By
C.J. Hirschfield
Tory
Rose Full will graduate from UC Berkeley this year with a double major in psychology
and social welfare. But we think it’s her minor – “education and the developing
child” — that led her to become Fairyland’s UC Berkeley Public Service Center
intern.
When
she arrived, she took on a project we’ve long wanted to implement: increasing
Fairyland’s accessibility for guests with special needs. We want to create more
opportunities for guests with special
needs to connect to the park – not just by removing barriers but also by
delivering active benefits. We’re delighted about the work she’s doing, and
thought you might want to hear about it.
Tory Full in Fairyland's Chapel of Peace, a spot we've identified as a quiet space for kids with special needs |
Tory’s first job was information-gathering: discovering the need. She developed a feedback form for teachers and guests who have visited Fairyland with children with special needs, even using our database to contact guests from the past five years.
Consulting
with experts from groups such as Room to Bloom’s Developmental Playgroup, Tory
learned strategies to help caregivers and children in their classes. She spoke
with Fairyland staffers to learn about our different spaces and about what the
park currently offers special needs field trips. Online research helped her understand
what parks, museums, schools and hospitals use to increase accessibility and
inclusion. She was also able to investigate educational resources related to
autism, sensory processing disorder and physical disabilities.
Research
in hand, Tory and Fairyland’s director of community outreach and education,
Vicky Chen, starting planning three new park features: a social story, a park
connections map and a “calming cart.”
The
social story is a first-person story created to help children with special
needs like
ASD (Autistic Spectrum Disorder) feel prepared for their trip and know what to
expect at Fairyland. Tory took photos throughout the park, printed them out,
and added kid-friendly wording that includes guides (“When I need a break, I can go with my adult to
the front office and pick toys from the basket that can help me feel more
comfortable”), and fill-in-the-blanks (“Sometimes it can be loud, and I might
feel ___________ . I can tell my adult when I need a break. One of the
places I can go when I want to have some quiet space is The Chapel of Peace”).
To
create the park connections map, Tory walked the park many times, looking and
listening for areas that have high sensory engagement and those that are peaceful
and calming. Her goal was to have a map for parents, teachers and aides that
clearly identifies accessible
restrooms, sense-engaging spaces, rest areas, quieter spaces and drinking
water. She tested the map with one field trip last month, and was happy to see
classroom aides using it. Now she’s waiting for their written responses.
Fairyland's new park connections map |
The
Calming Cart is a transportable
cart with sensory play items to help with grounding, emotion
regulation and relaxation. Tory wants it to be easily
accessible for kids so they can take the lead role in their self-regulation.
She also thinks it will be useful for special-ed teachers and aides during
field trips. She
came up with ideas that use the various senses, grounding them when appropriate
in storybook themes such as “The Princess and the Pea.” We will also keep noise-reduction
headphones at the front desk for kids to use if they request them.
Tory
will be with us at Fairyland until the spring. Here are some of the other goals
she’s identified:
- Creating a new page on our website for guests with disabilities, to include information about parking and drop-off, ride accessibility, and nutritional content of our cafĂ©’s food offerings
- Offering printouts of our puppet scripts at the front desk to hearing-impaired guests who request them
- Increasing the visibility of fictional characters with special needs (books, paintings, puppets) around the park
- Increasing the number of books in our Reading Room that feature kids with disabilities
- Creating signs around the park indicating “quieter areas” and adding signs in the garden depicting senses children can use to engage with various plants
- Exploring the creation of a sensory wall that could be co-constructed with children and families in the community
- Adding Braille titles to our Storybook Boxes.
The
biggest challenge for the special needs classes is transportation to and from
the park, something we will focus on in our fundraising efforts.
Tory
might technically be graduating in June, but she’s already earned her advanced Fairyland
degree by taking us to the next level of accessibility, ensuring that our
magical park is a place where everyone can create, imagine, play and learn—each
in their own special way.
__
C.J. Hirschfield has served for 17 years as the executive director of Children’s Fairyland, where she is charged with the overall operation of the nation’s oldest storybook theme park.
This is really good! I like the idea of putting up signs telling people that certain places are quiet areas. I was at the park just the other day and there were kids screaming in the Chapel of Peace, so I think the signs would really help not only kids with special needs get the accommodations they need, but also neurotypical kids understand why they can't shout and scream in places that are designated as "quiet areas."
ReplyDeleteThanks, Corinne! You're right: the signs will benefit everyone!
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