Sensory play days

Who needs flashcards, letters, numbers or mnemonics when you’ve got little fingers, ears, noses, tongues and voices as natural sensory connections for children.

As adults we sometimes obsess over teaching youngsters to read, sing and interact with learning materials, all obviously a valuable way of getting to know the world, but we can forget about the benefits of sensory play which has been with us since time immemorial.

In essence, sensory play includes play that engages any of your child’s senses. This includes touch, smell, sight, sound and taste. But it also covers movement, balance, and spatial awareness. When a child is born, their senses aren’t fully developed. They only mature over time as babies, toddlers, and preschoolers explore the sensory world around them. Each new experience they have with a different sense builds nerve connections that grow the architecture of their brain.

Sensory play encourages learning through exploration, curiosity, problem solving and creativity. It helps to build nerve connections in the brain and encourages the development of language and motor skills. There are many benefits that may go unnoticed, such as the development of abilities to focus and block out distractions.
Sensory play is an important part of childhood and, within reason, there are really no limits to what you can use in sensory activities.

Sensory play helps babies to learn more about the world around them and supports language development as they learn to respond to different stimuli. Babies can enjoy simple sensory play such as touching different objects and surfaces and hearing how different materials create varied sounds.

Toddlers on the other hand are usually developing their thinking abilities and will start trying to do things for themselves. They are learning about concepts, like time and opposites, so activities that compare light and dark, and sorting colours, will encourage toddlers in their exploration.

Preschoolers will often be exploring more independently and further developing language. Playing with musical instruments and creating and building different shapes with various objects and materials, will further encourage these developments. 

The different characteristics of sensory play align to the five common senses, along with two additional senses related to balance and proprioception (the perception or awareness of the position and movement of the body). 

When children pick up an object they will learn about temperature, pressure and vibrations while jumping, rolling and swinging activates sensors in the inner ear which control the body’s balance and movement. Sounds are explored through play – give a child a saucepan and a wooden spoon to bang or a tambourine to shake – it shatters our nerves but it helps to differentiate sounds and develop hearing. Sight stimuli include playing with colours and patterns while smell and taste are developed when a child explores a brick with its tongue or smells a flower.

Sensory play plays an important role in a child’s learning and development as much of our learning comes through our ability to use our senses to retain information.

Lots of info to take in here but at the end of the day sensory play is all about having fun learning new skills while also offering an opportunity for calming emotions, such as anger or  anxiety.

Some children may have a sensory sensitivity or need. Every child who has a sensory sensitivity is different, and their needs may change over time. Ideas for games for children with particular needs include using messy materials such as baked beans, condensed milk, jelly or glue. Try some taste tests (not the glue !) and smell tests and see how many of the products your child recognises with eyes closed of course !

Place a variety of toys on a tray or flat surface to stimulate your child. Try sensory toys or toys with suction cups that will stick on flat surfaces. Make a tray of water or sand for your child to play with different textures. You can also add toys.

Get them to help you in the kitchen to prepare food. Depending on what you're doing and how interested your child is, they can help or just give them their own plastic bowl and spoon to mimic your actions.

Play with dough, either clay or homemade. Use moulds and have fun cutting and assembling shapes. Cookie cutters or large cups with large handles may be easier for your child to grasp or get out the paint brushes, sponges and paint – don’t forget finger painting – messy but such fun.

Make a video of the things you have recorded your child doing and play it for them and look out family photo albums and point to familiar faces. Finding the best position, which can be done with a pillow or using an angled tray on a table, will help your child to feel more comfortable and encourage him to keep his head up. 

Play with dough, either clay or homemade. Use moulds and have fun cutting and assembling shapes. Cookie cutters or large cups with large handles may be easier for your child to grasp.

Spend some quiet time playing with simple puzzles or making shape, colour, word or number cards. Using a flat, smooth surface such as a table or tray will make the activity easier.

And finally for a fun tactile experience, why not build a bear – Be My Bear offer a range of bear and animal making kits targeted at youngsters to make themselves from 4 and upwards. But toddlers will also enjoy the quality time with you sharing the bear-making experience, adding the stuffing, touching the ted, feeling the super soft fabric and then of course treasuring the bear itself for years to come.  

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