Article, photos, and video courtesy of Clarence Central School District 

Leaders at Harris Hill Elementary School say a uniquely improved sensory room and new tactile resources at the school will provide students with the calming support they need to safely learn and flourish.

“A space like this for all students, it’ll really help improve the outcomes that we’re looking for,” said Christine Rich-Reese, a teacher aide and Therapeutic Crisis Intervention trainer for the Clarence Central School District. “You really need to meet a child or a person’s sensory needs and their basic needs first before we get them into a learning space.“

The upgrades and new equipment, described as unique for public schools in western New York, were supported through a $22,500 grant provided by PERMA to help reduce staff injuries taking place while helping students manage behaviors. Through reduced lighting and specialized equipment, sensory rooms help staff work with students to regulate behaviors as well as manage overstimulation and stress, helping students return to learning in their classroom. The school maintained a smaller, less-equipped sensory room for about a dozen years prior to the recent grant support.

In addition to the upgraded sensory room, the school used the support to set up tactile equipment in one of their hallways, along with equipment in a classroom primarily supporting students with special needs. Angela Guptill-Nagle, a schools risk management specialist for PERMA, said that the room will be helpful to students across the school, including those who are dealing with anxiety.

“It’s very important that (students) have a place to go,” Guptill-Nagle said. “The goal is to de-escalate students to the point where they can go back into the classroom and get the maximum benefit from instruction, and we want staff to come into schools with a positive outlook knowing they have a variety of resources to use to work with students.”

Among the equipment found in the room are a bubble tube that changes colors, along with a roller slide with lights as students travel down the slide and tactile art on the walls of the room. With lights dimmed, a small projector can be used to display a starry sky onto the room’s ceiling. Items were specifically chosen through months of interactions with a room designer, and consultations with sensory room item provider Fun & Function. Many of the chosen items are movable, allowing the room to change to meet student needs.

Providing resources like the sensory room is helpful in creating a school community that supports the learning and growth of all students, said Harris Hill Elementary School Principal Robert Boccaccio.

“We know that our learners come to us with different needs,” Boccaccio said. “We want to make sure that they feel seen, that they feel valued, and that they know that they’re a part of our fabric and our community here at Harris Hill.”

Though the upgraded sensory room is the first of its kind for the District, Dr. Patricia Grupka, assistant superintendent for finance and operations, said District leaders are looking at expanding sensory offerings to other schools in the future to help meet the needs of students.