Individual Differences
I love the quote by Margaret Mead that opens the chapter, “Always remember that you are absolutely unique. Just like everyone else.” Philosophically that holds a deep meaning to me, but in the case of our personal being, it is so true. Each one of us is shaped by our unique biological, physical, environmental and spiritual influences. A difference does not necessitate a pathology. The resulting behavior could be the result of the nervous system developing an adaptive response that is no longer adaptive. The illustrations of Richie (diabetes) and Leon (premature birth) show the power of these experiences. They bring home the point that we cannot understand behavior until we understand how the person experiences the world through their sensory systems. That will allow us to develop interventions that move the child from the “red” track to the “green” track where learning can happen (p. 69).
Our sensory systems allow us to hear, see, touch, smell, taste and feel movement, giving meaning to our experiences. There is no thinking about it. Consider the memories that you have that are linked to sensory stimuli, the smell of baking bread, the sound of a familiar song, the touch of a favorite texture. What calming memories they may evoke. Likewise, if linked to a negative experience, sounds, smells, touches and tastes may result in increased anxiety or agitation. Children often have no way to express or sometimes even to understand the trigger or memory that results in the behavior. We need to work to understand from the child’s perspective in order to use sensory experiences to help soothe the child’s distress. “When we personalize a child’s and caregiver’s individual differences we can personalize our treatment, educational and parenting approaches (p. 92)”
Question of the week:
Reflecting on your own sensory responsiveness (individual differences) , review the checklists on pages 73-78. Think about how your response to that sensory input might be linked to an event in your past. Share your insights briefly. Do not feel you have to share the event, but just your reflection on how you have been influenced. How does that shift your thinking (or does it?) when you consider the impact of sensory stimuli on behavior?
Goodrich-Garza Education 
I have always enjoyed washing dishes, by hand! As a child and growing up, that was always my job after dinner, as we did not have an automatic dishwasher. After reading this chapter, and thinking about my sensory experiences, I realized all the various sensory aspects of washing dishes. Some of those were making cute little bubbles come out of the detergent bottle and fill the kitchen, “playing” in a sink full of soapy warm water, taking dishes from being dirty to squeaky clean, and then having lengthy discussions with my mother and older sister, as they both had different “jobs” and we all worked together to get the table cleared, everything put away, and all the dishes washed, dried and put away. So, I now realize that my current automatic dishwasher in my kitchen rarely gets used not because I specifically just like to wash dishes, but it brings back wonderful memories of sensory aspects of washing dishes (tactile, auditory, visual, smell, and movement) and memories of the time spent with my mother and sister, working and sharing experiences together.
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Washing dishes is one of my least favorite chores. I used to joke that I prefer cleaning a bathroom/restroom than the kitchen. But looking back over my experiences as a child, I think I can understand why. I was an extremely picky eater. The smells, textures, and perceived disgusting taste of certain foods was such a turn-off. Naturally, washing food debris from other people’s plates was very unpleasant for me because I was left cleaning the remnants of the foods I couldn’t tolerate. It didn’t help that my family wouldn’t rinse their plates well before setting them in the sink. I still remember the feeling of some of the slimy food touching me in the water or being stuck on the towel. (Yuck! I get flesh crawls thinking about it) Thank God for dish washers! My saving grace! Haha!
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What a sweet story Patsy. It does seem to be that the memories we retain the longest have sensory based associations with them.
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Patsy, It is nice to remember the postive experiences that we can evoke through sensation as well. What you describe is one of the reasons that I enjoy cooking. The smells, actions and conversations bring back lots of happy memories. We can tap into the positives of the child’s experiences as well as helping them manage those negatives. One of the things that strikes me in this chapter is the value of self reflection-self determination. Kathy Bonds and I were looking into that for our recent presentation, and when I look at the case studies again, I see a lot of that development in the solutions that were created for the two case studies, Richie and Leon. They used top-down thinking to overcome the body-up reactions. Of course, they needed to be developmentally ready to participate in that process and the time and support to learn how.
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I used to hate the chore but not actually ejoy them because of the sensation from the bubbles, the soap, and the water.
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I like that you used a positive experience as your example. Your story brings back fond memories of washing dishes with my grandmother, thank you.
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It’s crazy how a simple task can bring back nice memories and sensory experiences. I actually used to be the complete opposite. One of my chores when I was growing up was washing the dishes, and I absolutely hated it. Looking back now, I realize it was all about my senses. I couldn’t stand touching the dirty dishes, the smell of leftover food on them, or the water running down my arms and getting my clothes wet. As an adult, I don’t have the same strong reactions anymore, but if I had to choose between using my dishwasher or not, I’d definitely go for the automatic dishwasher.
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I have difficulty completing work without background noise. If I have a lot of paperwork to do and will be sitting for 30+ minutes, the headphones come out and I’m listening to something. There’s even a certain music mix where I know I will be super productive! 😊 When I get home from work, I immediately turn on the tv, audio book or music. Even if I’m not really paying attention to it, I feel like I need the background noise. I am so much more productive with household chores with a good audiobook going. I also do not like bright lights. I detest overhead lighting during the daytime and often use natural light until it gets too dark inside the room I’m in. I’ll use lamps if no windows are available. At a previous job, the lights directly over my desk went out and I asked the custodial staff to refrain from replacing the bulbs because I felt the overhead halogen lighting was too bright. I also chew on the insides of my cheeks. Sometimes I’m aware that I’m doing it and other times I’m not. As a child, my mom would always tell me to stop. As an adult, my husband will catch me doing that and will ask what’s on my mind. When I do notice the chewing, I tend to have racing thoughts. I think I do it as a way to calm down.
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It’s always so interesting how unique and individualized our sensory systems are. I’m the exact opposite. I need quiet to work on things that require my concentration. When I work in noisy environments I catch myself talking through the work outloud to focus.
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Whitnee, was this the same for you as you were growing up? Like, did you need background sound to do homework? I am thinking about how earbuds are so popular now and how almost every student will say they needs to listen to music to do their work. Earbuds were not a thing when I was in school. I enjoy listening to music, but if I had it blasting in my ears like the kids do, I would go nuts. So I’m wondering if it’s a learned behavior. I don’t know if I’m wording that the right way. Maybe an adaptive behavior? Kids “have to” listen to music to concentrate so that’s just what they get used to doing.
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I don’t remember needing background sound to do homework as a kid. However, we had a 1-hour commute to and from school. I remember studying in the car with my family, working on papers/projects while riding in the car. Maybe I just got used to being surrounded by noise? I realized in undergraduate and graduate school that I studied best with sound in the background. The NBA playoffs are always around college finals. I distinctly remember there would be back to back games every night each week during the first round of playoffs. I would turn the games on in the background and study away! 🙂 I also still have the 90’s R&B mix station I listened to when studying for my physical therapy licensure exam. My husband is the complete opposite. He needs complete silence and sitting at a desk.
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Whitnee, I can relate to this for sure! My mom talks about using a box fan for white noise when we slept as babies. Now I prefer to sleep with a fan and white noise every night. I even have waterfall sounds downloaded that I’ll play while camping if we aren’t using the camper’s AC, haha. Old habits or comforts are hard to live without I suppose. I also hate the fluorescent lights at work and am way more productive with music or a podcast in the background when I’m working or doing stuff around the house. I know my ADD plays a part in these things for sure.
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I also like to sleep with a fan for the breeze and humming sound. It tends to help drown out other noises (especially the rooster which is VERY annoying). I also prefer quiet over music or TV “noise”. Even the vent hood fan in my kitchen is irritating to me. I know we are talking about ourselves, but I have been able to lately experiment on one my dogs. He has become very afraid of thunderstorms. So, I keep the light on to diminish the effect of lightning, hold him tight, and play white noise on my phone. These techniques definitely seem to work for him. It makes me wonder about students that may have difficulties tolerating various sensory input in their school environment that may present as behavioral challenges.
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Hi Whitnee! I can really relate to the need for background noise while I am working. It is amazing how much more I can concentrate when something is playing. For some reason it helps me think better. Thank you for sharing!
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It is fun to learn new things about people and their sensory needs. I too love natural lighting and can’t stand the bright lights. Especially in the school building haha.
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I am definitely very sensitive in most of my systems. Unlike Whitnee, I need to have quiet to focus. I can have white noise going but only if it is very uniform. I agree about the lights. I prefer subdued lighting. My husband is the opposite and has to have noise and bright lights all of the time. I also am very sensitive to touch and vestibular input-but honestly, I attribute some of that to trauma in childhood. My sister had a terminal illness and some of the things that she was cautioned not to do carried over to me in my brain. Some of those things no longer impact me, I guess because I have grown to understand them better. When I do a Sensory Profile 2 (standardized test) I tell the parents that we are not looking for dysfunction, but rather how to design a learning environment that will best support the student. After all, we all have various sensory likes and dislikes and those change too with the demands of the task and our overall perspective.
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I am currently taking the assessments course in my grad program, so I went online to see if I could find a sensory assessment. I took the free version of one that asked for my contact information to give results at the end. I opted out of that, but I could tell from the way I answered that results would align with what I’d just read and written about myself.
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Did you look in the book Leslie? They had some sensory-based questions in the chapter starting on page 73. Remember, these are not pathologies, just differences. Think about various careers that might require a heightened sense of taste or smell (sommalier, for example) or one where a person might do well who craved lots of vestibular input (gymnast, military pilot). We have to learn to see the positives and help guide our students on self regulation and into ways to turn those differences into strengths.
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As a child, I was a picky eater, and my mom did her best to offer different foods and present them in various ways. For example, she would cook broccoli with cheese, mixed with other vegetables, and since I loved soup, she would make broccoli soup too. I remember staying behind at the kitchen table after school, after my family was done eating, having to try the soup—not finish it, just try it—and being physically incapable of doing so. Like broccoli, I have many other examples where I can now understand that I was probably experiencing a taste/smell sensory over-responsive sensation, where the taste, smell, and texture were too complicated for me to process. My thinking has shifted in knowing that my behavior was not top-down; I wasn’t intentionally trying to give my mom a hard time with challenging behavior (top-down behavior). Instead, I was exhibiting a bottom-up behavior, experiencing difficulty with a sensory process.
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Now I am picturing my sister, Mary Theresa, at the table and my Marine Corp dad telling her she had to eat the peas! and of course the famous George Bush statement that now that he was president he would not eat broccoli! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FlzyIbmyM78
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My aunt is a wonderful cook and uses all kinds of ingredients and recipes from around the world. That said, she will not eat kale because as a kid she once bit into a mouthful of kale from from my grandmother’s garden and discovered a fat, juicy caterpillar that she’d also bit into. It has ruined kale for her forever- she’s 81 now.
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I have never really thought about how disliking a food could really be from a sensory issue with texture, instead of how it tastes. It is interesting to think that still disliking a food, as an adult, could be because we weren’t able to move past the bottom-up behavior of dislike as a child. It now is just engrained into our lives.
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Important point Sheri. Those bottom up behaviors can become engrained even after they no longer evoke the same response.
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This was an eye-opening chapter! My brother used to get in trouble because he gaged every time he ate salad. The eye-opening thought is he liked the taste because he was always willing to eat it but he always had trouble, it must have been the texture of the food that was causing the reaction. All these years I thought he was acting out and being dramatic. I know as an adult he eats salad now without any issues, somewhere along the line he dealt with this texture issue and went from bottom-up to top-down thinking.
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So many considerations, right? Maturation of the nervous system, social maturation and awareness, All of it plays a role. We are so complex.
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I am also one of those who need noise in the background. I sleep with fans on and one of my feet uncovered. I have done this as long as I can remember. This probably goes back to when I went to my grandparents. They only had fans in the bedrooms. It was a wonderful time that I will always treasure, so continuing with fans brings back the joy of being with them. I have brought this need for white noise with me to my classroom. There is always sound of one kind or another going on in my room. This makes me happy! It is very interesting to go into class rooms and see if it is silent or borderline chaos. I wonder if those noisy rooms have teachers who need sound during their day. also. However, I am very aware that some of my students, GT 5th and 6th graders, don’t need that much sound. So, they are allowed to wear headphones, etc. to make them feel comfortable. It is such an easy thing to let them do. Then everyone is work in a way that brings them comfort. I completely agree that our past is very much a part of our present and future, whether good or bad.
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I like your ability to recognize the individual needs of your students. In a quiet classroom I am thinking that a student who needed some background noise could be accommodated with music or some sort of white noise. Making adjustments that allow for self regulation and empowering the student to do so is a recipe for success. I wonder if the differing needs in the workplace have contributed to people preferring to work from home? Hmmm.
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I think self-regulation of the environment definitely makes a difference in where/how we work. Many companies have taken away offices or quiet places to make the workplace more collaborative. Workers are made to move desks daily and not have a place that is their own. While this may be fine for those who thrive in chaos, it makes the workplace extremely difficult to navigate for those who need quiet and order. I would hate not having a place of my own to work and have my stuff in the same place every day. We need to remember that when we set up our rooms for our students.
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Looking back now I had some and may still have some tactile over-responsiveness and I see it in my kids too. An example is, that doing laundry as a kid/teenager was a chore of mine. I did not mind washing and folding clothes, what I did mind was having to clean out the lint from the dryer. I would get so upset and anxious when I had to do this. The thought of touching the lint made me almost freeze and shut down. It is interesting now to see how my kids handle cleaning the lint tray. One kid does not mind at all, one kid you can see doing some self-talk to get through it, and one of my other kids still refuses to do it or even try. Because of what I experienced and remember as a kid and have learned as an adult I don’t force my kids to clean it, I encourage them but do not force them. Eventually, I hope they will go from bottom-up thinking to top-down with encouragement and time to process.
Having a better understanding of sensory over-responsiveness, sensory under-responsiveness, and sensory craving will be a great tool for helping not only my students but also my own kids, myself, and other adults.
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I have 3 other siblings and remember being labeled as the one who is “afraid of everything”. I was very scared of the slide, the swing, and driving on the side of a mountain. I would cry, more like wail, at the sight of them. It took a lot of coaxing and reassurance that I will not get hurt, usually from my father, before I tried them.
I do not know or recall any traumatic experience which could have caused these extreme fears. I recall that after vacations involving any type of climbing or going to a high location (driving to the mountains, or going to a spot with a viewing deck), I would have trouble falling asleep because my mind would imagine the terrible “what ifs” (ie: what if my brother fell when he climbed to the top of the rock)?
I learned to talk myself out of these anxious feelings in my teens by thinking about exactly what my father would say. I realized I still do this specifically during a recent trip to NYC while on the elevator going to the viewing deck of the Rockefeller Center.
Working in special education, I am lucky to have learned about sensory differences from wonderful muti disciplinary team members and how it can affect how different children perceive their environment and how they react to them.
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Gay,
In occupational therapy we refer to “therapeutic use of self”. That means that we, as professionals, use ourselves and our interactions with our clients as therapeutic tools. It sounds like your dad interacted with you in that way. We will be discussing that more in the upcoming chapter and section headed “solutions”.
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I prefer low light to bright light. I rarely turn on overhead lights in my house. I like lamps and natural light. In my last classroom, I was blessed with a very large window, so we spent a lot of time with the lights off. In other classrooms I like light covers and lamps. This seemed to have a calming effect on the class as a whole.
I also need quiet background noise. I keep the tv on a show I’ve seen many times when I need to focus (like when I’m reading this book). I can’t have music on, I ended up focusing on the songs that are playing.
I love the hum of a busy classroom when the kids are engaged. When it gets too loud, I get stressed, but it’s usually a sign that the kids are ready for a change of activity or scenery.
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I also prefer low light in my house and when working. It keeps me calm and relaxed. I do like to be in the sunlight outside though and soak up that vitamin D!
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My strongest sensory response is tactile. I can’t handle if my feet or hands feel dirty and dry. I can’t step outside barefooted. I always put lotion on my feet and hands. As a child, and to this day, I often sit on the counter and wash my feet. There are some things that I can’t touch, like unpainted ceramics. I went to a pottery painting party once and it was awful. I don’t like walking on the beach unless it’s in moist sand. And if I don’t instantly wash my feet after, I will have a meltdown. Just thinking about these things make me very anxious. (I have to stop typing to put lotion on.) I wish I had a clue as to where this stems from, but I have absolutely no idea. My mom has no idea either.
I also don’t like to be touched. Growing up, I had a loving family. But love was not expressed through touch. We don’t hug. I have to assume that is why I don’t do a lot of hugging. The only exception is students who I have no problem hugging when that’s what they need. Or if I have not seen them in a while, my instinct is to hug them. (After teaching high school for a long time I have kept up with a lot of graduates. I often meet up with them for lunches.) If someone touches me and I don’t see it coming it alarms me. I have no doubt that this is a result of a traumatic dating experience during my late teen years.
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It sounds like you have established some great relationships with your students Leslie. Your care for them must have resonated through the interactions that you had in the classroom.
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Many of us have similar (or specifically opposite) sensory preferences for sure! I also find it interesting (disappointing?) that the role of sensory processing in children’s development isn’t talked about more outside of OT. Even with OT, sensory processing is addressed more in clinical settings than in the school setting or an IEP (correct me if I’m wrong Kim Keller or Eileen). Of course, we aim to meet the needs of the whole child in the classroom, but sometimes we probably fall short or have that “top-down bias.” At least I feel I probably do after reading more of this book.
My personal responses are more auditory and visual. I have always had migraines. As a child, and definitely as a teenager, I would get migraines that would put me out of commission. I finally got prescription meds in high school but would throw them up so the only answer was to sleep it off. I almost missed my senior prom due to a migraine. I wonder if that’s why I like soothing sounds, lights, and smells? I abhor the lights on ceiling fans, especially when they do that flickering effect. I can’t stand it! I love a good set of lamps any day. I love yoga and did prenatal yoga during my last pregnancy with lovely smells of lavender. While having contractions in the car in the pouring rain, I just closed my eyes and sniffed lavender and it helped me so much.
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The olfactory sense is the most primitive of senses, and is processed through the limbic system. The limbic system is associated with memory and emotion. That is one of the reasons realtors tell home sellers to bake cookies in their kitchen prior to a showing. The smell of fresh baked cookies evokes “home” to many people. Similar to your lavender.
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This really gave me cause for thought. My mother talks about when I was little the thought was that you shouldn’t tiptoe around when children were sleeping. The lack of noise made children hyper sensitive to noise. She used to do the vacuuming when we were sleeping so noise wouldn’t bother us. The funny thing is that as an adult while noise doesn’t bother me, I cannot go to or stay asleep with music or the TV on. Any noise that has meaning associated to it I will attend to.
I say all of this to say that I have a greater sensitivity to people’s responses to different stimuli. I may not understand it but I think we have to respect it.
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This would have been a great idea, Kathy. When my daughter was very little, I had to carry her every time I vacuumed, or she would cry the whole time.
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Kathy, we have talked about our senses lots of times. For me, I had to remove the television from the bedroom. It was not the noise, it was the inconsistency of the noise. Commercials are louder; tv shows have guns and explosions, lighting changes. It was disturbing to my sleep. Now I use black out curtains and white noise to make sure I don’t get awakened. Going back to sleep for me is nearly impossible. I like your statement at the end. ” I may not understand it but I think we have to respect it.”
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I appreciate the detailed explanation of sensory processing and its influence on children’s behavior. The chapter effectively highlights the role of the sensory system in interpreting environmental stimuli and how imbalances can lead to behavioral challenges.
I found the section on individual differences particularly enlightening. Understanding that children have unique sensory processing profiles underscores the importance of personalized approaches in both education and intervention. The connection between trauma and sensory processing was another crucial point, emphasizing how past experiences shape present behaviors.
The illustrations of Richie and Leon provided concrete examples of how sensory experiences impact behavior, reinforcing the necessity of viewing behaviors through a sensory lens. By understanding these sensory influences, we can develop better strategies to support children, helping them transition from the “red” track of distress to the “green” track of learning and growth. This chapter has shifted my perspective, highlighting the importance of considering sensory processing in behavioral assessments and interventions.
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It is fascinating to me how seemingly unrelated events can have long term impact on behavior. While those behaviors and feelings are valid, it will be good to see how we can support the students in braking free of their responses and take control moving forward, even in the bottom up conditions.
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Reading Chapter 3 of “Beyond Behaviors” by Dr. Mona Delahooke was like a revelation to me. As a mother of two and a Spanish teacher, I have always sensed that there’s more to children’s behavior than meets the eye, but this chapter gave me the language and understanding to articulate it.
The quote by Margaret Mead, “Always remember that you are absolutely unique. Just like everyone else,” really resonated with me. It’s such a profound reminder that our children’s behaviors are shaped by their unique sensory experiences. My heart ached as I read about how trauma and chronic stress can disrupt a child’s sensory processing. It made me think about my own children and the little things they do that might be linked to their sensory experiences.
The stories of Richie and Leon were particularly touching. They reminded me of my own struggles with my children when they act out in ways I don’t understand. It’s not just about the behavior; it’s about how they are experiencing the world. This chapter has inspired me to look deeper, to try to understand the sensory roots of their actions, and to help them feel safe and understood.
Overall, this chapter was a deeply emotional journey for me. It has changed how I view my children’s behaviors and given me hope that by understanding their sensory experiences, I can better support them in their growth and development.
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I look at the out of control child and feel so empathic toward them. I cannot imagine feeling so out of control. It has to be adding to the stress of the original event to have so much going on and not understand how to reestablish safety. This is something I love about Nonviolent Crises Intervention communication principles. We learn the importance of detection of early indicators and can hopefully short circuit the full escalation. Knowing and understanding the developmental level of the child to help support their growth is critical.
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Looking back on my sensitivity to smells and tastes using the checklists from pages 73-78 of “Beyond Behaviors” has been eye opening. I’ve come to realize that certain scents and flavors can really trigger a reaction, in me sometimes even causing me to gag. Growing up this was a struggle for me. It became even more pronounced during my first pregnancy. Now there are things that I couldn’t stand the smell or taste of during that time that still affect me. These realizations have helped me see that my responses to stimuli aren’t just preferences; they’re deeply connected to my past experiences.
This reflection has really changed how I view the impact of input on behavior especially when working with students. Understanding that each child’s actions can be shaped by their encounters and sensitivities highlights the need for personalized approaches. It’s clear that what might be a minor irritation or distraction for one person could be incredibly distressing or overwhelming, for another. This realization underscores the importance of creating an inclusive environment tailored to meet each students sensory requirements.
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So true Sarah. ” It’s clear that what might be a minor irritation or distraction for one person could be incredibly distressing or overwhelming, for another. This realization underscores the importance of creating an inclusive environment tailored to meet each students sensory requirements.” This sort of ties into Kim’s comment about classroom distractions. Busy art and things hanging from the ceiling, background music, subdued lighting…….Everyone has different needs. We have several ways to address those differences, 1. Help students identify how to adapt when things are not optimal for their learning 2. Develop ways to manage and build resilience in the face of settings that cannot be changed 3. Guide the students toward careers, programs, etc that capitalize on their strengths. I am sure there are more, but these come to mind. We will see more in the next section.
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I like having some background noise when I am at home, I don’t like the silence. This is different than when I am working, where I am easily distracted by background noise. Having my mom living with me, I realized that she always wants background noise on as well at the house. I also get easily distracted when I go into classrooms and see an excessive amount of stuff on the walls. I often wonder if this is distracting for our students that have trouble focusing. I feel like as I get older, I have more sensitivity to different textures than when I was younger.
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Your observations are important to note Kim. The demands of the particular activity may impact the sensory needs. I am like you. When I am working I need a quiet setting-When I am just cleaning or something, I enjoy the rhythm of music to keep me going. My bed is very comfortable, but sometimes when I wake up at night, I go into the couch and squish myself into the back of the couch as a deep pressure to help me calm my brain and go back to sleep.
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Week 3- June 24th
Reflecting on your own sensory responsiveness (individual differences) , review the checklists on pages 73-78. Think about how your response to that sensory input might be linked to an event in your past. Share your insights briefly. Do not feel you have to share the event, but just your reflection on how you have been influenced.
As I reflected on the checklists I noticed I have been affected by each one. I experienced sensory over-response with my daughter, under-response with several students, and craving with one of my sons and students. At the time I asked questions like, “what is wrong with these clothes”, “why won’t he pay attention” or “Why won’t he stop moving?”. At the time of these incidents it didn’t occur to me to look at them in a bottom-up way.
How does that shift your thinking (or does it?) when you consider the impact of sensory stimuli on behavior?
My thinking has shifted. I am glad for this new perspective on looking at behavior. It explains so much about what was probably going on and how I can handle these situations differently in the future.
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One of the thoughts that comes to mind for me is figuring out the why. Why did this work this time, with this child and another child, another time, same appearing behavior this did not work. It can really be a puzzle to figure out whether something is top down or bottom up. Hopefully the future chapters will provide a systematic way of analyzing which is which for application in school.
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Week 4
As there are many levels of behavioral responses from students, I feel it is important to always remember my involvement and responses must be about the student. This tends to help me be focused on the student’s current state, on ways I may be able to assist in their challenging moments, and on continuing to breathe and stay calm. Of course, there can be very challenging behaviors with verbal and physical aggression. At those times, I tend to feel somewhat helpless and unsure of which way to go. Mostly because the teachers and school staff that are with those students all day every day know better how to “handle” these situations. So, I like to follow their lead in these moments and not “undo” progress they have made by saying or doing the “wrong” thing. Strategies I like to use to help balance students’ level of stress include: check-in with the teacher for “pulse” of the day for the student I am seeing, use an ice-breaker even if just to say “I’m so happy to see you today”, be positive and encouraging, give students’ choices of activities if possible, use of a timer if it helps, and be positive and encouraging (I know I already said this!).
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Positive and encouraging is worth repeating.
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When I reflected over the checklists, I felt most of my responses fell under the Sensory Under-Responsive Checklist. I can recall as a child, talking myself through steps on assignments or tasks. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve noticed I now need to verbalize these same steps instead of just relying on internal comments. While I don’t specifically seek out loud sounds or music, I do find myself gravitating toward having back ground music on while working or cleaning. My husband and I sleep with a fan on in our bedroom year round; not for the cooling effect but for the white noise it provides. I can remember after my son was born and my husband was deployed, I returned to my parents’ home to stay for several months. They lived in a small town, on top of a mountain in Pennsylvania. I can still remember when I first arrived, the nights were so utterly silent, I could feel my ears ringing from the *lack* of noise. I quickly got a box fan!
This chapter has been one of my favorites so far. It makes me want to find my copy of The Out-of-Sync Child and Raising a Sensory Smart Child and re-reading them!
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Jennifer what great applications of how sensory systems can both be organizing and calming. I wonder if these checklists might offer a good discussion resource with parents as we try to learn more about their child and how to engage their child in learning.
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I loved reading this chapter. I feel like you can never learn enough about sensory processing and how it affects us as humans. I enjoy figuring out what the sensory needs of my students are. I do not like to hear chewing, smacking or constant clicking. It takes everything I have to listen to somebody close by doing it. I imagine if I have a hard time with self control during those times, I can imagine how hard it is for a 5 to 10 year old to regulate. I tend to always play soft music or white noise at home and especially at school. It seems to calm everyone.
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