Mount Kisco Elementary School Unveils Its Sensory Room

“I’m just going to keep building, and once it feels like it’s finished, I’ll see what it is.” Alek Echeverria, a first grader at Mount Kisco Elementary School, was joyfully fitting colorful pieces together on a Lego wall in the school’s brand-new Sensory Room.

The space came together after MKES’s Innovative Learning Committee and Superintendent Dr. Rob Glass worked with CITYatwork, a company which has also worked with West Patent Elementary School to donate revamped spaces. The company’s founding Executive Director Dr. Jessica Behm lives next door to West Patent.

“Over the years, Dr. Behm has transformed spaces in WPES,” said Mount Kisco Elementary Principal Eleana Rojas.

West Patent Elementary Principal Inas Morsi-Hogans, who served as principal at Mount Kisco Elementary for years, mentioned the opportunities that exist at MKES to Dr. Behm.

“In partnership with Dr. Glass,” Rojas said, “they identified Mount Kisco Elementary as the next school that would benefit from Dr. Behm’s generous donation and transformation.”

MKES’ Innovative Learning Committee decided a sensory room would be the most beneficial to the school community.

“We were told to dream big—and we did!” Rojas said during the space’s ribbon cutting ceremony.

The room was a flutter of activity during its big unveiling, with district staff and a small group of students there to celebrate. Students were not shy about jumping right in to explore what the space had to offer. While Alek worked on his creation, other students cooked in a play kitchen, played with Air Toobz (which uses airflow to move foam balls through a tubing system) and built a “campfire” beside a campsite equipped with a tent, faux tree stumps and grass, pillows and more.

“Our goal is for all of our students to access a space where they can calm, stimulate, and/or focus their individual senses,” Rojas said. “For many, it will serve as a space where they can regulate and will make them more available for learning in their classrooms.” 

Dr. Behm, who feels strongly about a space’s ability to inspire wonder, creativity and engaged learners, enjoyed working with the district so much she took her children out of a local private school and enrolled them in BCSD.

“We have been so impressed with BCSD’s love, commitment, rigor and vision,” Dr. Behm said.

Dr. Glass noted that the space’s completion was a true group effort.

“What’s been evident throughout is that vision matters, space matters, community matters. Without that synergy and commitment, things like this can’t happen,” he said.