Sensory Box and Report Cards

Since starting kindergarten, we have been getting regular reports about Morgan having difficulty paying attention. We've been trying to explain to the teacher her Sensory Processing Disorder and how it affects her learning but she's hasn't been very receptive. FINALLY, she asked to work with the therapist on techniques she can use in the classroom to help Morgan's focus. So last week, I put together a sensory box for the classroom. Oral stimulation helps Morgan calm down and focus so the box consisted of gum, chewy candy like Starbursts, a water bottle with a straw and a couple of chew sticks, that look like below. (As a side note, she calls the chew sticks her chew toys. I think we need to come up with a better name so it doesn't sound the same as something a dog plays with!)
I checked in with the teacher this week to see how the box has been working. I am so happy to report that the box has been working out extremely well. The teacher has noticed that Morgan is much more engaged and attentive when she has an item from her box. Also, Morgan has been doing a wonderful job of self-regulating herself by getting an item before the teacher has to direct her to do so. This is great news!

We also received her report card this week. Academically she is still doing great. She received proficient in all areas with a few exceptions. She received partially proficient in knowing one less from 5-1 and in spelling 11 or more words from the high frequency word list. With the spelling, she probably just couldn't think of 11 words from the list since she is a better speller then she is a reader. And finally, she received Advanced in all four areas of reading.

Looks like the second half of school should go smoother then the first.