INSPIRATIONS

Sensory room enhances learning
at Carlyle Elementary School
3
This project was made possible
through fundraising and generous
donations from a variety of interested
parties in the Carlyle family. Half the
proceeds were raised by the John and
Styvia Kyres family, whose daughter
has special needs and attends Carlyle.
They held a fundraising dinner
at their family-run restaurant and donated
all the money raised to the sensory
room project, resulting in covering
half the costs. One quarter of the
funding was also provided through
the EMSB B.A.S.E. Daycare program
headed by Rosa Fuoco; the last
quarter was covered by the EMSB
Deputy Director General, a position
then held by Roma Medwid.
Spring / Summer 2016 - INSPIRATIONS
INSPIRATIONS
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English Montreal School Board
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Mike Cohen
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Daniel Smajovits
Students enjoy the sensory room at Carlyle Elementary School.
(Photo credit, Daniel Smajovits)
By Tania Piperni, M.Ed
Carlyle Elementary School, an International
Baccalaureate School in
the Town of Mont Royal within the
English Montreal School Board (EMSB),
inaugurated their sensory room on June
1, 2015. As an English Core School, Carlyle
has many students with special needs
among their population, including those
with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD).
The school saw a need to create a safe haven
to help all students self-regulate, relax,
and learn in small groups. This sensory
room is specifically designed to develop
children’s senses: hearing, sight, touch and
smell, through lighting, music and objects.
The room has also become a vital therapeutic
tool for children with ASD as well
as those with limited communication abilities.
“When using the sensory room, the students
enjoy a range of sensory experiences
that can enhance their therapy, learning, and
relaxation,” says Anna-Maria Borsellino,
principal at Carlyle International School.
Once all the funding was raised, the
renovations had to get started. Julian
Ramsay and his team at the Sherwin
Williams Company came to the rescue!
Through donated workers’ time
as well as all the necessary paint,
they turned this simple meeting room
into a beautiful, safe room.
Each day a variety of students at
Carlyle International enter into their
sensory room where the interactive
equipment helps them regulate, reenergize
and soothe themselves. This
is due to the collaboration between
a school and its community towards
differentiation and acceptance of all
learners.
Tania Piperni is the autism spectrum
disorders consultant at the English
Montreal School Board.
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