Responding to Trauma: How and Why to Conduct a Sensory Audit of Your Setting

One boy kept fighting when his class came in from lunch. It turned out he couldn't bear the smell of the room after dinner. Once he had some scented dough to hold and sniff, the fights stopped.

Children who've experienced trauma, and those with sensory processing differences, can be set off by lights, noise, smells and textures many times a day, often without knowing why. A sensory audit helps you find those triggers and do something about them. You'll look at the physical space, and also at how adults respond and at your setting's rules, from uniform to lunchtime. Along the way you'll try calming techniques you can use with a whole class, such as palm pressing and chair pushes, and learn why deep pressure works when light touch doesn't.

You'll come away with a sensory audit document, put together by an occupational therapist, to use in your own setting.