Free time and loads of outdoor opportunities make summer an ideal time to engage your child with autism in sensory-friendly activities.
Children with autism often have difficulty processing the information they receive from their senses. The result is that they become overwhelmed and agitated, which can cause sensitivities to sight, sound, smell, taste, touch, balance, and awareness of their body’s position and its internal cues.
Sensory activities help children develop language, social, and motor skills. They can then better communicate their feelings, wants, and needs so they don’t shut down in overwhelming situations.
Here are some fabulous, fun sensory summer activities for you and your children! Links are included for additional ideas and materials.
Ooey, Gooey Homemade Slime or Scented Play Dough
There are dozens of homemade slime and play dough recipes on the internet. Most include items in your home such as Elmer’s glue, baking soda, vegetable oil, flour, and food coloring. You can even add fun extras like glitter or scents.
The squishy texture stimulates touch, and bright colors and shiny mix-ins stimulate the eyes. Scents stimulate your child’s sense of smell. Highly tactile playdough and slime also encourage their creativity and sense of curiosity and help develop their fine motor skills.
Mud Kitchen
Get ready to get dirty! Take your child outside to a muddy area of your yard (or create one if you don’t already have one) with utensils, plates, pots and pans, and other kitchen tools. Let them scoop, smoosh, and mold while pretending to bake or cook dinner. Like slime and play dough, playing in a mud kitchen helps stimulate their senses while honing fine motor function.
Jelly Treasure Hunt
Hide a small toy inside some gelatin and then chill it in the refrigerator. Allow your child to use whatever tool (or their hands!) to get the toy out. Bonus: they get to eat the gelatin!
Bubble Fun
Blowing bubbles helps improve fine motor skills, and chasing bubbles teaches children with autism to coordinate their bodies. The wet, slippery texture and shiny appearance of bubbles stimulate touch and sight. You can also take turns blowing the bubbles to enhance their social skills.
Take a Hike
Hikes and nature walks provide numerous sensory opportunities and improve gross motor skills. Encourage your child to touch and smell different plants or play “I Spy” using color cues. Bring paper and pencils or crayons to make nature rubbings of tree bark or rocks.
Splish Splash
Do you have a splash pad in your community? Lucky you! Public splash pads help children develop social skills, and splashing and running enhance gross motor skills. Touching water sprays, streams, and jets stimulate their sense of touch. Cascading waterfalls, bubbles, and gentle spray create soothing sounds for a calming effect.
If you don’t have a local splash pad, set up a simple water table in your backyard. Bring toys and containers for pouring and engaging in pretend play.
Lastly, there’s always your community swimming pool! Bring a homemade sensory bag filled with water and various textures and toys. They can squish the bag and experiment with submerging it in the water.
Let Your Garden Grow
Starting a garden doesn’t have to be a huge undertaking! You can start with just one or two container plants. Digging in the dirt provides tactile stimulation and enhances fine motor skills. Eventually, you and your children can taste the fruits of your labor and even incorporate them into a cooking activity.
Personalized Autism Services
GBC Autism Services provides in-home and clinic-based ABA therapy for autism in the Chicagoland, Peoria, Normal, Rockford, Springfield, and DeKalb areas. Our compassionate, experienced therapists create individualized treatment plans to help children with autism lead the most fulfilling and independent lives possible. Explore some of our online autism resources.
