Recommended Resource: Sensory Play, Heavy Work, and Proprioceptive Input Activities
When you think of meeting a child’s needs, you might think of providing food, water, clothing, shelter, and even fun. But one thing we often forget about is meeting a child’s sensory needs. This is especially important for our children from hard places, who are especially likely to have sensory differences.
This video from a pediatric Occupational Therapist provides a great explanation of why proprioceptive input is so helpful, and how to incorporate sensory play and heavy work into your daily routine using items you already have around the house.
As an adoptive parent myself, I have found that sensory play is an amazing tool for keeping my kids happy, healthy, and regulated. I have also found that both of my children have very different sensory needs, so what works for one might not necessarily work for the other. Therefore, I highly recommend trying different things until you find what your child loves!
If you ever visit our office, you will probably notice that all of our staff love sensory play. I asked around to get everyone’s top picks to share – feel free to browse the list and hopefully you’ll find some fun ideas to try in your home.
My personal favorites:
- Rocking in the rocking chair or (even better) swinging in the hammock chair
- Nugget couches
- Dye-free fruit snacks from Aldi – the combination of the chewy texture and the burst of sweetness is magical at calming meltdowns!
- Any type of water play – one of our all-time favorites is the Costco splash pad!
Courtney Farabaugh, Family Support Specialist:
- Cloud slime
- Sensory shaker bottles
- Tight hugs
Susan Rice, Family and Permanency Specialist
- “Burrito wraps” (rolling up in a blanket like a burrito)
- “Pillow sandwiches” (putting the child between two pillows or cushions and gently laying on top of him and counting to 5 or 10)
Diane Williams, Family and Permanency Specialist
- Nature ambience sound videos
- Weighted blankets for sleeping
- Satisfying videos – soap crunching for the sound; rug cleaning, power washing, some production machinery for the visuals
- Velvety soft blankets
- Fidgets
Laura Oursler, Family Support Services Director
- Gum (this one is her favorite)
- Crazy Aaron’s Thinking Putty (all the colors are cool but especially the clear)
- Pop Ball Fidgets
Stacy Latham, Family and Permanency Specialist
- Nugget Couch
- Sit and Spin
- Teeter Popper
- Gel ice packs – especially the ones with animal faces or the pearl ones because they are flexible and fun to squeeze.
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