When we first opened Sky Zone at the very end of 2013, we were quickly surprised to see how many families began coming with different special needs. We started hearing feedback from parents and kids that being active and jumping around our trampoline-walled playing courts was improving focus for jumpers with autism, helping expand the comfort zones of some jumpers with Down Syndrome, and many other positive responses in between. It got us thinking and led the managers to a long discussions of how we could open up the park to better accommodate those most special jumpers.
We knew that while we keep our music up during the day, it could be an issue for some jumpers.Step 1 would have to be to get the music down, or off. We also had talked about wanting to give a bit more attention to each jumper, so adding a few extra Court Monitors and a few extra managers to keep an eye on the event would be important as well to maximize safety the of the jumpers. We quickly knew we needed some professional advice so we looked around and found some really helpful folks in town.
After being in touch with our good friend Carissa Garabedian, famous founder of KnowDifferent, as well as Jaclene Katchmark from Richmond’s local Brain Balance center, we decided that we would have to designate a specific time each month where we could restructure the normal Sky Zone experience to meet the particular needs of as many jumpers as we could, and we think we came up with a pretty good start.
“Hey Sky Zone, thank you for hosting Special Needs Night. I’m so glad there is an opportunity like this! While my son would come jump anytime, having a night when the lights aren’t as bright, the music isn’t blaring and there are other kids like him makes his experience so much more enjoyable. My son looks forward to ‘Sky Zone Monday’! It’s been a great lesson in using a calendar. His brother and sister enjoy it as well, thank you for including the siblings!” – Jennifer Hewitt, Toddlers to Grandparents, LLC, and regular attendee of Sky Zone’s Special Needs / Sensory Friendly Night.
What we came up with is something that we think that many of you all will love.We turn off the music and have extra Court Monitors and managers around during the night, so check and check. In addition to that, we dim some of the overhead lights and open the party rooms as a safe zone for anyone that needs a little extra space.On top of that, we know that every jumper is unique, and who better to help us take care of them than you? So each jumper is allowed to have a caretaker jump with them for free. This way you can get more involved and can make sure your jumpers are enjoying themselves. Of course, you are more than welcome to grab a seat at one of our café tables, grab a coffee, and kick your feet up and we can take care of the rest! But if you prefer a more hands-on approach, we wanted to make sure you could do that.
It’s an ongoing work to continue to develop and streamline our Special Needs / Sensory Friendly nights, and we are firm believers that there is always room for improvement, so that’s where we need you. If you have any feedback or suggestions on how we can improve our special nights to better accommodate you and your family, let us know! We’re always listening on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, and you can even email us directly at [email protected].
We value your thoughts and we are excited already for our next one coming up in February! We host these Special Needs / Sensory Friendly nights on the First Monday of every month from 5pm-6pm, so the next one will be February 2nd! And tickets are only $8 each, which means you get to save almost 50% on a normal ticket while you’re at it.
Come out and bring the family and see just how flying through the air can make each day a little bit brighter.