Supporting Learners with Disabilities Through Multisensory Instruction

Welcome to the April edition of our tutor tips series about enhancing access and supporting learners with disabilities! This month we’re shining a spotlight on the concept of multisensory instruction. 

Multisensory instruction means engaging multiple senses in learning: vision, hearing, movement, touch, smell, and taste. Multisensory instruction has benefits for all ages and all students, and works in reading, math, and beyond. 

One nuance to keep in mind is that in multisensory instruction, the sensory activity has a direct correspondence or relevance to the concept students are learning. Many sensory activities may help some students with focus or self-regulation, which is great! But for multisensory instruction, concentrate on those that connect directly to what’s being learned. For example, while a student may tap a soothing pattern on the desk while calculating a math problem to help themself focus, multisensory instruction would involve tapping out the numbers in the math problem on the desk while calculating. 

Ready to try it? 

• Explore a few examples of classic multisensory techniques for reading and math. 
• Check out PANDA’s in-depth reference of multisensory strategies for adults. 

Previous installments in the Access Project’s tutor tip series: 

• Create a More Accessible Learning Environment with Digital Tools from SchoolVirtually

• The Got a Minute? Learning Series for Universal Design for Learning
• Backwards Design to Improve Lesson Access for All Learners with 5 Moore Minutes

Feedback or suggestions for this series? Contact Literacy Minnesota Access Coordinator, Emily Fox-Penner, at efoxpenner@literacymn.org.