The first step when thinking about creating a sensory hallway is to get approval from the school board and the school principal. Before meeting with the administrators, you need to identify the purpose, probably cost, and benefits to help back up why your school needs a sensory hallway. It is also a good idea to bring videos and pictures to help depict a full picture as to what a sensory hallway is so all parties will understand what you want to create.

Things to Consider:

• Create a team: During this first stage, gather colleagues that will help you create the best sensory hallway possible. Some people to consider bringing on this project include the special education teacher, physical therapist, occupational therapist, custodian, guidance counselor, and add others that will contribute to your cause.
• Custodians: When placing anything on the floors and walls the custodians need to be consulted. This might create some push back due to the extra time and considerations needed to upkeep the sensory hallway. If this happens, make sure to describe the process and time it takes to create a pathway and possibly show a video or pictures to help create a better visualization of what the final product will look like.

Upon receiving approval from the school administrators, the next step is to find the appropriate hallway to put the sensory hallway in. When considering the location of the sensory hallway, work closely with school personnel including the principal, custodians, lunch ladies, etc. because those are the people who are moving the most equipment and know which hallways to avoid. Also think about which population of students will use this the most and if the pathway can be placed close to those students. For example, right in front of the special education room or resource room. No matter where you place the sensory hallway, make sure to consider the following:

Things to Consider:

• High Traffic vs. Low Traffic: When choosing a place for the pathway, it is better to place it in a low traffic area away from lunch lines, high traffic entrance/exit points, and any other aspects that may ruin the vinyl faster.
• Weather: If you live in an area where it rains or snows a lot, consider choosing a hallway away from these traffic areas. The water will work its way under the vinyl and the mud will make the sensory very dirty.

The third step is to choose which movements you want to include in the sensory hallway. This is where having an occupational therapist on your team is very important. Occupational therapists have studied for years different sensory integration therapies and activities that will be implemented into your sensory hallway. Remember to include basic motor movements, locomotor movements, and sensory-based movements.

Things to Consider:

• Theme: Choosing a theme may help in deciding what activities you want to include or how the activities will look within the pathway. For example, instead of having simple stepping stones, make them be leaves on a flower and number each one.
• Research: There are so many different sensory hallways out there. Look up different hallways to gather ideas for what activities you can include.
• The Needs of Your Students: Think about what goals and needs that each student has and how you can work on these goals through the sensory hallway. This will narrow down the activity choices you have to make the best pathway you can.

By now you have chosen what activities you want to implement and theme you want for the sensory hallway. The next step is to draw a layout for the sensory hallway. This layout works best when drawn on graph paper. The squares of the graph paper should closely mimic what the tiles on the floor look like. For example, 1 ft. by 1 ft. tile may look like a 1 in. by 1 in. square on the graph paper. Some other aspects to consider are as follows:

Things to Consider:

• Mark Down Everything: When creating the layout, mark down where the water fountains are, windows, doors, fire extinguishers, etc. Anything that may interfere with how you lay down the vinyl needs to be marked on the layout.
• Where to Start: It works best to design the beginning and end of the sensory hallway and then work to the middle. This ensures that the activities you want for the beginning and end fit and the rest of the pathway can be maneuvered to fit throughout the middle.
• Color: Once everything is drawn out, add color! This way you know exactly how much vinyl you need to buy later on.

With a layout now figured out, you and the team will be able to create a more concrete budget for what supplies you need to buy to create the whole sensory hallway. Depending on if the school is willing to sponsor this project by donating money or not, you may need to go to outside resources to have enough funds to support the pathway. Some tips when writing a grant, have specific, measurable goals, a list of all supplies needed, and a purpose and need for creating a sensory hallway in your school. To find available grants, look online for local or state-wide grants in your area.

The sixth step is to create a detailed supply list and buy all the supplies on the list. Following the layout made in step five, make a list of how many different colored rolls of vinyl you need. This is the biggest amount of supplies that you will need. Some other supplies you need to decide upon is to use a Cricut or Cameo to cut the vinyl, tool kits, and vinyl mats. Before going out to buy supplies, do your research to see there are any coupons or sales happening to help cut down on costs.

Things to Consider:

• Michaels: Michaels has all the supplies you will need to create the sensory hallway. This store also has many coupons online to help cut down on prices.
• Vinyl: Use the name brand vinyl. The most vinyl choices are the Cricut vinyl. If you are using a Cameo, this kind of vinyl will work the exact same. When selecting the colors of vinyl, you need to choose the matte finish. This looks best on the floor and lasts longer in comparison to glitter or a shiny finish.
• Cutting Mats: You will need to buy cutting mats that the vinyl sticks to and is inserted into the cutting machine to cut each shape. The regular mats are too sticky at first and can create creases or tear the vinyl when removing. If you buy the light sticky mats there is a lesser chance of the vinyl being damaged.
• Tool Kit: The Cricut Basic Tool Kit is an essential tool kit to have for laying and peeling vinyl. These tools help to pick out the small details on the vinyl, smooth out air bubbles, and anything else that you may think of.

The next step after buying supplies is to design the shapes and elements that will make up each activity in the sensory hallway. In order to do this, first you need to download the software that comes with either the Cameo or Cricut you have bought. Before cutting everything onto the vinyl for your pathway, play around with the different settings and tools on the software. You can even print shapes onto regular paper or construction paper as a test run before printing onto the vinyl. Some of the tools that you will use the most for the sensory hallway include the trace tool, eraser, blade pressure, and layering feature. The trace tool allows you to get just the lines from a picture without the added colors. This allows for a better, more accurate cut on the vinyl. The eraser helps get rid of any little lines that are not needed or to clear the board. Blade pressure is very important. You need to choose the blade pressure every time you cut. Make sure it is set to vinyl, paper, construction paper, etc. so that it matches the paper type you are using. The layering feature outlines the picture put then you can deconstruct that image so you can print each feature in different colors. For example, for a frog you would print the body in green but the eyes in white so you would use the layering feature to move the eyes from the original picture to print at a different time.

Things to Consider:

• Clipart: Clipart pictures are some of the best to use because they are simple and easy to transfer onto the Cameo/Cricut software to trace and layer. Other options for pictures are to use the ones that come with the software but those can cost extra money.

Follow the step below to cut the vinyl properly:

1. Upload the image. You should download the image from Google, Safari, etc. onto your desktop or a folder then upload into the software.
2. Enlarge the picture to see if there are clear outside lines so it will cut straight. If it is not straight, you may need to choose a different picture or delete the fuzzy part and draw a new line after tracing.
3. Use the trace feature. This will give you just the lines of the picture which is what the Cameo/Cricut will cut. Drag the original image away to see the traced image.
4. Make any adjustments needed such as drawing extra lines.
5. Size it. Adjust image to the size you need for the pathway. Put the image closer to the upper right-hand corner to use the least amount of vinyl you can. This extra vinyl is good for smaller images such as letters and numbers.
6. Choose the correct colored vinyl that you print on. Load it onto the sticky mat so it aligns best at the upper right-hand corner.
7. Adjust the blade pressure on the software.
8. Load the vinyl onto the Cameo/Cricut, print, and unload.
9. Use the tool kit to peel the vinyl off of the mat without making any creases.

Step nine is to lay down all the vinyl. You must complete all the vinyl cutting before laying it down. This will make placing the vinyl go smoother and be done quicker. Once everything is cut out, clean the floor and walls. This can be done with an all-purpose cleaner that can get rid of dirt, mud, dust, etc. that could get under the vinyl creating unwanted bubbles. After cleaning the floor and walls, allow everything to fully dry. If the floor is still wet when placing vinyl, it will not stick as well and water will be stuck underneath the vinyl and ruin it.

Things to Consider:

• Test the Vinyl: Before laying down the entire sensory hallway, it is a good idea to test the vinyl on the floor where you are putting the pathway. This way you will know if the vinyl will hold up with traffic and if it sticks well to the flooring.
• Mark the Vinyl: If you want a shape to lay down a certain way, mark just outside of it where the top is for that shape. For example, when laying stars, we marked which tip is the top tip so whomever was helping to lay vinyl knew exactly how we wanted it to look.
• Lay Inside to Outside: The best way to avoid getting air bubbles under the vinyl is to start by laying from the middle to the outside of the shape. If there are air bubbles, use the tool from the kit with a flat edge to push out each bubble.

Once all the vinyl is placed on the floor, it is time to wax the floor. This is the last step in making the sensory hallway! To help prepare for waxing the floor, communicate early with the custodial staff at your school to set a date when you want to wax the flooring. This way you ensure that they are available. This step is crucial because it seals the vinyl to the floor making it last longer.

Things to Consider:

• Mark off the Area: When cleaning the floor, laying vinyl, or waxing the floor make sure to clearly mark off the area. This will keep people out and preserve the vinyl before and after waxing until it is ready to be used.
• Weekend: The best time to wax the floor is a Friday night or Saturday morning. This allows the floor to be completely finished come Monday so that students can use the sensory hallway.

The final step before allowing students to use the sensory hallway is to train all the staff in the school on how to properly use the pathway. This can be done in many different ways: during a staff development day, in small groups, or by email. It is better to train staff in person and allow them all to take a turn going through the pathway, however, if this does not work than an email will be just fine. When you are training the staff talk about its purpose and the goals you have for your students, the different movements and how to do them, and what The Zones of Regulation are and how they work within the sensory hallway.

Things to Consider:

• Video: Creating a video of how to use the sensory hallway is a good way to show the staff how to properly use it. It gives them a good visual that they can keep and show their students as well.
• Model the Movements: Make sure that you show the staff how to do each movement and the purpose of that movement. As PE teachers, we can forget that others do not know the right cues for movements. Explain the cues to the teachers so that they can help their students execute each movement correctly.
• Bulletin Board: To help remind staff how to use the hallway and why we are using this intervention tool, create a bulletin board next to the hallway explaining these essential items.