Fun Sensory Ideas

Fine Motor Activities

• Fine motor sensory activities engage a child's tactile sense. Play dough, modeling clay or putty allow him to squeeze his hands and engage the fine muscles in his fingers. Spray bottles achieve the same result while creating a lot of fun: Send the child into the back yard with a spray bottle to water the plants, or add a cloth and enlist his help in cleaning the walls. Play "guess what's in the bag": Place several small items in a bag and have your child identify them by touch. If he is too kinesthetic to sit quietly with crayons and needs to learn by doing, offer him sidewalk chalk and have him decorate the driveway while you weed the garden nearby.

Gross Motor Activities

• Gross motor activities benefit the vestibular (balance), proprioceptive (body position awareness) and tactile (touch) senses. Play a fast-paced game of "be the animal": Call out an animal type so the child can act it out, such as jumping like a frog or slithering on the ground like a snake. Keep her keen and moving by changing the animal every five or 10 seconds, so she is busy and engaged. Have her play crab by walking on all fours while facing up, and see if she can carry something on her stomach while doing this.

Oral Activities

• Give a child who seeks out tastes and oral textures a fresh fruit smoothie to suck through a straw. Chewy food or gum also satisfies oral sensory cravings. Give the child a bubble wand and some liquid soap to blow bubbles with, or have him blow up some balloons.

Olfactory Activities

• "Olfactory" refers to the sense of smell. Play a "guess the smell" game with the child by preparing items for her to smell, such as a spoon of peanut butter, orange slices, a bar of soap or some toothpaste. Have her close her eyes, sniff each item and guess what it is.

Audio Activities

• Play a listening game with the child to develop his audio sense. Sit quietly together, listen for sounds and try to identify them. Expose him to different types of music to see if he has a favorite song or musical genre. Let him make sounds with a musical instrument. If you don't have an instrument he can use, offer him a couple of pots and wooden spoons with which to play.

Visual Activities

• Have your child group items by color, such as toys, clothing or books. Creating art provides visual input, particularly when it is done with bright colors. Give your child non-toxic, washable felt pens or paints to use. Play "spot the differences" using two nearly identical images. Hide small objects in the grass for her to find. Visit a bookstore for books of optical illusions or complex drawings with hidden pictures in them, to see how many she can find.