Whether your child faces sensory challenges, struggles with self-care tasks, or needs support in handwriting and visual perception, we’re here to guide you through a variety of fun activities that you can easily incorporate into your home routine. These activities not only promote development but also foster a sense of accomplishment and joy in your child’s journey towards growth. So, let’s dive in!
Cooking and Baking
Cooking and baking are important life skills that everyone should have. But involving your kiddo in these activities now can also help them improve their sensory processing skills, plus it will help them learn to follow directions carefully. Depending on your kiddos age they can help in a myriad of ways including reading recipes, gathering and measuring ingredients, pouring or stirring ingredients and more.
Sensory Scavenger Hunt
Create a list of sensory items to find around your house, yard, neighborhood or local park. Make sure that each item has a different sensory component (e.g., soft, rough, sticky, dry, wet). Let your child explore and mark off each item as they find it. This activity allows your kiddo to practice honing their sensory processing skills.
Simon Says
Playing a game of Simon Says can help enhance your kiddos listening skills, body awareness, and self-confidence. Take turns being the leader giving the directions and the follower listening to and taking the directions. This activity is versatile in the types of activities you can encourage your kiddo to perform based on their age and skill level. Just make sure to emphasize the importance of careful listening!
Sensory Bin Exploration
Fill a plastic bin with various textures like rice, beans, or sand. Place a few small toys or objects in the bin and shake it up, hiding them from view. Encourage your kiddo to search through the bin using their hands to uncover the treasures. Ask them to describe what they’re feeling to you using descriptive language as they explore. This activity encourages exploration and stimulates tactile senses.
Play-Doh Creations
Set up a creation station in an easy to clean area complete with different colored play-doh and tools such as cookie cutters, rolling pins, and molds. Then ask your kiddo to create specific objects or cut out certain shapes. Once they have a little practice with each tool give them a little more free reign to express their imagination and create what they want. This activity helps strengthen little hands, work on shape recognition, and fosters creativity.
Nature Collage
Spring is a great time to get out in nature, go on a walk around your neighborhood, or take a hike on the nearest trail. While you’re out and about, ask your kiddo to collect their favorite leaves, flowers, and other natural materials. Encourage them to explain to you along the way what they like most about each item. When you get home help them arrange and glue the items onto paper to create a beautiful collage. This activity not only helps your kiddo work on their language skills and sensory processing skills but also fosters creativity and an appreciation for nature.
Yoga Discovery
Guide your child through kid-friendly yoga poses, such as downward dog or tree pose. Researching different beginner poses and printing out pictures of people in those poses can be helpful for visual learners so that they can see what the pose is supposed to look like. For poses inspired by animals it can be extra fun to imitate the sound of each animal while in the pose. This activity can help your kiddo with body awareness and promote self-regulation.
Toothpaste Art
Sometimes you’ve got to get a little messy. Some kids love mess, while others shy away from it. This activity is good for both types of kiddos. Encourage your kiddo to squeeze colorful toothpaste onto a plate or piece of paper. Then let them create artwork using the toothpaste, either with their fingers, or utensils. If you don’t want to waste toothpaste you can have them use their toothbrush to create their masterpiece and brush their teeth when they’re done to clean up! This activity can help with sensory processing, fine motor skills, and reinforcing toothbrushing habits.
Mindful Breathing Bubbles
Mindful breathing helps calm the nervous system, but encouraging your kiddo to focus on their breathing can be difficult. Making it into a game helps make it a little easier. Bring out the bubbles and ask your kiddo to see how big they can blow their bubble. Encourage them to blow as slowly as they can to see if that helps make a bigger bubble. Have them focus on inhaling deeply through their nose so they don’t end up with soapy bubble juice in their mouth and exhale slowly through their mouth to make the biggest bubble possible. This activity is also good for self-regulation.
Dress-Up Dance Party
Encourage your kiddo to pick out the most outrageous outfits of their own choosing to dress up in and dance to their favorite songs. Have more than one kiddo or feel like getting in on the fun yourself? Turn it into a competition to see who can create the silliest outfit! Not only does this activity allow your kiddo to practice dressing and undressing themselves, but it also promotes self-expression.
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As a nationally recognized pediatric facility, the Schreiber Center for Pediatric Development provides family-centered education and therapy programs for infants, children and adolescents with disabilities, developmental delays, and acquired injuries.Our goal-oriented approach maximizes each child’s ability to function independently within the community.
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