SENSORY INTEGRATIONReduce Hyperactivity and

Improve Attention Span

YOUR CHILD NEEDS SENSORY INTEGRATION IF…

(young children)

•sometimes he/she literally is bouncing off of the walls engaged in constant activity.

• Even while sitting, he/she is moving by popping up and down in his/her chair or kicking his/her legs.

• This child bumps into people and cannot stop touching people or objects in his/her environment.

• If this child is in a large room or enclosed space, he/she will run to seek out the boundaries of this space.

• This child's first word was "GO!“

YOUR CHILD NEEDS SENSORY INTEGRATION IF… (older children)

tapping pencil on his desk bending paper clips rocking his chair biting his pen frequent interrupting leaving seat calling out impulsive distracting peers blurting out answer to a question even before raising his/her

hand

BUT WHY IS THAT KID DOING THAT?

Children engage in challenging behavior because it works for them!!

“… behavior has a purpose – an underlying reason for why it occurs. In most cases, the function (purpose) of a child’s challenging behavior is either to obtain or get something or to escape or avoid something.”

Diana Browning Wright, Behavior/Discipline Training

BUT WHY IS THAT KID DOING THAT?To Get/Obtain: choice attention objects, desired self stimulation play, fun justice or fairness sensory Input

To Protest/Escape/Avoid tasks, a demand or request being made a specific person, a group of people objects, undesired protest, a past action by a person protest, a lack of choice protest, a lack of fairness/justice sensory Input

* The child is seeking sensory input to feel "normal“!!!

WHAT CAN YOU DO? Identify a better way to get the same function met through alternative

acceptable methods.

Try the use of Sensory Integration!

Sensory Integration

WHAT IS SENSORY INTEGRATION? Sensory integration refers to how we take information from our senses

such as: sights, sounds, textures, smells, and tastes.

Our senses integrate to form a complete understanding of who you are, where you are, and what is happening around us.

Sensory Integration

Sight

Sound

Taste

SmellTouch

WHAT IS SENSORY INTEGRATION? In addition to using our five senses we also have a "vestibular" sense and a

"proprioceptive " sense.

It is said that a child with sensory integration problems has some difficulty processing information coming in through these seven senses.

Sensory Integration

Sight

Sound

Taste

Smell

Touch

Body Position

Balance

VESTIBULAR SENSE (BALANCE AND MOVEMENT ) This sense tells you where you are in relation to the

ground and things around you.

PROPRIOCEPTIVE SENSE (BODY POSITIONING)

This sense tells us where a part of our body is

positioned in space.

This awareness is what helps us to control and to plan our motor movements.

TOO MUCH OR TOO LITTLE? Some children feel the need to tune out stimuli because they take too

much in.

A child who is overly sensitive to sounds may cringe or cry when he/she hears a car horn or leaf blower because to them these sounds are painful.

TOO MUCH OR TOO LITTLE? And some children will have difficulty because they either under responsive

to stimuli such as sounds, touch, or feeling their body in space.

A child who is under responsive to information coming in through their proprioceptive sense might be the child who is purposefully

bumping or crashing into things so that they can better feel where their body is in space.

CALMING ACTIVITIES

Weights

weighted lap pad weighted blanket weighted vest

CALMING ACTIVITIES

Deep Pressure

Push/Pulling a Wagon Lifting Heavy Books Bear Walk

Wall Pushing Crab Walks

CALMING ACTIVITIES

Rolling

up in a “burrito” blanket

on an exercise ball

MOVEMENT/PROPRIOCEPTION

Bounce on a therapy ball

Ride a scooter board

Jump on mini-trampoline

ENCOURAGE ACCEPTABLE OUTLETS FOR MOTOR BEHAVIOR If the student distracts other students by playing with objects, substitute an

alternative motor behavior that will not distract others. Give the student a soft 'stress ball' and encourage the student to squeeze it whenever he or she feels the need for motor movement.

Note: Please see handout for Mouth Fidgets.

MOUTH FIDGETS

drinking straw pretzels

dried fruits water bottle

ALLOW DISCRETIONARY MOTOR BREAKS

Common: Quietly walk around the classroom Get a drink of water Walk up and down the hall Take a note to the principal/another teacher

As needed: perform some calming sensory activities

- on your own/ with an adult/ with peers - 10-15 minutes max (OTs recommend)

LISTENING TO CALMING MUSIC Using an iPod or other audio player, the child can listen to music that helps him

regain his composure: nature sounds, classical music, or even rock n’ roll—whatever effectively organizes his unique nervous system.

OTHER STRATEGIES THAT MAY HELP Adopt a 'Silent Signal'

With the student's help, select a silent signal that you can use to alert the student that

his or her behavior has crossed the threshold and now is distracting others. Special Seat

Closer to teacher Structure Activities

Break a bigger task into small components Use checklists, diagrams, charts, graphic organizers, visual aids Help student organize materials (use color coding, file folders)

Social Stories Try to create your own Individualize it depending on the child’s age and communication/comprehension level Focus on - what behavior is disruptive - how others feel about it - what can the child do to solve problem

Token Economy Systems Earning points when caught with good behavior Stop giving points when child misbehaves (avoid taking away what they already

earned)

WHAT IS SENSORY DIET?

Just as your child needs food throughout the course of the day, his need for sensory input must also be met. A “sensory diet” (coined by OT Patricia Wilbarger) is a carefully designed, personalized activity plan that provides the sensory input a person needs to stay focused and organized throughout the day. Just as you may jiggle your knee or chew gum to stay awake or soak in a hot tub to unwind, children need to engage in stabilizing, focusing activities too. Infants, young children, teens, and adults with mild to severe sensory issues can all benefit from a personalized sensory diet.

SAMPLE SENSORY DIET Here is a sample sensory diet, created for a second grade child with

sensory processing disorder. We’ve used the annoying term “as directed” to avoid providing a cookbook recipe. Activities must be individualized for each child and modified frequently to meet changing needs. A separate program was worked out for this child with the school, including frequent movement breaks, an inflatable seat cushion for wiggling while remaining seated, and providing crunchy/chewy oral comfort snacks at handwriting time.

In the Morning Massage feet and back to help wake up Listen to recommended therapeutic listening CD Use vibrating toothbrush and/or vibrating hairbrush Eat crunchy cereal with fruit and some protein Spin on Dizzy Disc Jr. as directed Jump on mini-trampoline as directed

SAMPLE SENSORY DIETAfter school Go to playground for at least 30 minutes Push grocery cart or stroller Spinning as directed Mini-trampoline. Add variety: have him play catch or toss toys into a basket while jumping. Massage feet to “reorganize,” use therapy putty, make “body sandwiches,” wheelbarrow walk Do ball exercises as directed Listen to therapeutic listening CD Oral work — suck thick liquids through a straw, eat crunchy and chewy snacks, or chew gum

before and/or during tabletop activitiesAt dinnertime Help with cooking, mixing, chopping, etc. Help set table, using two hands to carry and balance a tray Provide crunchy and chewy foodsAt night Family time: clay projects, painting projects, etc. Warm bath with bubbles and calming essential oil Massage during reading time

REFERENCES School-Wide Strategies for Managing... HYPERACTIVITY, U.S. Department

of Education (2004). Teaching children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder: Instructional strategies and practices. Retrieved August 20, 2005, from http://www.ed.gov/teachers/needs/speced/adhd/adhd-resource-pt2.doc

A Sensory Integration Approach to Helping Hyperactive Kids By Merely Me, Health Guide http://www.healthcentral.com/adhd/c/849319/75618/approach-hyperactive  Classroom Strategies Used by Teachers of Students with Attention Deficit

Hyperactivity, Disorder Shelley Mulligan http://lsustudent.pbworks.com/f/Class%2Bstrateg%2BADHD.pdf  Sensory Integration Activities, samples, Henry OT Services www.henryot.com  Causes for Hyperactivity in Children, How These Children Can Be Helped

Harriet Steinberg, Yahoo! Contributor Network  Google Images