All posts by Sensory Seeker

Disability Access Guide to UK Theme Parks

October 8, 2013Play Mattersautism, Disability access, price, queueSensory Seeker

With half term just around the corner you may be thinking about what to do with the children. A theme park is a good idea for Sensory Seekers that like all that movement, smells, textures, visual images etc; but sometimes it is all too much, or too much for other people (strangers do not tend to warm to a child they do not know trying to touch them, never mind punching). It is for this reason that it is well worth checking the websites to consider what the disability access policies are. This may include proof of disability (and what documentation), any discounts for entrance (and/or any carers), car parking facilities, and special access to the rides. There are many reasons that disability access may be required, but there have been many people taking advantage of this, and things are changing. Make sure you are clear before you leave.

We have visited a few places over 2013 and this was our experience of the Disability Access:

Disability Access Merlin

I think that the Merlin Group are top notch when it comes to providing good disability access. When a Merlin annual pass is purchased, and proof of disability is shown, then a complimentary carer’s pass will be issued on the first visit. It is transferable between carers, but cannot be used without the disabled person. Proof is considered as Disability Living Allowance (DLA),Orange/Blue badge or a letter from the GP (with photographic proof).

Disability Access Legoland Windsor

Legoland Windsor was the first place we had heard of that had good disability access. We went with ASDfriendly, an Autism support online forum, and it is here we first discovered that a day out with a disability could still be fun.

FREE Carer entrance ticket.
Loop System for hearing impaired.
Some staff who can speak sign language (look for the word ‘sign’ on their badge).
Assistance dogs welcome; but they cannot ride and must remain with someone at all times.
Designated disabled car parking for disability badge holders (parking charges still apply).
Disabled toilet facilities.
Wheelchair hire.
Wheelchair accessible restaurants & shops.
Plenty of resting areas throughout the park.
Awareness band (to alert staff that extra assistance may be required).

The ride access pass requires some proof that the disabled person cannot queue. Disability living allowance and/or blue/orange badges are not accepted because they do not show what the condition is. The disability must mean that they “do not understand the concept of queuing, have difficulties with everyday social interaction, have a limited capacity to follow instruction or to understand others emotional feelings or expressions, and may become agitated or distressed having to wait for periods of time.”

Photo evidence is required, we took a passport. At least one helper is essential, and has to be over the age of 14, or over 16 if the disabled person does not meet the height restriction. Up to 3 carers are allowed with the disabled person and can be rotated. Wheelchair users do not require a ride access pass.

Further info in the guide

Disability Access THORPEPARK

THORPEPARK‘s disability access makes it fair on all ride users by issuing disabled ride user a card. When the card is presented at the exit a time is given that you can come back, as if you were queuing, but without having to physically stand in a queue. We saw this on the big rides at Disneyland Paris too.

Note we did not use their Disability help as we were given FastPasses so for further information on Disability access at THORPEPARK please see this post by My Life My Son My Way.

Disability Access Paultons Park

To avoid discrimination the entry price was the same for disabled as non-disabled visitors. To be fair I think a lot of Paultons Park is the magic of Peppa Pig World, and a lot of that can be soaked up without even setting foot on a ride.

They have a Queue Assist Scheme, with which they DID accept a Disability Living Allowance letter and gave our disabled son a wrist band and card – which allowed up to 3 carers (note some rides had different rules on carer ratios and the disabled person always had to go on the ride). The card allowed him to go on each ride once, and was hole-punched as he did. This means that if he wanted to go on the same ride twice he had to then queue. We were fortunate that our son was okay with this but know how those with Autism could get quite obsessive about a ride and then have a meltdown for not being able to go back on as they are unable to queue. I do understand that lines need to be drawn though as many young children find it hard to queue without seeing someone go on the same ride more than once without the need for queuing.

Disability Access FlamingoLand

At Flamingoland there is a discounted admission price of £20 each, for a disabled person and their carer (total £40 instead of £60).

With proof of disability (DLA accepted, but photographic proof needed) a wrist band can be obtained, to allow riders to avoid the queue, and go through the exit (with a maximum of 2 carers). When we went we were told that if the disability was physically obvious, then they would not require further “proof”.

This is not a sponsored post. I was, however, given complimentary tickets in return for reviews on Pinkoddy’s blog. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Rubbish Parenting – Stop Blaming the Disability

October 3, 2013Education, Parentingblame, disability, Rubbish ParentingSensory Seeker

I am sick to the back teeth of every parent who considers their child to have special needs/be disabled (whatever you want to call it) having their parenting called into question. How many people have been told, why not try this course to help manage your child’s behaviour – when they just mean you have rubbish parenting? This seems to happen before, during and after a diagnosis process – in my small experience anyway.

My Experience of being Accused of Being a Rubbish Parent to my Teen with Asperger’s Syndrome

Maybe I’m just insecure, always feeling judged, that we have rubbish parenting, a letter once stated that “the mother fusses too much” when my oldest son’s school were justifying why they do absolutely nothing for my son’s needs. His IEPs always said he should achieve this grade or that – which was no problem for him and didn’t need working on. Trying to get him sorted in extracurricular activity, and socialising they just really refused to help with. It was if they completely ignored the fact that he had any needs – it was easier just to blame my parenting because then they did not need to do anything about it.

Rubbish Parenting stopping him being Independent

The school claim that he just needed to be left alone to do things – this would help make him more independent, my interfering by trying to support him was just hindering this process. “What I do not want to do is get him the placement exclusively on my own, it is important that he contributes to the process, as at the end of the day, when he leaves school, I will not be around!” This is the response we got when we could not find any suitable placements for work experience. He never said but basically implied it was down to rubbish parenting that we had not made him independent enough and that he just expected everyone to do everything for him. “We had a brief look the other lunch time and there seemed to a lot”. No there were a lot of companies that offered to fix computers but not to write computer games – not really the same thing.

The assumption is always just made that my son cannot be bothered, and as a parent I have failed to get him to be anything other than self-entitled. I am really upset that it is suggested that my son is lazy (oh yeah you can see that from his grades can’t you) rather than the fact that he has a diagnosed recognised social communication problem (Aspergers). I did repeatedly go into school and question his ridiculous IEPs – you know what happened? They did social stories. They didn’t work. They got a new SENCo – then they tried Social stories. And if I pushed too much they would make me feel like it was my rubbish parenting – and actually my son was just a normal, lazy teen. But it will always come back to Social Stories being the answer (they never work as he can’t generalise them from one situation to the other).

It isn’t Asperger’s Syndrome it is just the Teenage Years

Maybe they are right, I really don’t know what is teenage behaviour and what is his disability, but I DO know that he is far from lazy. If it is clear to him what he has to do then he does it. Will this ignoring the problem make it go away? Does ignoring cure Aspergers? Will he suddenly know how to communicate socially? But then I do hope they are right, that it is just down to rubbish parenting, because one day he will move out of home, and away from me, and my “fussiness” and everything will be alright! I do want you to come and all agree that it is rubbish parenting that I’m fussing: That I am just not letting my boy grow up. This is normal and what most teenage parents go through. Please tell me I’m fussing.

Because if not, what is the alternative? That my son’s needs are continuously ignored? What will his future hold? Funny as he has done so well lately, and when applying for his first job I was told I should have helped him more!!! Luckily he has been given a second chance with that, and you know what even if it means it is rubbish parenting I am going to help him.

Dinosaur Ice Age Play for Sensory Seekers

October 1, 2013Play Mattersdinosaur ice age, dinosaurs, ice, sensory playSensory Seeker

I discovered a great way to make sensory play perfect for my little seeker, with dinosaur ice age play. My son has Global Developmental Delay. He is behind his peers in many areas, so I liked how the dinosaur ice age play really helped him develop. The school have suggested that he has visual aids to help with his communication. They have asked me for input on words/pictures. I really have no clue of what to suggest, all I can think of is maybe a PE bag, a book, paint, so possibly he could show me what he has done that day at school? I do know that play is key to learning, but he has always had a very limited attention span. But I am pleased to say that this is growing in duration, and this was really demonstrated during the dinosaur ice age play.

dinosaur ice age sensory seeking play #thesensoryseeker

Dinosaurs Interest

Dinosaurs are a firm favourite in this house (see my birthday party) and I have a dinosaur board on pinterest. Whilst pinning I have seen this activity come up time and time again. I do not know who had the original idea to give them credit, but please do see my board for where I was inspired from. It really is simple to create. Put the dinosaurs in the freezer with some water, take them out and then let your child play with them.

They can smash them open and see how long it takes to get to the dinosaurs out, or wait until the water defrosts. Viola Sensory play dinosaur ice age. We bought a tuff spot (thank you to TheBoyandMe for helping me find one on Amazon) these are brilliant and it was ideal to just sit him in the garden to play.

You could try different methods of getting to the dinosaurs. His brother also joined in the play with him and they used sticks, bashed and smashed the blocks of ice containing the dinosaurs.

I think there may have been some licking involved too (what else would you expect from my sensory seeker!). He also tried pulling the dinosaurs out of the frozen blocks, which I think was great for his hand manipulation (he is hyper-mobile in his hands).

Benefits of Dinosaur Ice Age Sensory Play

Dinosaur Ice Age Sensory Play was great for language development as we talked as we played: He told me it was cold – how clever is that! Then once we had got to the dinosaurs there was time for pretending they were real, and making up little stories. Of course it also helped him meet some of his sensory seeking needs – especially the tactile ones.

He loved the feel of rubbing his feet on the cold blocks, and when they started to melt, spreading the icy water up his legs.

Defrosted Ice

He loved playing with the dinosaurs in the ice and then paddling in the defrosted water – feeling all those lovely sensations.

But what I most loved about the dinosaur play was the length of time he was able to engage with the activity. I am sure it really helped him with his development. I think next time I may add some colour to the water too.

Or may be some extra things like rice to give it more texture.

Disability Living Allowance Answers

September 25, 2013Financial helpAmounts, Answers, Care, Carers Allowance, Disability Living Allowance, DLA, Mobility, Questions, sensory processing disorderSensory Seeker

You may be familiar with my post on Pinkoddy about my thoughts on “Why you Should Claim Disability Living Allowance for your Children.” It seems to have uncovered a few questions that people are searching the answers for.

New claims for Disability Living Allowance (DLA) are only for children under the age of 16; over 16 they are classed as adults and, from the 10th June 2013, must now apply for Personal Independence Payment (PIP) instead.

It is split into two components: Care and Mobility. Children under the age of 5 cannot receive mobility unless they are physically disabled, or the condition is very severe – the reason given is that most children under the age of 5 would need extra help to ensure they were safe (for example when crossing roads).

How much help with Mobility you need will depend on the rate that you are paid.

Disability Living Allowance Rates

Disability Living Allowance Rates for a Child 2022/2023 UK

Lower – £24.45 a week – Guidance or supervision outdoors.
Higher – £64.50 a week – Severe walking difficulty.

How much help with Care you need will depend on the rate that you are paid.

Low – £24.45 a week – you need help for some of the day or preparing meals.
Middle – £61.85 a week – frequent help or constant supervision in the day, or at night.
High – £92.40 a week – help or supervision through the day or night, or you are terminally ill.

You do not need to be eligible for other benefits, it is not means tested.
You do not need to live in a Council house, or assisted accommodation – it does not matter where you live.
You do not need a diagnosis .
A diagnosis of Sensory Processing Disorder, Autsim, Aspergers, Anxiety, may mean that your condition effects you in a way that you are entitled to Disability Living Allowance, but it does not mean that you will automatically qualify.
There is not a limit on how many people in a household can claim – so if you have 3 disabled children then you can claim Disability Living Allowance for each child – you can only claim Carers Allowance once though – each child would need a different adult as their carer.
Carers Allowance is payable to anyone who looks after a child who receives the middle or high rate of the Care component for at least 35 hours a week.
Disability Living Allowance is a tax free benefit; Carer’s Allowance is however not; it is taxable and you must declare it as taxable benefit to the Inland Revenue on your Tax Credits renewals.
It is paid every 4 weeks into a Bank Account.
The money is for and belongs to the child.
Changes must be reported.

The most important thing to remember is that you have to demonstrate why the child fits the criteria and how they differ from their peers. Always write from the perspective of them having a bad day. This can be an incredibly emotional thing to do so I always recommend doing it on the computer, then, at renewal time you can just update the information. This does however mean that the claim cannot be back dated.

You can receive help at the job centre in filling the form out. If you can get help from a disability advice specialist.

If you disagree with the outcome you can always ask for a reconsideration.

If you have anything you wanted answered, or want to offer any help with things you feel may be of use then please do add them in the comments.

This is not a sponsored post.

Crazy Soap Bath time fun #Review

September 24, 2013Reviewsbath paint, cleaning, crazy soap, sensory seeker, tactile, touchSensory Seeker

As a Seeker my son loves bath times and the extra sensory input that it can provide. So when the opportunity arouse to add a little bath time fun by testing out a range of products in the Crazy Soap range we were delighted to try them out.

Fun is an important part of bath time – it makes the experience more enjoyable, and provides opportunities for learning. So we were delighted to see that the Crazy Soap Colour Changing Bubble Bath and Crazy Soap Shake & Sparkle Foam Bath both came with finger puppets on the lids.

The colour changing bubble bath has the description that the clever chameleon has conjured up a jungle spell – and indeed as the mix went into the bath it was orange and change to blue. If I’m honest, in the bath this happened far too quickly for my son to notice. He did like a blue bath but maybe a smaller amount of water might be more effective to get the colour changing effect.

We are good in that we reuse our water, and so when adding the Shake & Sparkle there were concerns that the boys would end up sparkling (by not getting it out of their hair). They need not have worried and we could hardly see the sparkles – but again may be this would be effective in a jam jar for a snow globe at Christmas. You could tell that the bubbles did indeed sparkle though. This can be picked up from Boots for £2.49 or 249 points (and you can collect 8 points with the purchase).

Crazy Soap benefiting the child with Sensory Processing Disorder in the Tactile Sense

I should have realised a long time ago that my son was a sensory seeker, but I just thought that he was young and being my fourth that I was more relaxed. See the thing is that every time there’s paint about he tends to end up painting himself (as he is a seeker in the sense of touch). He loves to cover ever little bit of his hands, then work up his arms, and then anywhere I’m brave enough to let him continue – including his face!

So I don’t know who was more delighted to receive some Crazy Soap Bath Time Body Paint as part of a set of Crazy Soap products to review.

We had blue – and you can mix it with other colours – not that we got a chance to find out, as my little sensory seeker took the tub and covered himself in it. Maybe he was trying to make himself as a Smurf. Luckily this paint is for the bath so I didn’t need to worry about any mess (although it was unfortunate that it was quickly washed away too).

He giggled away as I painted a letter K on his back – as a Seeker he absolutely loved the sensation of the touch on his skin, and the smell is so gorgeous. All this whilst it was actually cleaning him too!

We also tried the Crazy Soap Bathtime Fun Soap and he loved the feel of it moulded to his foot.

The soap can be shaped into anything you wanted – so we did a letter K for his name (I decided it was wasting the soap to do his whole name to be honest).

I received the products mentioned for free in order to review them. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Parental Request for Statement

September 19, 2013Education, Personal Postsparental request, Parental Request for a Statement, Parental Request for Formal Assessment, sen, StatementSensory Seeker

I was advised by my health visitor to make a Parental Request for Statement (see my post on Pinkoddy), that it would speed the process up. At this point my son had only had 1 maybe 2 Individual Education Plans (IEPs) and was showing a Global Developmental Delay (as backed up by the Health Visitor). There is normally a procedure of doing X amount of IEPs, moving onto School Action, and School Action Plus – before Ed Psychs etc come out before the child is suggested for a Statement. I think that if an educational setting suggest a Statement and at the first assessment it is decided that they do not need assessing, then 6 months have to pass before another request can be made, this is apparently also true with a Parental Request for Statement. Please anyone correct me if any of this is wrong I have never taken this route.

Edit: I have been told that if you request a Statement and are turned down then you still need to wait 6 months before another can be requested (but you can appeal immediately).

I was very lucky in that when I made my request for a Statement the Playgroup were very proactive in helping me, and they arranged for the Educational Psychologist to come out and see my son. However, he hadn’t seen the Communication and Interaction Team and I do feel that may be he ended up with the wrong Category of Statement due to this. As he was still at Playgroup he was awarded the full 15 hours to cover 1:1 support for the full time he was there. There was then another meeting to adjust the statement to fit in with moving up to school. He has 20 hours put in place to start school, covering lunch times, and an early review to be called in October, when the school have more of an idea of his needs (evidence of how it is a health and safety issues for himself and others, for him not to be left alone).

Please note that my son does not have any form of diagnosis at all, we are still waiting (only been going on for 2 1/2 years). You do not to have your child diagnosed before you can receive a Statement, and a child does not have to have a disability to receive a Statement of Special Educational Needs, there are lots of circumstances under which a child can receive one.

I found the address of my local Special Needs Department within my Local Education Authority. Below is a template of the letter I used to request a formal assessment for a Statement of Special Educational Needs.

“Dear Sir

Request for formal assessment

I am writing as the parent of CHILDS NAME (DOB) to request an assessment of his special educational needs under the 1996 Education Act.

I would like a statutory assessment for Child X as he is under school age, and I believe that he will also need extra help when he starts school, he currently attends:

PLAYGROUP ADDRESS

I believe that Child X has special educational needs for the following reasons:

My reasons for believing that his pre-school cannot on their own make the provision required to meet my child’s needs are:

It is my understanding that you are legally obliged by law to reply to this request within six weeks and that if you refuse or fail to do so I will be able to appeal to the Special Educational Needs Tribunal.

Yours sincerely”

This is not a sponsored post.

Bad days with Sensory Processing Disorder

September 17, 2013Parentingachievements, bad days, Coping, meltdown, parentingSensory Seeker

Bad days with Sensory Processing Disorder unfortunately happen to lots of people. Sometimes a bad day happens and it is amplified by the fact that it isn’t just a bad day, it is another bad day, with yet another meltdown. That if you have any time and energy left after fighting the bad day to look for help that you are met with either a brick wall or blame. It seems that this blame seems to occur more when there do not seem to be any answers – instead of just saying sorry we sympathise but we do not know what to do. Throwing In the towel of despair will not help anyone so trying to find the positives will help a lot.

Sensory Temperature Issues and Possible Solutions

What Might Be The Triggers for the Bad Days

I try to think about what may be causing the bad days. Then to consider what could make things easier in the future.

Is it a change in routine – such as a new school, Christmas (is a big one), Easter, school holidays, a new baby, a change of house. For me, the easiest ways to deal with them are to tell myself that they will not last forever. Actually once the routine returns things will be easier. It helps by trying to make things as normal and routine as possible. I simply found over the holidays that keeping busy was enough to distract him from feeling anxious.

Are their needs being met? –have they moved about enough that day, do their clothes feel right, is it too noisy, not bright enough. If not is there anything that can be done to help meet their needs.

Sensory seeker eating a picnic concentrating on the positive

Staying Positive Through the Bad Days

Focus on their achievements – try to at least focus on something positive each week. When days are hard I can just remind myself about how far they have come. Maybe their language development, how they are now getting themselves dressed, putting on their own shoes, learning to listen, wait, eating better and try to empathise with others.

Think about others. Could your situation be worse? Sometimes thinking about how things aren’t actually that bad do help. Maybe looking back and asking yourself if this is your worst day. Then maybe if the answer is yes then tomorrow could be a better day. Remember you probably aren’t alone and there are many other parents in a similar situation. This is especially useful if it has been suggested that you “attend a parenting course,” which is something I hear of a lot.

Make time for yourself – don’t forget that you are important too. Whether that is looking after your health – not skipping on breakfast, to getting some quiet time to read a book, have a bath.

A Situation that Happened to Us

Our son was angry at school yesterday and he locked himself in the toilet (by standing behind the door). His one to one managed to get him to come out and I am proud to say that he apologised – what an achievement that is. He is back in group swimming lessons now, and he is doing so well that I am able to take my other two children into the main pool and swim at the same time.

What about you? How do you handle a bad day? Are there any strategies that help the child? What about ways to help you deal with the day?

Sensory Processing Disorder: Visual (Vision/Seeing)

September 13, 2013Sensory processing disorderseeing, sensory processing disorder, sight, visionSensory Seeker

Visual

We receive lots of information through all our senses. There are 7 senses which we use and filter out which bits of information we need to make sense of things, and to tell us how to behave. Sometimes we all can struggle with this – such as someone tapping a pen whilst we listen to someone else. But people with sensory integration disorder (or sensory processing disorder) have trouble registering and organising the information, making it difficult for them to learn and function in the World.

There are times when the child is over aroused and needs calming down, or maybe the child is too calm and needs arousing, and it is also normal to switch between the two. This post looks at the sense of Vision.

These are things to bare in mind whilst at school, they can be helped by simply moving the child. Say away from a lot of light streaming in through the windows, or away from the dark story corner – or the opposite – dependent on whether they are seeking or avoiding. It may be the reason why they are screaming that they do not wish to go outside at play time (simply because it is too bright). Or why they have trouble getting to sleep at night, or wake early (light coming into their room).

Wearing a hat may help with Sensory processing disorder vision — Wearing a hat may be needed to help with vision when going outside

TOO MUCH

Poor eye contact
Enjoy the dark
Turn off light switches
Object to going outside on a bright sunny day
Lots of squinting outside in the sun
Hide away from bright light
Can’t find their shoes in a large pile
Comment more than others on changes in lighting (e.g. cloud covering the sun)
Frequently rub, squint or cover their eyes

What we can do to help

Have a ‘time out’ area/ tent (keep it dark)
Sit them away from fluorescent lights, bright posters/ wall hangings, bright windows (Soft, consistent lighting/Minimal bright lights and visually distracting objects/ Natural lighting).
Sparsely decorated rooms
Pastel colours
Ask them to collect their shoes/ bag last
They might not be able to follow instructions on posters/ not respond as well to gestures
Allow them to wear hat or sunglasses outside.
Give them an eye mask to help sleep at night.
Blackout blinds or curtains.

NOT ENOUGH

Hand flapping/ waving fingers close to their face
Like watching spinning, shining objects
Repeatedly spin bright, reflecting objects
Love to flick lights on & off
Watch repetitive movements e.g. flipping pages of a book, opening/ closing doors & cupboards
Manipulate objects close to their face
Might bump into people or things (too distracted looking at other things)
Lose their place while reading

What we can do to help

Sit them under bright lights/ next to window
Variations in colour
Fluorescent lighting
Artificial lighting
Bright colours
Cluttered rooms
Use visual supports e.g. bright posters, visual schedules
Allow them to play with visual toys & games
Use high colour contrast e.g. dark food in white bowl; hang dark hat on light coloured wall

This is not a sponsored post.

Many thanks to the Children’s Occupational Therapy Gloucestershire Care Services NHS Trust for supply this information and granting me permission to use it.

Starting School with Sensory Processing Disorder

September 11, 2013Education, Personal Postsachievements, Experiences, schoolSensory Seeker

Starting school with Sensory Processing Disorder was always was going to be a big achievement wasn’t it. And to go into a Mainstream school too (although I am still in denial that maybe he’s just not a little bit behind, after all he was in and out of hospital quite a bit at the start).

starting school experience with sensory processing disorder

Matters weren’t helped, in the confusion stakes, by the fact that my 3 other children went back to school last Wednesday, but that my youngest didn’t start until Monday. Fear not we made the most of those days (days to the play farm, picnics in the park, McDonalds, picnics on the beach) and he handled it all very well.

Brother helping his younger brother put his shoes on for his first day of school

Wednesday came and he was so excited. He didn’t realise he too had a book bag like his brother (who is in the year above) – did you know just how sensational a book bag can be?! And when it was time to get his shoes on he thought that his shoes were his brother’s (identical but one size apart); he’s never had proper shoes before (just trainers, crocs, and boots). To see my two youngest boys so lovingly together, the older helping the younger one on with his shoes was truly magical.

Brothers holding hands walking together in the rain on the school run

He settled in so well that I felt like a spare part not needed to be there. I could not be sad, I did not cry – how could I when he was just SO happy. He had a good day and was happy to come home with me to have lunch. All the way he was chatting, a lot of it I didn’t even understand what he was trying to communicate, but what I did interpret was the fact that he was very contented. I know he felt “big” and he told me he drunk milk (he keeps asking for milk at home now too). He obviously liked his 1:1 too (he keeps touching her face).

Two cheeky boys on their first day of school

Day 2 and he wanted to put his school clothes on as soon as he got up (meaning skipping breakfast as we do things in a certain order). But once I reminded him he had to have breakfast first he was fine. He did struggle at school after first break, and it affected him all afternoon, but really it was all to be expected. Most importantly he’s still really keen to keep going back again, and has gone in fine today. I was shown his painting from yesterday and he is holding his pencil a lot better too.

School seems to have really helped him grow up already. I can see a real change in him. Also it’s easier to explain about him doing things (for himself) if you ask him if he’s a big boy? Take this morning for example, he’d have easily let me get him dressed if I had let him. His clothes were already waiting for him, and he’d undressed and put his clean pants on and was carrying them. When I suggested that he get dressed, like a big boy, he did. I was amazed, so proud and that’s when the tears sprung to my eyes. OK the jumper was backwards, and I helped with the socks, but what an absolutely wonderful achievement.

You may also be interested in 10 Questions to ask when choosing a Primary School

Help at School for those with Sensory Difficulties

September 8, 2013Educationlaughing, lining up, school, tappingSensory Seeker

A child with Sensory Processing Disorder may experience school life differently to their peers. They may seem disengaged and unable to focus, their attention being everywhere. They may find it difficult to manage their emotions suffering from sensory meltdowns. There are ways to manage and avoid these the important thing is to ensure that they receive the right sensory input for their needs – this is known as their Sensory Diet.

Sensory Difficulties that may occur in School:

Sensory difficulties that may occur in school will vary for child to child, day to day and moment to moment. Unfortunately there isn’t a one size fits all approach to it. There are some basic things that can help though – helping the child to concentrate and feel a valued member of the class.

Help at School for those with Sensory Difficulties

Teaching Assistants

Teaching assistants are great in guiding children with sensory difficulties, especially if the child is unable to identify their needs themselves. Ideally a one-to-one teacher can really benefit the individual with sensory difficulties by helping to keep the child focused and engaged. Plus the use of enhanced contextual cues (both visual and auditory) may help – or adapting the lesson to their specific interest. Those teaching those with sensory difficulties should keep things simple and don’t try to give them too much information at once.

Offer chewy/vibrating/fidget toys whilst they work (which can also help with oral issues); Give them opportunities to express themselves and keep things as routine as possible, and give warning that something different is going to happen.

A Fidgeting Child

The child with sensory difficulties may keep tapping the hands/feet, as it provides proprioceptive input to the arms/legs – (with the feet – vestibular system too). Ideas to help are allow a ball chair; Wrap theraband (stretchy band0 around the leg of the chair; again a fidget toy/oral sensory tool, or vibrating toy or pillow. Engage in 15 mins proprioceptive play prior to tasks. Allow to stand to do work, or stand on a balance board or bosu ball. Give them Heavy work (like re-arranging the tables/chairs), weighted objects (like a weighted lap pad) and opportunities for movement.

Distracted by Noises

The individual with sensory difficulties may not like it when others are talking or laughing and ask them to stop. This is likely due to a difficult in auditory processing; involving various frequencies in sound pitch and tone changes. Ideas are to let the child leave the room; give them an MP3 player; provide a sensory retreat; give them a bear hug, or deep pressure. Do not insist on eye contact. Provide quiet or a time out space for them for when the noise gets too much, and/or let them use ear defenders. Just generally have an awareness of and take into account the other noise around when they are trying to concentrate.

Teachers and support staff should be aware of how the different senses could be having an impact on them such as an over sensitivity to touch – from others, objects and clothes. Or a need for tactile sensory input and smells (that no-one else finds offensive).

Sensory Problems at Break times

Eating

At lunch times as they are susceptible to choking from eating too quickly or placing too much into their mouths. Again one-to-one support will ensure that they are safe and make sure that they do not stuff too much in – on the other hand if they have an aversion to touch or food (maybe due to the smell or temperature) they can be encouraged to eat.

Lining Up

When lining up they may become over responsive in the tactile sense, getting too close, or feeling that others are too close. They might not like the noise, or the noise may appeal and stimulate them. You can avoid any situations that may arise from this by allowing the child to be at the front or the back of the line – giving them a 50% less chance of being bumped/stimulated. Personally, I think you should go for the back as, in my experience, every child wants to be first and so by allowing someone to always go first may cause a social divide with their peers. You could try compression clothing and/or earplugs. It is important to make sure the other children are aware of the needs of the sensory processing child.

Using the Toilet

Again problems with noise may mean that they are frightened of the hand dryers in the toilets – so simply ensure that paper towels are provided.

pencil control help for those with sensory processing disorder

What Works For Our Sensory Seeker at School

The main thing with The Sensory Seeker is consistency, understanding and patience. His sensory issues aside he is a good lad that tries hard but doesn’t understand when people break the rules. He is also hyper-mobile in his hands (or something) – which means he is more flexible than he should be, and has trouble holding a pencil. So I got some pencils with the rubber ends to help with his grip. I find him riding his bike or scooter to school helps get him in the right frame of mind, and allowing him to go for a good bounce on the trampoline at the end of the day. He responds well to rewards too now – which is always a bonus.

If anyone else has any tips about helping with school I would love to hear them in the comments box below.