Blog #388: My Thoughts on School Spirit Week as a Former Special Education Student (Part 2)
- Jeffrey Snyder
- Nov 21, 2023
- 3 min read
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Continuing from the previous blog, we are now in the period where most schools are getting their school spirit on the rise. However, sensory friendly/neurodivergent students detest spirit week greatly and a lot of schools often view this as the student trying to be a party pooper when they are really not.
That’s why part 2 of this blog about how I view school spirit week as a former special education student will largely focus on 5 ideas schools can use to make this highly stimulating period of the school year easier.
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5. Plan an escape route for the student
Any escape route is a good route for students with sensory friendly needs. If the school spirit activities are in the gymnasium for example (where a lot of school spirit events are), most students will more than likely sit with their fellow classmates (ex. freshman students in one set of bleachers, sophomores, juniors and seniors in the others).
For sensory friendly students, teachers and administrators can have the students be as close to the door as possible if the student needs to have a sensory break. It also doesn’t matter if the student is any of the grade levels, what does matter is their mental health and having an escape route will hopefully quell any sensory overloads that could pose as a distraction to the other students.
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4. Have a quiet spot in the school be reserved for the student
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So, now that the student has gotten a pass from the school spirit week activities, there has to be an area of the school that the student can go to. This can range from the student’s classroom or homebase to somewhere quiet like the library or the main office.
Most sensory friendly students will often go to the spot that is farthest from the gymnasium or spirit week site as much as possible where the spirit week activity is as minimal as possible. The more minimal there is, the more normality can be found.
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3. Livestream the Spirit Week Activities
One of the most popular alternatives that schools can embrace, especially during school spirit week, is livestreaming the events to other parts of the school. This is especially true for special education students that can’t handle the events to begin with because of overstimulation or if they are a flight risk. Most sensory friendly students will often try and escape a stressful situation which can be a nightmare for teachers and administrators.
Livestreaming will give the student the opportunity to experience spirit week from the comfort of their own classroom while also giving them the freedom to stim if needed.
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2. Provide headphones or earplugs
Now, there are going to be some students who want to be a part of spirit week, but they are more than likely going to be at risk for overstimulation from the activities. If in the IEP or 504 plan that students can wear headphones or earbuds for large scale events or situations, then it should be strongly encouraged by any means necessary. Wearing headphones or earbuds will not only give the student a chance to have some sensory control of the situation and allow them to enjoy the event without getting a sense of overstimulation.
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1. Creating Your Own Independent Spirit Week
Finally, probably the more popular choice that special education classrooms are taking to heart is to create their own spirit weeks totally independent from the school’s. Let’s be real here, sensory friendly students will often be taken aback by their teachers and peers wearing different clothes and costumes that they can’t sensory process. Plus, it’s more than likely that they are embracing a theme that they don’t even like.
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Special education teachers can ask their sensory friendly students how they want to celebrate spirit week and these can range from celebrating Disney one day, going semi-formal one day, etc. The possibilities are endless and they could be ideas that the school itself can embrace for the future. But what does matter is that independent school spirit week ideas not only give the student a sense of normality, but also allows them to be themselves without being frowned upon by the rest of the student body.
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So, that’s my top 5 ideas to make things easier for special education/sensory friendly students during school spirit week. I wish you all a pleasant Thanksgiving with family and friends! Have fun and be safe!
Catch you all later!!
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