Doodlebugmomma

by Katie
(Michigan, USA)

My daughter is 8 and it has only been within the last year (specifically, finding THIS website) that I have discovered answers to all the "annoying" and "picky" things that she has fussed about or done in her life. She has SPD! Go figure!! While we are working on finding what works best for her, I have discovered that she likes two items which are very simple to make at home: a rice bin or a bean bin. We made one of each. Find a large container with a lid and fill it with rice or any type of dried beans. Then add little fidget items or small treasures like a marble, large paperclip, big button, pencil eraser, a set of dice, a quarter, etc. My daughter plunges both hands into the bin or bucket and allows the rice or beans to flow over her hands, over and over again. Sometimes she digs for the little treasures until she finds them all. Other times, she's just in the bucket for the feel of it. Either way, she will play for 20 minutes or more in these and they seem to calm her.



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May 08, 2012
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starstarstarstarstar 		clay time
by: Janice

My 7 year old son with SPD loves clay - the kind that potters use that dries overnight - but now is made by Crayola. He can mold and sculpt for hours - he just discovered that water can smooth it's sides. That and drawing with an ink pen will keep him calm and busy for hours - I guess that is his hyper-focused side. Of course I think he is a great, great artist, both with pen and paper and clay. He gets great confidence from it both at home and school. Hope you will try this - your son may like the white, clean looking clay as apposed to the terracota - who knows! Thanks so much for your post!
May 07, 2012
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starstarstarstarstar 		It's a journey
by: Tiffany

When my 3 yr old son w/ Autism would play in a bin of dry rice or dry bean's in his O/T sessions, he would vomit. As soon as his hands hit the rice, or beans, boom..throw-up. Touching Play-Dough or slime would also send him gagging. The special ed's had never seen a child react like that in response to touching something. Thats when I started to learn about sensory issues, of which he has many . He is 8 yrs old now, still has an aversion to touching these things, but is getting a little better. Funny thing though, he loves to touch many different textures, dirt, carpet, grass, broom bristles, etc. Basically we have to experiment to find likes/ dis-likes. It's definately a journey :)

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