Your Guide to Sensory Awareness Activities for Special Needs

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Sensory input allows us to experience the world through our emotions — it’s why we cry during a sad scene in a movie or like smelling our sheets fresh out of the dryer. These responses exhibit sensory awareness, or the ability to receive sensory input from your environment, process it and respond accordingly.

Some individuals with sensory processing disorders, Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) or functional needs (commonly referred to as special needs) have challenges with processing and responding to sensory input. While some are hypersensitive to noises and smells, others have a dampened response to sensory input and seek stimulation elsewhere.

ASD awareness sensory activities and toys support different sensory skills, aligning with specific skill developments and mannerisms, so your child, student or family member can get the sensory input they need to feel stimulated or calm.

Understanding Sensory Processing

We experience the world and get sensory input from these seven senses:

Visual: The sense of sight
Auditory: The sense of hearing
Tactile: The sense of touch
Olfactory: The sense of smell
Gustatory: The sense of taste
Vestibular: The sense of balance to detect motion and understand the body’s movements
Proprioceptive: The sense of body awareness to understand the body position, like knowing where body parts are and recognizing your strength

Sensory awareness is crucial for development. As children and adults experience and respond to different stimuli, they:

Learn cause and effect relationships.
Develop their senses.
Explore creativity and imagination.

Individuals with sensory processing disorders have challenges organizing and integrating sensory input, making it more difficult to filter and respond to sensory stimuli. Sensory processing challenges can lead to:

Sensory seeking: Sensory-seeking behavior is when people need sensory stimulation. For example, they may like lots of hugs or wearing tight clothing.
Sensory avoiding: Sensory avoiding is when people avoid sensory stimulation. Children or adults with functional needs who don’t like handshakes are displaying sensory-avoidant behavior.

Sensory Awareness Activities and Toys by Sensory Skill

These activities, grouped by sense, can help your child or student feel in control of their body. You can set up these activities in your home or classroom for regular exposure or as needed if they are feeling bored or overwhelmed.

Visual Sensory Activities

Visual sensory toys are designed for children and adults with visual processing disorders. These devices engage the sense of sight, supporting the development of:

Visual tracking
Color recognition
Visual discrimination

Some activities to stimulate visual input include:

Translucent objects: Play with translucent objects during light table play to help them discern between the toy and the tabletop.
Color-changing lights: Toys with lights that change colors like a Disco Ball or LED Light Illuminators encourage visual attention and tracking.

Auditory Sensory Activities

Auditory sensory activities engage the sense of hearing to support:

Auditory development
Sound localization
Auditory discrimination
Auditory processing

Some ways to stimulate the sense of hearing include:

Playing musical instruments: Create sound effects, melodies and rhythms with the Adapted Music Kit. Instruments like Drums and Lighted Musical Tambourines engage the auditory sense.
Listening to white noise: Listening to a sound machine with various sound options or the hum of an LED Fan can help your child, student or family member feel calm and relaxed.

Tactile Sensory Activities

Individuals with special needs seeking tactile stimulation may obsessively touch objects or pick at their bodies. Tactile sensory toys allow them to:

Recognize textures.
Discern differences between textures.
Increase awareness of tactile stimulation.
Manage tactile defensiveness.
Practice touch tolerance for tactile hypersensitivity.

Try these tactile sensory activities with your child, family member or student:

Sensory bin: Set up a sensory bin with various tactile materials, so anyone can play with different textures. You can include squishy materials like play dough and smooth textures like a Textured Marble Fidget Board.
Textured balls: Encourage them to explore new textures with a variety of textured balls or fabrics. A Therapeutic Balls Kit can include balls of various levels of firmness, textures and sizes to provide different tactile experiences.

Olfactory Sensory Activities

Olfactory sensory activities engage the sense of smell to develop olfactory discrimination and sensory regulation. Stimulate the olfactory sense with these activities:

Scent exploration: Gather various essential oils and spices and have them smell each to recognize and experience different scents.
Scented markers: Coloring and drawing become olfactory-engaging activities with scented markers.
Aromatherapy dough: Aromatherapy products like dough have fragrances that calm or stimulate.

Gustatory Sensory Activities

Gustatory input stimulates the sense of taste, and toys designed for this sensory input support oral motor skills and taste exploration. Some activities you can do together include:

Taste testing foods: Have them taste foods with different textures and flavors, so they can experience different taste sensations, like sour and sweet. Keep safety precautions and allergy considerations in mind.
Making smoothies: Blend different fruits and vegetables into delicious smoothies. Create flavor combinations by using flavor-infused straws.

Vestibular Sensory Activities

Children and adults with vestibular challenges may exhibit behaviors like tilting their head frequently or avoiding movement. Any type of movement will stimulate the vestibular receptors, including jumping, running and spinning. Vestibular sensory toys provide information on:

Balance
Coordination
Spatial awareness
Movement
Positioning

Some ways you can stimulate the vestibular sense include:

Swinging on a therapeutic swing: Swinging, rocking and spinning on a therapeutic swing or a Calming & Fun Sensory Rocker allows individuals to experience movement and understand spatial awareness. Be sure to supervise your child when swinging.
Rolling on a therapy ball: Weighted Balance Balls and Ball Chairs engage the mind and body. As they move around, they’ll build strength and develop balance skills.

Proprioceptive Sensory Activities

Individuals with proprioceptive challenges may play roughly with their peers or use too much force when picking up objects. If your child or student bumps into things or wants hand squeezes frequently, they’re seeking proprioceptive input. Proprioceptive sensory activities involve pulling, pushing and lifting for:

Body awareness
Motor planning
Sensory regulation

Here are some activity ideas for proprioceptive input:

Activities involving exercise: Your child or student can get proprioceptive stimulation from activities like pushing a cart or carrying books.
Weighted blankets: Individuals who want proprioceptive input enjoy weighted products that deliver deep pressure and a calming experience, like a Weighted Blanket or Weighted Lap Pad.
Obstacle course: Use chairs, furniture, boxes and soft play cushions to build an obstacle course. Moving, lifting, jumping and running will help them understand their body’s position in space.

Tips for Selecting Toys for ASD Awareness Sensory Activities

When deciding which sensory toy to get for your child, family member or student, consider their:

Skill development needs: Certain sensory toys support specific developmental milestones. For example, stacking toys allow kids and adults to practice fine motor skills.
Mannerisms: Individuals with specific mannerisms may enjoy toys designed for the stimulation they seek, like chewable jewelry for oral input.
Preferences: Every person has unique preferences for toys they like. For instance, those with sensory-seeking behaviors prefer intense sensory experiences, while individuals with sensory-avoiding behaviors may be sensitive to specific inputs.

Shop Sensory Products at Enabling Devices Today

Sensory awareness activities help children and adults with functional needs regulate their sensory input while promoting cognitive and physical development. Enabling Devices has a wide range of sensory products available — explore our different options to find what works best. Shop our sensory toys, or contact us to learn more.

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