Sensory Support for children at Green Gates Academy
At Green Gates Academy we have many children with sensory needs.
Some children are admitted into school with a Sensory Processing Disorder diagnosis, some children are assessed/screened on entry into Green Gates Academy.
Sensory Processing Disorder refers to a difficulty in processing sensory information. A sensory processing disorder is assessed and confirmed when children are on extreme ends of the continuum or experience “disruptive, unpredictable fluctuations which significantly impact our developmental skills or everyday functioning."
Green Gates works very closely with local professional occupational therapists to complete screenings, sensory programmes, regulation activities, development of gross and fine motor skills and hand writing programmes to support children’s needs. The occupational therapist also monitors the interventions and measure the impact they each have on the individual child.
Each class has a specific programme to suit the needs of the children which is carried out at specific times of the week to help support the children’s sensory needs. The children also complete regulation activities on a morning, after break and after lunch to help support with smooth transitions and regulate children to ensure they are ready for learning.
The children also benefit from a range of equipment available in each classroom to support sensory regulation. This includes:
- Fitness balls
- Weighted jackets
- Weighted blankets
- Chair bands
- Fidget toys
- Play dough
- The Green Room (Green Gates Calming Room)
- Wrist and ankle weights