The Sensory Environment for Classroom Success

Description

Increasingly, students are finding it difficult to sustain attention, regulate their emotions, and engage meaningfully in classroom learning. Many of these learners demonstrate average to strong cognitive abilities, yet struggle with focus, organization, emotional resilience, or behavioral regulation within the school day. As a result, learning can become effortful, frustrating, and disconnected—for students, educators, and families alike. The modern classroom places complex sensory, emotional, and relational demands on learners. Environmental factors such as noise, visual input, movement demands, and social expectations can significantly influence a student’s capacity to attend, self-regulate, and learn. At the same time, each child’s nervous system processes these demands differently, shaped by their unique sensory profile and emotional regulation capacity. This workshop series explores how the sensory environment of the classroom interacts with the internal world of the learner’s nervous system. Participants will gain insight into how sensory processing, emotional regulation, and relationships influence engagement and learning outcomes. Practical, evidence-informed strategies will be shared to support both whole-classroom design and individual learners, with the aim of fostering curiosity, participation, and sustainable attention in learning environments.

Who should attend this workshop?

Educators navigating increasingly diverse sensory, emotional, and learning profiles in their classrooms

Occupational and Speech Language Therapists supporting students and educators within school environments

School-based professionals (learning support teachers, counsellors, SEN coordinators, psychologists) seeking practical classroom strategies

Parents and caregivers involved in supporting learners at home and contributing to collaborative planning, including IEP or learning support discussions

Outline / Agenda

9.00 to 10.30am                   Designing the Sensory Classroom Environment

Understanding the classroom as a sensory space and how environmental factors influence attention, regulation, and learning.

10.30 to 11.00am                Morning Break

11.00 to 12.30pm                Understanding Sensory Profiles of Learners

Exploring individual sensory processing differences and how these profiles impact engagement, behavior, and learning.

12.30 to 1.30pm                  Lunch

1.30 to 3.00pm                     Relationships Matter: Regulation Through Connection

Examining the role of relationships and co-regulation in supporting emotional safety and learning readiness.

3.00 to 3.30pm                     Afternoon Break

3.30 to 5.00pm                     Integrating Sensory Environments for Classroom Success (Practical Lab)

A guided, hands-on session where participants apply learning from Sessions 1–3 to real classroom scenarios. Participants will analyze classroom environments, consider individual sensory profiles, and identify relational and co-regulation strategies, culminating in a personalized action plan for immediate classroom implementation

Learning Objectives:

• Session 1: Designing the Sensory Classroom Environment
  Participants will be able to identify key sensory features of the classroom environment and explain how these features influence students’ readiness to learn, attention, and participation.

  Session 2: Understanding Sensory Profiles of Learners
  Participants will be able to recognize diverse sensory processing profiles among learners and describe how these differences impact engagement, behavior, and access to curriculum learning.

  Session 3: Relationships Matter: Regulation Through Connection
  Participants will be able to explain how teacher–student relationships and co-regulation strategies support emotional regulation, classroom engagement, and positive learning behaviors.

  Session 4: Integrating Sensory Environments for Classroom Success
  Participants will be able to design practical, context-appropriate classroom strategies that integrate environmental, individual, and relational considerations to support inclusive and effective learning environments.

   

Details

Assessment: Completion of Feedback Form

Provider Name: Bridging Talents

Presenter: Maude Le Roux is a global trainer in multiple methodologies and a mentor to therapists from multidisciplinary teams. She opened her practice, A Total Approach in Glen Mills, PA, USA in 2001. Maude started her training career in 2007 and opened her online academy in 2019. She has designed the Developmental Pathways Model (DPM), which she applies to her own unique assessment and intervention protocol for major diagnosis such as Dyspraxia, ADHD and Executive Functions, Autism, Reading and Writing Disorders, and Trauma and Attachment. Maude served 9 years on the Board of Directors for ATTACh and currently serves on their Advisory Board. She also serves on the Advisory Board for LSWorks (Neuralign program). She is a co-author of two books and more recently wrote a chapter on Trauma and the Body in “Healing Connections” which launched in September 2024. Maude received an award for “Continued child advocacy” through the ATTACh organization in September 2024. She also received the Champion Award through ICDL in November 2024. Maude has a “whole child” approach to care and intervention and equipping the child, while empowering the parent is at the core of who she is as a clinician and trainer.

Target Audience: Occupational Therapists, Speech Language Pathologists, Physical Therapists, Medical Professionals, Social Workers, Psychologists, Educators, Parents

Educational Level: Intermediary

Instructional Methods: PowerPoint, Video

Fee: [email protected]