Piled under a soft mound of colorful foam blocks lies two – or is it three? – Sunnyland students. Moments ago, the room was loud and lively as the kids stacked, knocked down, and rebuilt giant structures with the blocks. 

While these students spend a lot of time in their inclusive classrooms, this dedicated Sensory Room gives kids who need to build communication skills a space to work together in an environment made for both action and reset. 

And after all that work, there’s now a lull as the kids take a moment to calm themselves with a quiet, dark moment inside the pile.

Special Education teacher Heather Smith smiles, watching the kids use the building materials as bulky blankets. “Why do they have to use it the way it’s designed?” she shrugs. 

When paras, teachers, and staff at Sunnyland noted that some of their highest needs learners didn’t have the options or materials to regulate, they applied for a BPSF Educator grant to pilot a Sensory Room in the building. 

A variety of tools and resources keep kids engaged, and allow for breaks that keep them calm and ready to learn. With the introduction of the Sensory Room, “there are a lot more opportunities to be regulated throughout the day,” Sunnyland principal Dustin Heaton notes.

The room is marked with heavy-duty partitions that separate spaces for quieter play, and includes materials and tools that help kids communicate in different ways. A giant “cuddle box” occupies a closet; an enthusiastic student dives into the soft cube that envelopes his body in a stretchy, dark cocoon of material, allowing him to rest a jumpy body. 

The BPSF is now funding Sensory Rooms for every elementary, over a multi-year period. Materials and tools are being standardized across the district so the highest quality and most effective resources are in each room.

“We believe that the more opportunities students can access their daily learning, the better their reading and math scores will be, and we also believe this will increase belonging which in turn can decrease behaviors,” says Heaton. 

And it’s worked for the first Sensory Room in the district: Sunnyland has gone from an average of 3.11 office referrals a day in 2022 to just 1.65 currently in 2026.

 Educator Grants help kids access ways to stay engaged and regulated through their school days. Your donation keeps students learning.