Education Archives

We are quickly approaching the end of the year, and therefore the end of another academic year. It is a time when teachers need to ensure that all the syllabus requirements are met, setting and marking of exam papers are done, report writing is done and added to all that, they may have to organize concerts, plays, sporting events and other school related tasks. They have so many deadlines with such little time and few resources then need to go home to their husbands or wives, children and families that also need their attention.

Teachers rarely get the appreciation they deserve. Teachers take on more than just teaching our children – they nurture them, love them, and they are our first point of contact when there may be a problem. Teachers do not have a 7am-2pm job, theirs is a full day job. Teaching is a labour of love and the teachers that I have had the privilege of working with and who my children have been lucky enough to have been in their class are very passionate about what they do.

As an Occupational Therapist who has worked in school practices for 13 years, sometimes I wonder how teachers cope. I found it very stressful just to complete my assessments and reports, plan therapy and then still meet the needs of my family and home, even though I have very high sensory thresholds! This means that my resilience and capacity is enhanced because my system naturally can ignore sensory overload. How can their tasks be made more manageable and how can they feel that they are not about to crack under the pressure?

We appreciate teachers and know how critical their roles are in influencing our children’s learning as well as emotional development. Sensory Intelligence has dedicated a whole series of workshops to help teachers not only recognize sensory issues in the children they teach, but also to give them their own coping mechanisms and tools to meet the demands placed upon them.

Stop the world – I want to get off! Have you ever spent so much time swimming in the ocean or being on a boat that your body continues to perceive this sensation after you have returned to solid ground?

Imagine that sensation did not stop and you continued to have difficulty perceiving your movement through the environment. Everyday life may seem like a continuous merry go round, spiralling out of control the more you move.

This is a challenge faced by many children who are sensitive to movement or who have difficulty perceiving the movement of their body through the environment and in relation to gravity.

Sensations received through our movement sense (vestibular system) should automatically and unconsciously provide us with a sense of security in terms of our body movements and position in space.

Children who do not accurately perceive this sensation may feel like balloons floating in mid-air. One can only imagine the sense of insecurity and unpredictability that is associated with this. A balloon is unable to predict which way it will be blown by the wind, how far it may go, or if and how it will get back to earth.

A child who is sensitive to movement, frequently:

Feels anxious when moved or when their feet leave the ground
Becomes distressed during movement
Fears heights or avoids jumping down from higher surfaces
Fears climbing onto moving surfaces such as escalators
Prefers to be in control of their movement and environment which may be perceived as difficult or bossy behaviour.
As a result, their interaction and engagement within the environment is limited and this may further hinder the development of their movement sense.

Tips for parents if you suspect that your child may be sensitive to movement sensations:

It is important to be empathetic towards your child’s sense of insecurity with regard to movement.
Assist your child to slowly engage in movement activities and not push them more than they are able to tolerate
Remember that having their feet on the ground is a critical part of them feeling safe and more secure.
Try to encourage your child to actively participate in movement activities where they can guide and control the speed and direction in which they move.
Try to start with gentle forwards and backwards movement as this is more calming than rotational movement. Rotational movement can be incorporated as their tolerance for movement improves. Carefully observe your child for signs of dizziness and stop movement as necessary.
Observe your child closely for signs of discomfort and provide calming sensory input in the form of deep pressure such as a big bear hug to help them feel more secure and organised.

Category: Education

Coping with stress for teachers – how to get to the end of the year in one piece

My child is sensitive to movement – help?

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