Brookland, AR – (JonesboroRightNow.com) – Aug. 5, 2025 – Four teachers at Brookland Primary School will have some new tools to help students who may be facing difficulties in learning in a traditional classroom environment.
On July 26, the school announced via Facebook that four of its teachers, Jenna Craft, Kat Burns, Alexis Warnick, and Chrisy Young, received grants from Ag for Autism to help with buying sensory items to help support their students.
The teachers said upon learning the news, they got excited, with Young explaining it is important to provide their students with the tools they need to be successful.
Warnick said she feels everybody will benefit from the extra resources in her class.
Burns said grants like these make it easier to have those who are in special education feel seen and heard, giving the students the resources they want to have.
“Everyone gets pencils and glue sticks and markers and this and that, but these are special tools that help these students learn,” Burns said. “I don’t have to take it out of my paycheck, like it’s given to me as a gift. It’s really appreciated.”
Each of the teachers had different reasons for wanting the grants. Craft said the students are more hands-on learners, and they needed new ways to enhance their learning, like flexible seating options, that would help them stay on task longer.
“What works for one student might not work for the next, and that’s what you see every day,” Craft said. “Having received this grant, you’ll be able to get multiple tools to be like, ‘Well, this isn’t working, but I can try this.’”
By providing these resources, Warnick said the goal is to ensure students are in the classroom as much as possible and are not pulled out so often, as this leads to students missing important content.
Craft added that with how the structure of the classrooms has changed, it’s a necessity as everyone learns in their own way.
“If they’ve got that wobbly seat, then they’re going to be able to access what you’re teaching better. If they’ve got a bouncy band, or if they’ve got an AAC device, it’s about getting those kids the tools to become accessible,” Young said.
Not only will the resources help with the students’ learning abilities, Young said, they can also help with other purposes, such as if the students were at an assembly.
“A kid is starting to melt down because it’s so loud, you can hand them a pair of noise-canceling headphones. I pop them on, and they’re fine,” Young said. “Sometimes, if they were having a bad day, they’d wear them on the way on, on the bus.”
“It also teaches the student their own self-regulation, so they know when they’re feeling that way, if it’s loud at a pep rally or some loud noises are bothering them, they know, ‘OK, I have this option,’” Warnick said.
Craft said they want parents to know they will do anything they can to meet their students’ needs.
“We’re not just going to be like, ‘Oh, well, this didn’t work. So, you know, too bad.’ We’re going to do anything in our power to find that one thing that the child enjoys,” Craft said.
As for advice on what other schools should do if they are struggling to keep students’ attention, Warnick said don’t be afraid to ask for help.
“Take the chance, apply, and do your research, and ask your fellow teachers for advice on what you think they might need,” Warnick said. “I’ve learned about all kinds of sensory things that I had no idea existed, and it’s just been great.”