
 Principle 7: Size and space for approach and use
 Principle 8: A community of learners
 Principle 9: Instructional climate
Application to Practice
Facilitating occupational performance for children with SPD, ADHD, ASD can be
accomplished in a non-stigmatizing and inclusive manner by helping teachers to
create learning environments that are more sensory friendly for all students,
regardless of diagnosis.
We can accomplish this by incorporating principles of universal design for learning,
classroom wide environmental changes, & sensory based learning strategies.
Classroom Wide Environmental Changes (Hanschu, 1997):
 Modify Time
 Modify Space
 Modify Activity
 Modify Interactions
Curriculum Based Activity Idea:
 Pumpkin smash roll – paper pumpkins are spaced out along the floor
children must adjust the direction they are rolling in order to “smash” the
pumpkins (vestibular) can also incorporate academic goals e.g. upper and
lower case letter discrimination.
Movement Based Learning Idea:
 Divide the class into two groups. Give each student an index card. Half the
students get review questions on their card, the other half get corresponding
review answers on their card. Students travel around the room finding the
appropriate question/answer match. All matched students share aloud their
review questions and answers with the group.
Specific Program Ordering Information
Brain Gym Ordering Info:
Hands On: How to Use Brain Gym in the Classroom by Isabel Cohn & Marcelle
Goldsmith
http://www.braingym.com
Drive Thru Menu Ordering Info:
For information on products and conferences by Tere Bowen-Irish, OTR/L
http://allthepossibilitiesinc.com
How Does Your Engine Run Ordering Info:
The Alert Program published by TherapyWorks, Inc.
Take 5: Staying Alert at Home and at School by Mary Sue Williams and Sherry
Shellenberger
http://www.alertprogram.com/index.php
Kinesthetic Classroom Ordering Info:
The Kinesthetic Classroom by Traci Lengel and Mike Kuczala
http://info2.thertc.net/blog-0/bid/316209/The-RTC-Difference-Movement-in-theClassroom
PowerPoint & Handout
References
ADHD: Clinical Practice Guideline for the Diagnosis, Evaluation, and Treatment of
Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder in Children and Adolescents
Subcommittee on Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, Steering
Committee on Quality Improvement and Management Pediatrics 2011: 128;
1007; originally published online October 16, 2011; DO: 10.1542/peds.20112654
Ahn, R., Miller, L., Milberger, S., McIntosh, D. (2004). Prevalence of parents’
perceptions of sensory processing disorders among kindergarten children.
American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 58(3), 287-293.
American Occupational Therapy Association. (2008). Occupational therapy practice
framework: Domain and process (2nd ed.). American Journal of Occupational
Therapy, 62, 625-683.
Bowen-Irish, T. (2011). Practical strategies for occupational therapists to collaborate
and integrate intervention as integral school team member: Resource
handbook. Bellevue: Bureau of Education and Research.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). (2012, March, 30). Prevalence of
autism spectrum disorders – Autism and Developmental Disabilities
Monitoring Network, 14 sites, Unites States, 2008. Morbidity and Mortality
Weekly Reports (MMWR) Surveillance Summary, 61(3), 1-19. Retrieved from
http: //www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22456193
Cohen; I. & Goldsmith, M. (2003) Hands on: How to use brain gym in the classroom.
Ventura: Edu-Kinesthetics, Inc.
Hannaford, C. (1995). Smart moves: Why learning is not all in your head. Arlington:
Great Ocean Publishers.
Hanschu, B. (1997). Autism and attention deficit disorder/hyperactivity: A sensory
perspective. Phoenix: Developmental Concepts.
Lane, S., Roley, S., & Champagne, T. (2014). Sensory Integration and Processing. In
B. Schell, G. Gillen, & M. Scaffa (Eds.). Willard & Spackman's Occupational
Therapy 12th ed. (816-868). Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.
Lengel, T. & Kuczala, M. (2010). The kinesthetic classroom: Teaching and learning
through movement. Thousand Oaks: Corwin.
NC State University Disability Services Office Universal Design. Retrieved
September 14, 2013, from http://dso.dasa.ncsu.edu/universal-design
Williams, M. S. & Shellenberger, S. (1996). How does your engine run: A leader’s
guide to The Alert Program for self-regulation. Albuquerque: TherapyWorks,
Inc.