Registration | Log In

Search Grants | Fulfilled Grants | More About Find It, Fund It, Florida

Share

Please share this page to help in fulfilling this grant.

Goal

Think of all your senses: sight, sound, smell, touch, taste. Most people take these fundamentals of life for granted. When one of these senses is either hyper (over, above) or hypo (under, below) sensitive, everyday life experiences can become very overwhelming and challenging. There are many students in Collier County Public School that experience these overwhelming and challenging life experiences on a daily basis. Having a variety of sensory items that engage these different senses in diverse ways allows teachers, therapists and other specialists to engage special needs students and encourage them in different ways.

The goal of this grant is to create an accessible, inviting, and engaging learning environment for the many different types of learners in Naples Park Elementary School’s IBI Unit (aka Shark Squad). The Shark Squad students experience life a little differently than others. Noises that others might not even notice are very distracting or even debilitating to some of our students. Students that struggle with focus and attention can attend to lessons and activities better when using different sensory items. When the world has too much input for some students, having a quiet place to deescalate and calm down makes engaging in instruction easier. The grant would fund the ability to buy a large variety of items to fit the specific needs of our exceptional students.
 

What will be done with my students

Naples Park Elementary Shark Squad teachers and staff will have access to the different sensory items to ensure that each student gets specifically what he/she needs. These items will be shared among the rooms as well as a central meeting area for calming down or deescalating. Shark Squad has a Behavior Analyst as part of the team, who would ensure the proper use of these items as well as suggest new and different items for students as needed.

The sensory items were selected with input from School Therapists, Behavior Analysts, ESE Teachers, Parents and Students.  

Benefits to my students

Having access to an assortment of different sensory stimulating tools helps students in a variety of ways, according to research by Creative Play UK. Sensory “play” builds nerve connections within the developing brain’s neural pathways, which trigger a child’s inclination for and ability in competing more complex learning tasks. Sensory play supports language development, cognitive growth, motor skills, problem solving skills, and social interaction. Sensory play aids in developing and enhancing memory functioning. Sensory play is great for calming an anxious or frustrated child. Sensory play helps children learn vitally important sensory attributes (hot, cold, sticky, dry, etc).

The students in Naples Park Elementary Shark Squad would be able to engage in classroom discussions and activities in a less stressful and more approachable way with access to the sensory items this grand would fund.
 

Budget Narrative

The equipment needed for this proposal can be purchased through amazon.com. After reviewing all of the available products, the most relevant, kid approved, and budget friendly options were selected.  

Items