Useful+Websites

===This page contains a list of website links that are useful in working with students with sensory needs in the schools - add your sites here! ===

[] This is a fun useful site to order fidgets for the classroom or yourself. submitted by Alicia C-G

@http://www.cindysautisticsupport.com/sensoryintegration.html This website provides many lists to a variety of resources/links about autism. One such list is about Sensory Integration which led me to this article. The website can be overwhelming and yet very helpful. As with all websites you need to be careful as some links are broken and some may be questionable. The following quote is from the above site which had a link to IRCA (Indiana Resource Center for Autism. This is a easily read concise article for professionals, families and those studying to become professionals. It defines sensory integration, what happens if a child has processing issues and talks about sensory diet and working together. "A diet of sensory activities can do many things for a child over a period of time. “It can calm an over-aroused or active child, increase the activity of an under aroused/passive child, prevent uncomfortable reactions to sensory input, reduce sensory seeking (self-stim) behavior, increase productivity and comfort for the child, and teach the child self-regulation strategies.” This takes time and cannot be done in isolation by an OT; it must be a combined effort between home, school, therapy, and all involved in supporting the individual with ASD and sensory issues. " from Sensory Integration: Tips to Consider **Contributed By Kim Davis and Melissa Dubie** submitted by Alicia C-G

@http://www.bry-backmanor.org/picturerecipes.html This site has recipes with pictures which are helpful in school and at home. You can find more websites for recipes with and without pictures at http://www.cindysautisticsupport.com submitted by Alicia C-G

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This site has been very useful for ordering materials for children with sensory processing issues for both school and home. I recently passed this site on to a family who has a young adolescent daughter (6th grader) with significant tactile sensitivites. She is now developing and also has started to menstruate ...need I say more? The soft bras, underwear and bicycle shorts (to hold it all in one place) have been very helpful. We also use their noise reducing headphones in our schools. Joan

[] I found this 10 minute webcast on the website [|www.howcast.com] by typing in sensory processing. The webcast is a 10 min interview with Jean Esposito a Mass. OT. I think this webcast is useful for inservice for staff and or parents. The website is useful for alot of other info for example I also typed in preschool and found a webcast of a woman teaching preschool songs/fingerplays which I found useful for my classroom. Be careful as you can see there are other webcasts/videos that are "interesting" Alicia

 [|www.publicschoolot.com] **- //Connecting Public School Occupational Therapists with Information and Each Other// This is a website developed by Jan Hollenbeck as a part of her doctoral requirements at Tufts University. It has pages and content related to sensory processing and the role of the school therapist in addressing sensory needs. This site also has a forum where you can go to post questions and communicate with other OTs working in the schools.

[] Sensory Processing Disorder Resource Center There's too much advertising for my taste, but there are some really useful lists. I really like the one about heavy work. **

[|www.sensory-processing-disorder.com] Many links for both professionals and parents, including research articles, on-line store and suggested strategies organized by topic. Also current updates to many blogs which parents may find interesting, if not comforting to know that others are experiencing the same or similar issues. -Deb

[|www.ot-innovations.com] Tina Champagne is a great speaker. She is geared toward adolescents and adults but has many great universal suggestions. Paula LB

[|http://village-therapy.com] Small, local company, located in Saugus, Massachusetts. Available products include weighted lap pads, blankets and vests. I purchased some vests several years ago when Diane (co-founder of Village Therapies) worked in my school. Links to an article and also a book about using weighted blankets written by Diane. Products available for purchase and also a **printable sensory menu**: [] -Deb

[] The founder and Executive Director of the SPD Foundation is Lucy Jane Miller, PhD, OTR., the author of Sensational Kids: __Hope and Help for Children with Sensory Processing Disorder.__ This site has research, education and advocacy information. Opportunities for e-learning classes. (Also a link for donations!) You can sign up to receive SPD news and reports, there's a sensory store,If you missed grabbing a flyer on your way out the door during the 9/25 institute session, you can find a link to the Sensory Showtime event @ Springfield College (October 15th). The website can be viewed in Spanish, German and Japanese. **INVESTIGACIÓN** de las causas, diagnóstico y tratamiento del Trastorno del procesamiento sensorial. (SPD en inglés). -Deb
 * FORSCHUNG** über die Ursachen, Diagnose und Behandlung von Wahrnehmungsverarbeitungsstörungen. (that's a mouthful!)
 * 研究** 知覚処理障害の原因、診断、治療を研究

[|www.sensory-processing-disorder.com] This is a general website with lots of information on sensory processing disorder. There are many strategies as well as links to other related sites. I haven't spent a lot of time going through the site yet but it looks like it could be useful.

http://drivethrumenus.net/ This is the website for the "Drive Thru Menu" Program. This is a great program for parents and teachers. The exercises are for Attention and Strength. They are designed to give children the sensory/muscular needs so they can stay focused while working independently. Sherry D.

www.otseeker.com This is helpful to research info. A database of systematic reviews and randomized controlled trials created by Australian OTs. It is described in an article in ADVANCE for Occupational Therapy Practitioners, Nov 24, 2008 Vol 24 No 24. Judy

The Mass DOE or DESE is a good website for educators and has some useful information that I have used or referred to working in the school setting and for looking up the laws that govern special education in the schools. It is not the easiest website for navigation, however, there is a drop down menu in the top right area of the home page that helps you in your search. The general link is: http://www.doe.mass.edu/ This is where you can get the data collection sheet that Vicky mentioned recently that we are using to collect data on a student as a result of our collaborative meeting. To get to this link go to: www.doe.mass.edu/mcas/alt/resources.html. When you download the 2010 Educator's manual of MCAS-Alt you will find the data collection forms on pg. 87,88, 89. Another good area on the website is the Headlines at the top of the page. Read about the newly formed relationship between ESE and WGBH/WGBY that links online resourses for teachers at www.teachersdomain.org. Freida

Web site: [|www.iris.peabody.vanderbilt.edu/] , Excellent website for resources on inclusion and strategies. It seems like a user friendly site that covers “evidence-based and scientifically-validated strategies” according to their home page. I did find some good articles and information regarding the Collaboration process for our project. Also found good information on related services, teacher info, etc. They have info briefs, modules, podcasts and activities. Vicky

I also have found [|www.spdfoundation.net] to be helpful. I liked this web site especially for the “Treatment Tips” in the Archives. They had a lot of good information to pass along to parents so you don’t have to reinvent the wheel. Tips on what to do over the summer, how to make holidays easier, etc. It didn’t actually help our project much but it was a fun place to find during the browsing process!! Vicky

On the IRIS site, there was a great info brief on he collaboration process: Collaboration: A Must for Teachers in Inclusive Educational Settings by Hwa Lee, Ph.D, Assistant Professor, College of Education and Human Services at Seton Hall University. Excellent brief on the collaborative process. Includes 7 Characteristics of Collaboration, a model step for shared problem solving, and prerequisites in order to be able to collaborate with others. All great! Vicky