Technology anxiety is real amongst children and young people who face returning to the classroom after time spent in home learning during the lockdowns.

During this time, most children have been learning online or through an increased amount of screen time rather than face-to-face. For children with anxiety or worries about the problems in the world, this has often been less stressful than engaging in activities in the real world.

But what about when they return to face-to-face learning? And what is technology anxiety, anyway?

Fear of being separated from technology

Technology anxiety or digital anxiety can occur in a couple of different ways. It can be caused by separation from a digital device, or it can be caused by fear of technology.

In kids with technology anxiety, it occurs when they are separated from a favourite device.

Just as a stuffed toy or blanket might provide a sense of comfort and security for young children, digital devices can help an older child or young person feel secure.

But at what cost?

The negative effects of technology on mental health

According to the International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction, attachment to technology can lead to low levels of self-motivation, emotional intelligence, and empathy among young people. It is also a factor in ADHD, depression, and the inability to form stable friendships.

Mental health concerns in the digital age have only increased during a pandemic when children are spending far more time in front of screens than they have in the past, and hospitals in Canada have reported a 100% increase in mental health admissions for young people as a direct result of the pandemic.

Signs of technology addiction

Technology anxiety is often related to technology addiction and parents and carers can often spot the signs when they know what to look for:

· A lack of interest in other activities, even things the child used to enjoy in the past

· A single-minded focus that claims all of their attention when they are using their devices

· Tantrums, aggression, meltdowns or bad behaviour when unable to access their devices

· Constant discussion of screen time and things they have seen or done online

· Withdrawal symptoms including distress or anxiety that are relieved once they can again access their devices

Screen time and anxiety: Returning to the classroom may be a trigger

As lockdowns in some parts of the world begin to lift, children are facing anxiety over returning to the classroom and leaving behind the perceived safety of home and favourite devices.

So what can parents do to help their kids manage their technology-related anxiety during these transition times?

How to help reduce anxiety and screen time?

It’s important to note that changes you make need to be gradual rather than all at once. Gradual changes will help kids to adjust over time rather than sudden changes which may increase anxiety. Check out these tips for managing anxiety and reducing screen time.

1. Set boundaries

If you haven’t put boundaries in place, it’s a good time to set some. They could include daily screen time limits or no-go zones (such as the bedroom or bathroom) with digital devices.

2. Create a list of priorities

Make a hierarchy of priorities when it comes to screen time. These are things that must be done before screen time happens, such as chores or music practice.

3. Segment screen time into priorities

Set a limit on individual screen time in favour of communal screen time where other members of the family are interacting. Communal screen time takes priority over individual screen time.

4. Adjust the content rather than restricting usage

Rather than placing strict time limits on screen use, you can allow educational content to take priority over games or entertainment.

5. Replace screen time with together time

Children and even teens crave connection and togetherness, even if they won’t admit it. Find some fun things to do with your kids. Get outdoors and plant a garden together. Go for a walk or a swim or a visit to a park. Volunteer at a charity or get involved in a sport you’ve always wanted to try.

Kids will remember the meaningful things you did together, not the hours they spent on their screens, so don’t be afraid to persist if they grumble at first. Whatever you do, stick at it until it becomes a regular part of your routine and in time, kids won’t even notice that it has taken the place of time they used to spend on their devices.

6. Be ready to listen & quick to offer encouragement

Kids will often use screen time as an escape from the real world and also as a way to validate their self-worth. Games with awards and trophies are popular, as are endless selfies and “likes” on social channels. The reward centre of the brain is gratified by these things, but when they don’t work out, it can be devastating.

A listening ear and encouragement from someone in the real world are so important for grounding and validation. Be ready to listen without judgment and quick to offer encouragement and praise for jobs well done.

7. Model good habits yourself

Kids see what we do and follow our example. If you want your kids to spend time getting outside or getting fit, lead the way. If you want to spend more time interacting as a family at dinner time, turn off the TV or put your phone aside and ask everyone else to do the same. They are small things, but by showing a good example, you can help your kids to see the beneficial alternatives to screen time.

Small changes make a big difference for kids with technology anxiety

It’s the small things that make the biggest difference. By making small changes over time, you’ll help your kids to become less dependent on technology and more resilient in a world that demands we pay a lot of attention to technology.

Teachers, childcare workers and other professionals have long known that some children cannot tolerate experiences that other children don’t even notice. Certain sounds, a noisy environment, some visual elements or even being touched can trigger a meltdown that is exhausting for everyone. In addition, a child that is constantly triggered by various sensory experiences is not learning as they should because they are constantly in fight-or-flight mode. This has caused many professionals a great deal of concern but it wasn’t until recently that we began to understand more about why these children need sensory-friendly classrooms to achieve the best learning outcomes.

Brain Research Reveals Clues

Children with Sensory Processing Disorder share many characteristics with those on the autism spectrum. In fact, there has long been a debate about whether SPD should be classified under the umbrella of autism, and professional opinion has remained divided until recent research revealed some distinct differences in brain structure.

Comparing Brain Structure in Kids with Autism and SPD

Elysa Marco and associates, researchers at the University of California, San Francisco, conducted a study that compared the brain structures of boys with an autism diagnosis, those with a sensory processing disorder diagnosis and those that were developing normally. They found a quantifiable difference between the boys with an SPD diagnosis when compared to those with typical development, proving that the disorder is rooted in biological factors. The questions then turned to how the brains of these children compared with those that have other neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism.

Sensory Similarities between Autism and Sensory Processing Disorder

The research examined the structural connectivity in areas of the brain that process sensory stimuli and found decreased connectivity in these areas in the boys with autism as well as those with SPD. However, there was a divergence when it came to the areas of the brain responsible for social-emotional processing. The boys with autism showed decreased connectivity in these areas, while those with SPD did not. Another crucial difference between the two diagnoses was the lack of repetitive behaviours in the SPD group, along with other distinctive indicators of autism.

It’s not just Theory

This finding translates into the classroom as well. Children with SPD actually want social and emotional connections but may find the sensory stimulation of connection overwhelming. Children with autism have less interest in social and emotional connections and may struggle to form friendships or interact in socially acceptable ways with peers.

How a Sensory-Friendly Classroom Fills the Gap

As many teachers and professionals know, children with SPD and autism struggle to cope with sensory overload or specific sensory triggers. When teachers and professionals get the balance right, the classroom can become a safe place where triggers are less likely to occur. When these kids feel safe, they can relax and begin to learn rather than being in a constant state of fight-or-flight, living in fear of a new experience or a reaction to one.

Tips for Creating Sensory-Friendly Classrooms

As teachers, parents and professionals know, children with sensory processing issues do best when they know what to expect and their environment is comfortable. Keep these tips in mind to create a sensory-friendly classroom that is a safe space for students that need extra help in this area.

1. Create daily routines and stick to them
2. Use visual cues to help students know what is coming next
3. Allow time for sensory breaks to prevent sensory overwhelm
4. Work with students to establish a signal when they are feeling overwhelmed
5. Have a plan in place to manage situations before they turn into meltdowns
6. Make sure that the environment is comfortable with lighting levels, temperature and air quality
7. Create “quiet zones” and allow students to retreat to these if they are feeling overwhelmed
8. Provide headphones to block out classroom noise when students are sensitive
9. Allow students to use alternative forms of seating
10. Provide advance warning using visuals or other cues when changes of routine occur or a one-off event is coming up, such as a fire drill or excursion

The Next Step

As parents and professionals, we want all our kids to thrive in the classroom, regardless of the hurdles they face. Creating sensory-friendly classrooms doesn’t need to be difficult or costly and it can make a huge difference to the kids that struggle with sensory issues. If you would like to know more about what you can do to make sensory-friendly classrooms, check out my classroom detox program. Or you can contact us here if you have questions. We would love to hear from you!

In years gone by, not much research was available on the ways that environment affects children with special needs. These children were often placed into regular classrooms and expected to conform to the parameters of the majority. Sensory-friendly classrooms were a thing of the future and kids with special sensory needs received little, if any, help.  Sensory-supported learning was unheard of and many children with special learning requirements were simply unable to access environments that supported good learning outcomes. Sadly, many slipped through the cracks or didn’t achieve their full potential.
These days, there is a lot more knowledge around the needs of children with autism spectrum disorders, ADHD, anxiety disorders, learning disorders, sensory processing disorder and other issues that affect a child’s ability to learn. In response, educators and other professionals are seeing the value in creating sensory-friendly learning environments that enable children with special needs to integrate more readily into regular classrooms.

Three Major Principles that Impact Learning Outcomes

Recent studies have shown three crucial areas that impact learning outcomes for children with special sensory needs. These studies looked at the broad functioning of the brain and the way it resolves sensory input. From there, researchers were able to determine three major principles that govern the way individuals relate to the natural, personal and task environments that surround them in any given space. These principles cover the following areas:

Naturalness

This refers to areas of physical comfort such as lighting, temperature, acoustics, and air quality levels. Sensory-sensitive children have a lower threshold for tolerating classrooms that fail to adequately address these areas. The research discovered that when these areas are adequately addressed to meet the needs of sensory-sensitive kids, learning outcomes improved substantially (1).

Individualization

This principle covers how well a classroom is adapted to a child’s point of view. Studies found that children experience better learning outcomes when they are able to take control of aspects of their environment to suit their needs (2). Therefore, ownership and flexibility are important elements of a sensory-friendly classroom. Also important is connection, referring to the layout, design and friendliness of the connections between spaces, such as corridors and walkways (3).

Level of Stimulation

The level of stimulation refers primarily to the visual stimulation in a classroom environment and this can be broken down into two sub-categories: Colour and Complexity. Getting the colour right aids children with moods, mental clarity and energy levels (4), while managing complexity helps with distraction, behaviour and focus (5).

10 Parameters to Include in Sensory-Friendly Classroom Design

So, in summary, under the three principles outlined above, there are 10 major parameters that influence sensory experience in the classroom:

1. Light
2. Sound
3. Air Quality
4. Links to Nature
5. Temperature
6. Ownership
7. Flexibility
8. Connection
9. Complexity
10. Colour

Simple Tips to Create a Sensory-Friendly Classroom

• Minimize visual displays to reduce distraction
• Allow “movement breaks” every 20-40 minutes for the children that need extra stimulation
• Create “quiet spaces” that children can retreat to if noise becomes overwhelming (this can help to avoid meltdowns)
• Allow children that are sensitive to touch to be in positions where they will not be bumped or touched by others
• Pay attention to seating and ensure that each child has a chair that is a comfortable fit. Consider alternative seating styles for kids with special sensory needs
• Use visuals to help children know what’s going to happen next and to reinforce routine
• Try to determine which students will benefit from any available natural light and which ones do better with dimmer light and arrange seating accordingly
• Take steps to minimize noise where possible

There are many things you can do to create a sensory-friendly classroom. Lots of these things are simple and inexpensive to implement but can make a substantial difference in learning outcomes. To find out more, check out my classroom detox program.
References:
(1) Barrett P. S., Davies F., Zhang Y., Barrett L. (2015). The impact of classroom design on pupils’ learning: Final results of a holistic, multi-level analysis. Building and Environment, 89, 118-133. doi:10.1016/j.buildenv.2015.02.013
(2) Higgins S., Hall E., Wall K., Woolner P., McCaughey C. (2005). The impact of school environments: A literature review. London, England: Design Council
(3) Alexander C., Ishikawa S., Silverstein M. (1977). A pattern language. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.
(4) Englebrecht K. (2003). The impact of color on learning.
(5)Fisher A., Godwin K., Seltman H. (2014). Visual environment, attention allocation, and learning in young children: When too much of a good thing may be bad. Psychological Science, 25, 1362-1370. doi:10.1177/0956797614533801

That’s right! What are your plans for self care and smart action this year? Check this out!

This week we have a vlog!  Feel free to watch above or read below.

Hey, how are you? It’s the beginning of the year. It’s the first week of term here in New South Wales where we are. I know that teachers are getting ready to go back to school or at school already. I just wanted to touch base about how we are planning to look after ourselves personally, health-wise, professionally in the next few months and for the rest of the year. So, I’m not talking about having new year’s resolutions because they often don’t stick but I want us to think about how are we planning to look after ourselves and what can we action right now to make sure that we meet those goals?

Before we start to figure that out, I want to just think who were you last year when you did really well, who was showing up, how were you showing up. When you showed up and did things that went really well, how did that make you feel, and what were you really committed to? So, that can be thought about in both the positive ways and also in a constructive way. When we committed to looking after ourselves and eating healthfully, going for walks or exercise or going to the gym, I guess you might have been showing up for yourself to be healthier and to be more positive which roles over all areas of life. When we are fit and healthy, then everything else seems to go better but on the flip side of that, those weeks, those months when we might be tired, when we might be unwell or when we just are a bit lazy perhaps, how do we go …

Who was showing up and what were we being committed to when things didn’t go so well?

For example, those morning when we’re lying in bed and we feel too tired and it feels way too much just to hit the snooze and to skip that walk or to skip the gym, what are we really committed to? Sometimes this can be really confronting to think about. Are we in those moments when we make those perhaps not so positive decisions. Are we really being committed to the best for ourselves or do we really need to stand up to ourselves and decide no, I’m really committed to being there for my health and just getting up and doing it.

So, we’ve talked a bit about fitness. What about our professional development and our personal development?

Personal development could be professional but it could also be learning a new hobby or doing some research with your child about a new activity or going with them to try something new. We need to commit to our financial goals as well. If we are teachers, what are committing to? Are we committing to our students, which I know you guys all do but seeing as sometimes we go through energy lags where it’s harder to do that, it’s harder to show up, sometimes it’s harder to do that preparation time. Life happens. Life throws us events that we’re not expecting and it’s really hard just to get through the basics but we really need to think about what are we committed to, how can we keep going with the most important things and how can we protect ourselves from the future.

With all the clinicians out there, same thing.  Are we showing up with planning efficiently and effectively? Do we timetable enough preparation time? Do we timetable enough buffer time between clients for preparation or for doing those extra phone calls? Because it can be really tempting, especially when you’re working for yourself or in private practice, to have those key performer indicators that we need to have because we are a business and we need to be able to meet our financial targets but we also need to look after ourselves and not try and put too many clients in, which means that we might have to work at night and lose some sleep and not look after ourselves quite as much. Whether you are a teacher or a clinician, it’s really important to have a plan and to get that locked in as soon as you can so that you can make sure that you’re supported, especially professionally because when we support it professionally, then our personal lives can go a lot easier because we’re not taking that baggage, that thinking through from … taking it home from work and just mulling over it or worrying about things.

So, yes. Whether you’re a teacher and you have those structures inside your school, that you have supervisors or mentors that you can catch up with regularly or a trusted teacher to offload to and work through things that might come up or different difficult students that might be tricky, make sure you got that structure in place and book it in your diary straight away. And if you’re an OT or a speech or other health professional, same thing. Make sure you got someone on your team, especially if you are in your own business on your own and/or if you are in a rural area where you have less support.

If you would like to connect with me, I also offer supervisor mentoring mainly for occupational therapists but also for some teachers who would really like to get their skills up in setting up their classrooms from a sensory safe perspective. But yes, so I mainly do that supervisor and mentoring for occupational therapists and I do that remotely right around Australia, so it doesn’t matter where you are. I have clinicians who are in the cities and I have clinicians who are in rural areas.  When we’re working on our own, no matter where we are, there’s very common issues and I’m very happy to talk over clinical issues, self-care issues and also a bit about business management and some tips of where to go to for help or how to make things easier.
Anyway,  I have three or four spots left for this year. If you’d like to book in for a free 15 minute chat, you’re most welcome to but no matter what type of professional you are, make sure you have a plan for both personal, healthy fitness and fun time, but also for that professional mentoring and backup. And on a regular basis, I have some clinicians who are catching up weekly, some who are monthly and some who are once a term.

If you would like to connect with me for a free 15 minute chat, just click here on the link below and we will be in contact with you to arrange a time. Okay, have a great day. Bye!

Link to : Free 15-minute chat with Deb Hopper
Written by Deb Hopper, Occupational Therapist

How to use a calendar to help transition back to school?

Here’s how!
Summer holidays can be the carefree, fun-packed time of experience and shared experiences which neither kids nor mums and dads want to end. It can be very appealing (and rightly so!) to make the most of every day of the school vacation, especially the days which directly precede the back to school date on your calendar.
Keep in mind however, to also do some preparation so that the shift back to school can be a smooth, confident one for both you and your kids.
What are the triggers that can potentially cause challenges for your kids when they are faced with returning to school?

How can the transition back to school be difficult for you and your kids?

• Feeling rushed – you’ve had a great summer and then suddenly the holidays are over and it’s time to return to school
• Disorganised – those last few days go SO quickly!
• Morning routine is difficult to return into
• Difficulty in getting out of bed/out of your home on time
• Mums and dads are nervous about the kids being okay
• Kids can be distressed about:
  • What will my new teacher be like?
  • Will my new schoolmates like me?
  • Will I be able to sit with my friends?
  • Who will I sit with at lunch?
  • What if I miss the school bus?
  • Will people make fun of me?
  • What if I don’t understand the lessons?
  • Will I look foolish?

How, as mums and dads, can we minimize these triggers for our kids and facilitate a smooth shift back to school?

Using a Calendar to Help Transition Back to School

Everybody, parents and children alike, prosper on routine and this holds specifically true when, as a household, we are confronted with the prospect of going back to school.
It is very important to take a look at methods of decreasing stress and anxiety around that date and finding a way to make going back to school an exciting, organised and positive experience.

Using a Timeline/Calendar

• Make a timeline together or go shopping and choose a big calendar that you both like.
• Calendars are often offered for the scholastic year and these can be perfect to prepare all of the household for getting back into the swing of school life.
• A timeline can be a great tool in helping all of the household lower any school stress and anxiety that they may have.
• All kids like to be involved in choices that effect them and their households.
• Make a timeline that covers the last 2 weeks prior to school starts and the following 2 weeks when school has started.
• For the last 2 weeks of the holidays, factor in treats and rewards as well as challenges which the household will need to attain to receive the treat or reward. For example, all of the household should get up 10 minutes earlier every day for the first week of your timeline to be able to enjoy the daily rewards that have been planned.
• Plan these joint challenges so that they assist your kids (and you!) to cope and get used to the early morning regimen once again or leaving your house on time each day.
• For the first 2 weeks of school, factor in after school activities, activities at the weekend and decide in advance who will choose your kids up from school each day.
• This visual structure, which you can display somewhere for you all to see, will provide a more mild re-introduction of the back to school regimen than if you all of a sudden panic on the night before school and try to arrange yourself and your kids out!
• If you leave tasks to the eleventh hour you are producing stress and anxiety in children and yourselves – which is a dish for disaster on the first day back and will take days or perhaps weeks to pull back.

Agree on a Morning Routine to Help Transition Back to School

• A visual timetable can be invaluable for lowering anxiety and enabling your kids to efficiently shift from vacation to school time.
• Visual timetables are typically utilized in school, so prior to completion of the academic year, find out from them what sort of symbols, words, images they use daily.
• Utilizing familiar visual hints in your home can increase self-confidence in your kids and this will likewise spill over into minimizing any school anxiety they might have.
• If it’s possible, this is an excellent activity to include your kids in well prior to the stressors of imminent school, you can develop and create an early morning schedule together.
• You can make this activity enjoyable by utilizing timers to find out how long it requires to get on a school uniform or make a jam-packed lunch or pack a swimming bag.
• When you have actually exercised the timings of activities that you require to consist of in your early morning schedule, then you can add those timings into it and find out what time you will all need to get up to be ready to leave your house at a set time.
• Enabling kids to take ownership of their early morning schedule by working it out with you is an excellent method to increase their feeling of responsibility, whilst lowering anxiety at the exact same time.

Have family ‘Golden Time’ to Help Transition Back to School

Your kids may well be familiar with ‘Golden Time’, which often happens in schools on a Friday afternoon. The offer at school is if the kids have actually got their stickers/rewards for the week, then during Golden Time they get to choose their preferred activity.
All of us like to feel special and have quality, one-to-one time with the people we like. Add into your calendar a daily Golden Check-In Time at home with your kid. (You could have two of these if it works, one in the early morning and one in the evening).
Plan a 10-30 minute time with your young person and include it in the calendar.
Make this time unique and pick together what you want to do throughout this time, examples could be:

• Make and share hot chocolate with marshmallows and relax on the couch together (NO smart phones, NO disturbances!).
• Share a video game, take your pet dog for a walk, go outdoors and construct a cubby house / go to beach.
• Have a pamper session – a manicure, pedicure, facial – whatever you both enjoy!
• Construct a design together, paint together.
• The possibilities are unlimited!
• The most IMPORTANT thing to remember is that while you are taking pleasure in each others’ company, you also chat about how your child is feeling, ensuring they are okay, that school is okay and they are mentally in an ok place.

In general, with some thoughts and early preparation, the trauma of going back to school can be handled efficiently and in a positive way. Taking a little bit of time to put some strategies into practice can positively affect your child and your whole family too.

Here are great and useful pointers on supporting children through end of year routine changes!
It’s that time of year again, when we are all coming towards the end of another school year.  As the end of term approaches and the summer holidays beckon, we can all look forward to a relaxed and chilled out time at school as we all wind down … well that’s what is ‘supposed’ to happen!
As teachers and professionals however, we know that for some kids, the end of the school year can be a time that is an anxiety-provoking nightmare which they do not understand and cannot cope with.
So, how can you prepare your class of kids to cope with the inevitable changes in routine that are an integral part of the transition between school and summer holidays?

Top Tips for Supporting children through end of year routine changes

At LifeSkills4Kids,  we are passionate about supporting kids and providing them with the skills to cope with life changes.  The build up to breaking up for summer holidays can be a massive life change for some of our young people.  As a professional, what can you do to help?
We discussed end of year strategies last year for supporting children through end of year routine changes.  Let’s revisit some of these strategies:
Use of a Visual Timetable

• The saying  ‘A Picture is worth a Thousand Words’ is very true for any of our pupils who may struggle with Sensory Processing Disorder, autism or any form of anxiety.  If you are unsure if any of your class have Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD), check out our article here.
• A visual timetable will enable pupils to make sense of their day and of the countdown to the summer holidays
• It is a great tool for preparing your pupils for the transition from school to holidays
• Encourage parents to get involved when you have identified pupils that could particularly benefit from using a visual timetable
• Include visuals in the timetable for ‘Surprise’ and ‘FunDays’ or ‘Special Events’.  If you include visuals for these sorts of activities you can provide all of your class with plenty of warning as to what may be happening and also to be prepared for days and lessons being a bit different to what they are used to
• Encourage your class to discuss any anxieties they may have and come up together with coping strategies.
• Depending on the age of your pupils, you may find it valuable to use visuals to enable them to let you know that they are struggling to cope and need help.  For example, you could use the ‘Just Right Technique‘ which we have developed after extensive research
• The Just Right Technique enables kids to be able to learn how to self-regulate by using visual representations of their emotions and physical responses to situations they experience.  The aim is to teach kids how to be happy, safe and content and stay ‘in the zone’

Provide a Great Transition Experience for your pupils

• There are inevitably many different transitions that children have to deal with at the end of the year
• They could be changing class on their return to school or moving schools.  An adequate period of transition to help the pupils know that they will be ok, to be able to meet new teachers and new classmates is vitally important
• The transition between school and summer holidays is a big one too, check out my article on this for some tips to help this run as smoothly as possible

Don’t underestimate the ‘tiredness’ factor!

• Let’s face it, we ALL get tired as the school year draws to a close!
• It is important that we acknowledge this and allow pupils to have choices and options of activities they would like to do and ones which they know will help them to self-regulate
• For some pupils that may be mindfully colouring (there are a plethora of colouring books for all ages, including adults); for others it may be quiet time with their headphones; and others may thrive on physical activity to keep themselves happy and relaxed

Home Involvement

• It cannot be underestimated how much the home environment can help in Supporting children through end of year routine changes
• Parents and carers are invaluable when they know what is coming up at school and can then spend time with their child and prepare them for what is going to happen
• It is a great idea to share timetables and weekly newsletters, so that parents and carers can talk to their kids about events and celebrations that will be happening during the last few weeks of school
• This also gives the family unit a chance to start to look beyond the end of term and decide together how their ‘holiday routine‘ could look
• My Sensory Holiday Survival Guide can be an invaluable resource to share with parents

Provide options & choices

• Wherever possible, as you move towards the summer holidays, provide options and choices for your pupils within each day
• If kids are in danger of overwhelm, due to the routine changes, make sure that there are options for ‘quiet’ time when individuals can withdraw from over-stimulating events.  It can be a good idea to allow pupils to bring in items from home which they know will help them cope with new experiences as the school year draws to a close

Ways to reduce anxiety

• The end of term changes in routine can lead to more anxious times for our pupils.
• For more information on how to reduce anxiety, read our article on reducing anxiety at the end of term
• A calendar for the last weeks of school and then for the summer holidays can really help with reducing anxieties and allow pupils to feel like they can have some control over the end of year routine changes that they will be experiencing

Overall, remember to make your classroom a relaxed and safe space for you and all of your class – this will minimise tiredness and allow each individual to cope with routine changes in ways that work for them.
Written by Deb Hopper, Occupational Therapist

YOUR Sensory Preference in Classroom or Clinic

How aware are you of your own sensory preferences and how does that impact in our professional lives and in the classroom?
There are three main areas of sensory preferences.

1. We have the sensory seekers, who are always on the move. We see these children in our classrooms and clinics. They are fun, loud, boisterous and full of energy!
2. We have the under-responders, and they’re the people who like to … yeah, they’re a bit more chilled and laid back and find it a bit hard to get going. I’m one of these people, so I like to go for a walk or do some exercise in the morning, because that really helps to wake up my nervous system and get me going. But I have to make a concerted effort to actually do that, because I just find that hard. I don’t seek it out naturally.
3. The other, the third one, is a sensory avoider. That is someone who doesn’t like touch and noise, and they might often withdraw.

We are often a mix of these sensory perferences. I know that for myself, again, if I’m in a busy conference or a room, then I’ll often retreat outside where it’s a bit quieter, because that just helps my nervous system to regroup, to be able to focus and get organised for learning. So I feel that I’m a mixture of being a sensory under responder and sensory avoider.
So think about which of those three you might be primarily.

• Are you a seeker? Are you seeking out movement? Are you seeking out muscle input? Do you like to get up and get the kids moving, run around the playground, or run around the therapy room?
• Are you under-responsive? Do you have to force yourself to get moving, but then once you actually do, then you feel much better and more alert?
• Or are you more over-responsive, needing to retreat from those sensory experiences?

How does this impact on

• your learning style?
• the colours in your classroom or clinic
• the way you decorate your notice boards or display art and craft? Are you a very organised person, who do you feel invigorated with lots of things around in a ‘comfortable’, homey or more cluttered environment?
• your desk? Do you clear it off every day and are you up to date with filing, or are you ‘creative’ and know exactly where everything is under piles of photocopying on your desk.

There is no right or right answers for how we create our learning or work areas, but we need to have an understanding of how the environment DOES impact on the learning style and sensory needs of the children we work with.
For more information on how to create best practice classroom environments, enrol in our 20 Day Classroom Detox.