East Avenue MS Classroom Calming Corners

Funded Sep 9, 2023

When I first saw that people had given to my project, I felt supported and so very grateful. As a school counselor, I do my best to support all 500+ students at our school. I am not in the classroom, every day, every period like a teacher. I am lucky that we have amazon teachers who do their best to support all students academically, socially, and emotionally. This project was a way for me to get more tools and strategies into the classrooms for the teachers and students to utilize daily.

With your help, I was able to deliver classroom calming materials to all 12 teachers who requested them. (That means we now have 13 general education and 5 special education classrooms utilizing calming materials!) Teachers have already begun to set up their calming corners and implement strategies for students to use the materials. Those who have been able to make the materials available to students are reporting positive feedback! The students are using the fidgets and soothing sounds to regulate during class. They enjoy having the same/similar materials in multiple classrooms.

In addition to the yoga mat, sensory tools, fidgets, and small sound machine with headphones, we also included a pack of flip cards and posters about deep breathing and grounding exercises. All of the breathing and grounding exercises are non-disruptive, self-managing, calming strategies that students can use during class time. My hope is that students will learn to use these tools and practice these strategies in their classrooms and take that knowledge with them when they go home, when they move on to high school, etc.”

With gratitude,

Ms. Haley