Sensory Integration Handouts

NAA NY Metro Chapter Westchester

Weds., Feb. 16, 2011

Calming Activities

•  Slow rocking •  Rhythmical swinging •  Deep breathing •  Heavy work •  Obstacle courses (move through slowly) •  Symmetrical movements •  Aromas: lavender/geranium/patchouli

Alerting Activities

•  Bouncing •  Rhythmical swinging •  Quick jumping •  Jumping jacks •  Simon says •  Aromas: orange/grapefruit/mint

Developing core strength

•  Yoga exercises •  Pilates exercises •  Choo choo on the floor •  Mushroom swing •  Sit ups on the ball •  Squat balancing on the half ball

Teaching Visual Skills:

•  Understand that proper midline alignment is critical as a pre-requisite

•  Work on neck extension in prone if you have to

•  Tracking activities •  Convergence activities •  Left to right visual skills •  Copying form near/far

Teaching Bilaterality

•  Infinities on the board or floor •  Brain gym activities •  Road on the wall: drive car through or use

a marker •  Chalkboard circles •  Jump rope walk/homolateral walk/cross

walk •  Touch and draw or body taps on the back

Activities to Integrate Visual and Tactile Systems

•  Ned’s head: see the picture, reach in and feel for what you see

•  Reach in touch and find the picture •  Feely boxes •  Find a groove in a board or use wicky

sticks or yarn glued to paper: feel it and draw it

Activities to Integrate Kinesthetic and Auditory Systems

•  Simon says •  Angels in the snow •  Build with blocks to spoken commands •  Use a metronome to:

– Bouce a ball to the beat – Tap, clap, and/or stomp to the beat – Use music to regulate pace of movement

Activities to Integrate Kinesthetic and Vision

•  Move to arrow charts •  Move to sequenced bead charts •  Move to d/p/q/b charts •  Hand imitation card games •  Letter charts to jumping jacks and

eliminate arm movements with vowels

Activities to Integrate Vision and Auditory Systems

•  Look and describe what I do •  Do and describe •  Listen to tape and follow directions on

work sheet •  Letters and numbers on the floor: jump to

spell or to follow direction •  Follow directions on parquetry board, lite

bright, rubber band geoboard •  Earobics with Katy Pillar

Activities for Auditory Discrimination / Sequencing Skills

•  Repeat tunes on xylophone/piano •  Follow multiple directions •  Memory card games in a ladder or on a

balance beam •  Bean bag drop on a balance beam •  Repeat sequences: motor (clap,clap,tap)

or verbal (jump 3x, turn around 2x, and tap your head once)

•  Earobics or listening lotto with 2+sounds

Integrating Olfactory and Vision

•  Smell and find the picture •  Look at the picture and seek the aroma •  Look at picture and describe smell (adds

language component)

Integrating Olfactory and Tactile •  Combine feely box ideas with aromas (ie: spray an orange scent/find the orange)

Proprioception

•  Weighted vests •  Neoprene vests and snuggle swing •  Cocoon sacks •  Hot dog rolling •  Steam rolling •  Back to back point and chase game •  Setting up obstacle courses

Vestibular Activities

•  Consider Listening Therapy •  Astronaut Program •  Swinging (caution: only for therapists who

are trained to assess nystagmus) •  Get the semi-circular canals moving in all

directions

Summary: Questions/Answers

For more questions: Nancy: nancy@coachforhealthyliving.com nany@holisticLC.com

Susan: Susan@HolisticLC.com Website: HolisticLC..com