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Virtual World!

Zoom icon

I realise that my last newsletter was written in February 2020 before the world changed so dramatically. For me the last six months has consisted of mostly working on Zoom, and only seeing people and clients virtually. This virtual world from a sensory perspective is very different from the ‘real life’ world. It is heavily […]

Vestibular System

The vestibular system is located inside the inner ear and it is the sensory system responsible for detecting movement of our head and the sense of gravity. It tells us which way up our head is and where our head is in space at any time. The vestibular system is very important in helping us […]

Behaviour

‘Is it sensory or behaviour?’ is the most frequent question I am asked when I am assessing an individual with a presenting behaviour. Behaviour is complex and there are multiple pieces to fit together to understand behaviour. It is not as simple as ‘Is it sensory or behaviour?’. That would be reducing all behaviour down […]

Sensory Retreat

It is important to think about retreat time and places, when thinking about building sensory input into every day life, whether that is at school or at home. Retreat is especially needed for those who are over responsive to sensory input, and for those who find it difficult to regulate their arousal level. A retreat […]

Classroom Sensory Strategies

The start of the new academic year is a great time to rethink how you are ensuring that pupils within your class are getting the sensory input they need to be regulated and at the optimum arousal level. Just as we need a regular and healthy diet of food and drink throughout the day, […]

Neurodiversity Celebration Week

The first ever Neurodiversity Celebration Week takes place next week May 13 – 17, 2019. This initiative has been driven by 16 year old Siena Castellon to change views on students with neurodiversity. She says ‘ We are the dreamers. The pioneers. The change-makers. The future business leaders. We are the trailblazers. The adventurers. The […]

Scooter Board Activities

Continuing the series looking at equipment for sensory strategies, the scooter board is a key piece of equipment. Scooter boards primarily give vestibular and proprioceptive sensory input. They are not too expensive, don’t take up much space, are light to carry, and can be used for endless different activities, especially if you have a good […]

Sensory Strategies

Often there is a misconception that specialist equipment is needed for sensory strategies, but equipment need not be expensive at all, and can often be homemade. A duvet ball bag can easily be made. Take a single duvet cover and fill about one quarter to one third full with ball pool balls. It can be […]

Self-injurious Behaviour

This post is the last in the series looking at the most common sensory processing difficulties that parents reported that they encountered with their children: Hurt or harms themselves I think the first thing to say is, behaviour is often very complex, and there is not necessarily one reason for a behaviour and therefore […]

Sensory Seeking

This month I am looking at the next most common sensory processing difficulty that parents reported that they encountered with their children: Craving fast and intense movement If your child is a sensory seeker/craver then you will know all about this behaviour. The child seeks out very intense movement (vestibular) opportunities, for example swinging, jumping, […]

Common Sensory Processing Difficulties in Everyday Life

What do you think might be the most common sensory processing difficulties that parents encounter with their children in everyday life? According to a survey from parents of children attending a specialist school in Cumbria, here are the top 4: 1. Sleep difficulties 2. Distress with self-care 3. Craves fast, intense movement 4. Hurts/harms themselves […]

Sleep

This seemed a fitting topic to coincide with World Autism Awareness Week commencing on 26 March 2018. It is estimated that between 50 – 80 % of children with autism have sleep problems. In fact many children with sensory processing difficulties experience sleep disturbances. Fidgetbum have very kindly agreed to give to one reader […]

Sensory Strategies

Often there is a misconception that specialist equipment is needed for sensory strategies, but equipment need not be expensive at all. Here are 10 ideas of activities which provide regulating sensory input, all using one toy costing only £ 13 from IKEA and one other piece of equipment. 1. Crawl through a tunnel and […]

Fidget Tools

Have you ever noticed how people fidget with some kind of a thing while lost in thought as they work? On my courses I put out fidget tools on the table for participants to use during the training day. It never ceases to amaze me how much these are used. The majority of the course participants will fiddle […]

Resistance Bands

In the last newsletter, I focused on the importance of movement breaks in the classroom and gave ideas of activities and resources. In this newsletter, I thought it would be helpful to look at resistance bands and give some ideas for their use at school and home. Resistance bands are inexpensive to buy, or you can make your […]

Movement Break Ideas for School

The start of the new school year is a great time to rethink how your class will run, and put in place new ideas to help children focus, attend and stay regulated. We all find it difficult to sit still for long periods of time, and even adults need to get up and move. Children […]

Proprioception

Last weekend I spent a day chopping down an overgrown hedge and trees in our garden. It was hard, physical work. Physically I felt shattered, my muscles ached, I was so stiff – but I actually felt good, in fact I had much more energy and felt a lot less tired than usual. It led me to […]

Autism

This week is World Autism Awareness Week ( 27 March to 2 April 2017). So how can you keep up to date with research on autism? Some research studies are highlighted in the national press or in the scientific press, such as a recent study on early intervention published in October 2016 in The Lancet, […]

Regulation

What do we mean by regulation? How does sensory input help us all stay regulated? These will be among the questions that will be considered in the courses this Spring Term. Making SENSE of Behaviour is an exciting new two day course to enable people to look at behaviour more systematically, develop a clear understanding for […]

Behaviour

Behaviour – what do we mean when we use this term? How do we make sense of some of the behaviours we see in children and adults that we work with? Is it just behaviour? Is all behaviour “communication”? or is it more complex than this? For example, how do we make sense of: A […]

Courses

Thank you to everyone who completed the questionnaire on course development. The information has been really useful in terms of reviewing the courses I currently run and developing new courses. Congratulations to Lesley Ritchie who was drawn to win the free place on a course in the next academic year. As a result of the feedback received, Sensory Course Part 1 and Part […]

Autism and Neuroscience

There has been a growing public interest in the last decade in neuroscience. For those working with individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), there is much literature in terms of differences in the central nervous system of those with ASD. An understanding of some of these differences may help us to understand behaviour better, and […]

Sensory Lifestyle

We all need sensory input and activities built into our daily lives. This sensory input helps us to keep regulated and at the optimum arousal level. Just as we need a regular and healthy diet of food and drink throughout the day, we also need regular sensory input during the day. The term ‘sensory […]

Motor Skills and Autism

motor programmes

Sensory processing problems are well recognised in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) with research estimating prevalence rates of between 45 – 96 %. This has led to sensory difficulties being included as a diagnostic feature in DSM-5 (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders 5th edition). The focus being on how children react to […]

Sensory Portraits

Newsletter September 2015 Many children within school have unidentified sensory processing and motor coordination difficulties which result in a variety of behaviours, for example with: concentration; handwriting; following instructions; and social skills. Often these behaviours are misunderstood and these children may be labelled as ‘naughty’, ‘disruptive’ and ‘manipulative’. Research has shown that children do not […]

Sensory Resources for Summer Holidays

Warmer weather arrived last week and the summer holidays are rapidly approaching. For parents, keeping children entertained over the summer holidays may be a challenge and this is often much harder when your child has sensory processing problems. For teachers, this is a time of preparation for the next academic year as well as hopefully […]

Sensory Seekers

Newsletter March 2015 Sensory seekers look for ways to add sensory input into their lives. They don’t seem to be able to get enough sensory input and as such have also been termed as ‘sensory cravers’. They may be constantly on the go; unable to sit still; crashing, bashing and bumping into things; fiddling and […]

Sensory Resources

Newsletter February 2015. At the start of a new year, I thought it would be good to look at some resources that I have come across in the few months. Please let me know if you find resources that are useful and I will then post them on subsequent newsletters. A Stitch Different A Stitch […]

Sensory Strategies for Mainstream Schools

Newsletter November 2014 Sensory Strategies for Mainstream Schools Last newsletter we looked at behaviours that may be observed within school that indicate that a pupil has motor coordination difficulties or sensory processing problems. This month I want to focus on just three simple strategies that can easily be put into place within every mainstream primary […]

Dyspraxia and Sensory Processing Disorder

Newsletter September 2014 Back to School At the start of a new school year it is an ideal opportunity to take a fresh look at pupils who are struggling at school and not reaching their full potential. Frequently I see children who have been labelled as having ‘behavioural’ difficulties, when in fact they turn out […]

Motor Coordination Skills

Newsletter May 2014 Did you know? The importance of physical development is recognised in the Early Years Foundation Stage. It forms one of the three prime areas of learning and development. Sensory and motor experiences are key in forming the foundations for learning to take place. Research suggests 5% of children within UK schools have […]

Sensory Processing and Autism

Building Bridges Through Sensory Integration (2002)

Newsletter March 2014 Did you know? In 2013 the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM) was revised by The American Psychiatric Association. The revised manual, DSM-5, has significant changes to the criteria for the diagnosis of autism. There is no longer the separate terms of ‘autistic disorder’ and ‘Asperger’s disorder’ as found in DSM-IV. The diagnostic […]

Sensory Processing Disorder within the Classroom

Early Intervention Games by Barbara Sher

Newsletter January 2014 Did you know? Behavioural concerns within class such as difficulties with sitting still, concentrating and attending, listening to the teacher, all affect a child’s ability to engage and learn within the school environment. Often these difficulties are a result of problems with processing sensory information. Commonly these difficulties are not understood or […]

The Proprioceptive System

Newsletter November 2013 Did you know? Our muscles and joints contain sensory receptorswhich tell us where are body parts are moving. This is known as proprioception. Proprioception enables us to know where our body parts are moving without looking eg when doing up buttons on a shirt especially the top button, or catching a ball. […]

The Tactile System

Newsletter September 2013 Did you know? Our tactile (touch) receptors are found in our mouths as well as in our skin. Our skin is the body’s largest organ. We have different types of tactile receptors in our skin and mouths that detect the sensations of touch, pressure, vibration, temperature and pain. The sense of touch […]

The Vestibular System

Newsletter July 2013 Did you know? The vestibular system is located inside the inner ear and it is the sensory system responsible for detecting movement of our head and the sense of gravity. It tells us which way up our head is and where our head is in space at any time. The vestibular system […]

Oral Motor Sensory Input

Newsletter January 2013 Did you know? We all use oral motor input as a tool to help regulate ourselves, and very often unconsciously. We may chew a pen, bite our nails, yawn, smoke, bite our lips or tongue, put our hands to our mouths. Oral motor input may help us to become more alert, or […]

Sensory Processing Strategies

Newsletter November 2012 Did you know? Behavioural concerns within class such as difficulties with sitting still, concentrating and attending, listening to the teacher, all affect a child’s ability to engage and learn within the school environment. Often these difficulties are a result of problems with processing sensory information. To address these difficulties sensory strategies are […]

Sensory Processing

Newsletter October 2012 Did you know? Sensory processing is a term that refers to the way our brain receives sensory messages and turns them into a response. We are constantly taking in sensory information from the world and our bodies. We live in a sensory-rich world. Sensory processing helps us make sense of the world. […]

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