Sproutz Eco Friendly Classroom Furniture

SensoryEdge is proud to announce the addition of the Sproutz Classroom Furniture line by Jonti-Craft. American made and eco friendly. All Sproutz® products are GREENGUARD Children & Schools* indoor air quality certified. Sproutz products are made in the USA and have a 5 year warranty. Created using a medium density fiberboard panel manufactured from recycled wood fiber. Sproutz construction features:

• KYDZ Strong: Construction employs the dowel pin technique. This leaves the thickness of the material intact where most of the stress occurs. Increases the already noteworthy strength of the piece by 30% or more
• KYDZ Safe edges: All edges, front, back and base are fully rounded to create KYDZSafe edges. The recessed backs enhance the strength and appearance
• KYDZ TUFF finish: Finish is as tough as the coating used on gym floors. Resists stains, won't yellow and is easy to clean

In addition, Sproutz has potential LEED® v3 credit support: MRc4, 5, 7 & IEQc4.4 Formaldehyde-free adhesive system, is CHPS compliant - California section 01350 approved, and CPSIA Compliant and material meets CARB ATCM Phase 2 emission limits - CARB NAF Exempt.

About Jonti-Craft - As a leading provider of quality furniture for the early learning market, Jonti-Craft offers a wide selection of creatively designed products. All Jonti-Craft products are packed with features that make them safe, functional and affordable. Every single corner and edge are rounded for safety. To top it off, Jonti-Craft products are built using the strongest construction techniques available to ensure that your furniture purchase will last a lifetime!

*The GREENGUARD Children & Schools Certification Program offers stricter indoor air quality certification criteria for products intended for use in schools, daycares or other environments where children spend significant periods of time.

Moving to a New Home. Will it Affect Your Children?

In all the hustle and bustle of a big move, parents can lose sight on what kind of impact such a large change has on their children. While a move across the country will have a bigger impact than a move across town, any kind of large change in their life is bound to effect them.


Possible Impact On Children

• Leaving Their Life Behind - For children, the thought of leaving behind what may be the only home they've known can be incredibly difficult. Even if a child has moved before, another move can still be seen as a major upheaval. Familiar locations such as a school or church will be left behind. More importantly, the many friends that your child may have cultivated will no longer be an integral part of your child's life, and leaving behind all the familiarity of their old home can be very difficult to accept for a young one.
• An Unfamiliar Place - It may take some time for a new home to really sink in as "home" to a child. The sites and sounds will be different, they likely won't know anyone, and they may experience feelings of loneliness and disconnect.
• Your Stress Is Their Stress - Children often mimic adult behavior, and if they see their parents becoming overly stressed due to all the details and difficulties inherent in a move like planning ahead, getting the house organized, and dealing with companies that provide moving services, they may begin to emulate that behavior.

What You Can Do To Help
Even the most well-adjusted child is going to go through some anxiety in a move. As a parent, there are some things you can do to help your child adjust to their new home and situation.

• Social Media - Thanks to services like Facebook, it is very easy to keep up with friends and family that live far away, which may help alleviate some of the disconnect your children may feel. Depending on your children's age and maturity this may be a way to keep up with some of their friends. You can take advantage of other modes of communication such as phone calls or video chat to keep in touch with the people they left behind.
• Social Interaction - While you don't want your kids to forget about their old friends, it is important to get them out into the community to make new ones. School is the most obvious way to do this, but there are other avenues to take as well. If you are a church going family, then various church functions provide a great way for your kids to meet other children. Communities often have programs that can get kids together like sports or library reading groups.
• Setting Up Their New Room - Kids need to establish a sense of identity and ownership in their new surroundings, and letting them take charge in setting up their new room can help them establish some roots.
• Exploring the Town - A new location can be scary and unfamiliar to a child. Take some time to explore your town, either by walking around town or by visiting various shops and attractions in the area. The more your child learns about their new home, the more comfortable they should be living in it.

Above all else, you have to be there to listen to your child if they do have trouble adjusting to your move. Listen to what they say and offer an encouraging voice to help them through the transition. They depend on you to be their point of stability through everything, so don't let them down!

April is Autism Awareness Month

Having a special needs child is difficult. Until you walk in those shoes you can never really understand what parents of a special needs child go through. April is Autism Awareness month and we thought we'd provide you with a few links to help you better get to know the people who face this disorder.

Robert MacNeil of PBS has an Autistic grandson. Please take a few minutes to watch Nick's story.

http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/health/jan-june11/autism_04-18.html

One of the most important statements the story says is, "Researchers now believe there is no simple genetic cause, that autism may involve multiple genetic pathways, and toxic materials in the environment may trigger the symptoms of autism. Autism once was considered only a brain disorder. Now, more doctors say it often involves serious physical illness."

There is still a ton of research that needs to be done. Is Autism affecting more children or have doctors widened their net when diagnosing kids with Autism? There is no simple answer and Autistic children are not all alike. Some can function like their friends and siblings (high functioning), others are like the Dustin Hoffman character in Rainman (more towards mid to low) and some Autistic kids need around the clock care with a brain that can function but a body that won't listen to commands.

Carly's Voice is another touching piece from ABC news. This is an amazing story that we hope with today's technology will help Autistic children communicate with the outside world.

Do you have a link to a special story? Let us know by responding to this post. Autism is not going away. Let’s help teach adults with typical kids that special needs does not mean weird or dumb. If they teach their children to reach out and help special needs kids, then they’ll feel great about themselves.