Over the last year, I have become hooked on the benefits of Sensory Toys; not just for children with disabilities but for everyone! It started with some “fidget items’ on the bench; shells and stones with different textures and colours. Then I got a bit more intentional and bought a Sensory Kit from Sensory Sam’s website. Then I noticed some cool ones at Kmart in the pet section, then the toy section and so on. I now have quite a big range of sensory toys, in my house placed in bowls and sorting trays, and in my car. The ones in the house are mainly used by adult visitors, as I make a cuppa they sit at the kitchen island and then before you know it they are fiddling with some fidget toys. This is when I bring out my favourite ones and soon we are just exploring, playing and relaxing.
In the vehicle I have bags of them for different children that I support, which I keep by their usual seats. I’ve noticed the first thing they do once seated in the vehicle is to get their bag out and start playing. When I travel with children who are siblings; this is particularly helpful to reduce those after school “snitchy moments” as we drive home from school. They can do turn-taking and swapping of toys while I focus on driving in the after-school traffic.
Because we engage with the world through our senses, sensory play is vital for children to integrate what they are experiencing. It is important for everyone, but especially for people with disabilities as it can help them improve their cognitive, physical, social and emotional skills in various ways.
Cognitive skills: sensory play can help people with disabilities develop their attention span, concentration, memory, problem-solving, creativity and language skills. For example, sensory play can help people with dementia recall past memories or people with intellectual disabilities learn new words or concepts.
Physical skills: sensory play can help develop their fine and gross motor skills, hand-eye coordination, balance and spatial awareness. For example, it can help strengthen their muscles or improve their mobility.
Social skills: it can help people with disabilities develop their communication skills, social interaction skills, cooperation skills and self-confidence. For example, sensory play can help people with autism express their emotions or communicate their needs or preferences.
Emotional skills: it can help develop their self-awareness, self-regulation and coping skills. For example, sensory play can help people with anxiety calm down or relax or people with depression feel happier or more motivated.
Sensory play can also provide a sense of enjoyment and satisfaction for people with disabilities. It can make them feel valued and respected as individuals who have unique abilities and preferences. It can also make them feel more connected to themselves and others.
If you have never experienced the joy of sensory toys, I recommend you have a go. You can make your own, use found objects that appeal to you or buy some. Pick one up and don’t think about what you are doing with it. Chat to someone or watch TV or read and then after a while take a moment to see how you feel. Try out some different ones, squeeze balls, pompoms, keys on a keyring, heavier metal ones, soft fluffy ones. You will soon discover your preferences. I have always been a “phone pacer” I will find myself walking up and down the room when on the phone. I discovered that if I have a something to fidget with in my hand, I don’t walk around! Given that I have patchy mobile reception; this has been a real game-changer!
People often ask me what advocacy looks like at Action Pathways Ltd, so I thought I’d write a blog piece about it. I like the description from the Cambridge Dictionary:
”To advocate is to speak for, support, or represent a person or group of people who may need extra help or protection”.
Because my service is receptive and responsive to the different needs and goals of each family, so too advocacy is different for each client. There are a range of key things I do though which I would like to touch on here.
“Pathways planning”: we co-create an action plan that is holistic; recognising that a range of small changes is often more effective than just focusing on one big change.
Attend meetings with clients: e.g. Community service providers, Health and Education services, support groups e.g. Pediatric Team Meetings, Counselling Services, Budgeting Services, School Individual Planning Meetings.
a) as a support person (take notes and give moral support)
b) to speak on behalf of the client with pre-arranged points to be covered; I ask the tricky questions for them and promote their child’s inclusion
Organise and attend meetings to create a holistic “wrap-around” support team for families with high needs
Do agency referrals: e.g. health and education services e.g. social worker support letter, MOE referrals.
Do funding applications: with client’s approval to access funds for specific needs/goals e.g. Extraordinary Care fund for Grandparents Raising Grandchildren.
Research what services are available to meet their family’s particular needs and share with clients e.g. disability sports groups and activities, free Computer workshops.
Visit Services with clients to see what is offered and whether they have activities or supports client would like to participate in or access e.g. personal trainer at the local Gym, local libraries, sports groups, community health providers, community holiday programmes for children.
Arrange meetings/events with like-minded people to the client: e.g. “Girl’s Play” event at the Faraday Museum for girls to meet with cognitive disabilities who enjoy doll play, meet-ups in local parks or libraries for families with children with disabilities.
As part of journeying alongside families, advocacy plays a key role in promoting access to the supports they need to thrive. As they experience positive results and gain confidence, their sense of well-being increases, and they no longer feel isolated.
Recently I did an adult voyage on the Spirit of NZ Tall Ship for 3 days and nights. What an incredible experience it was. I was fortunate enough to go on a youth voyage when I was at school on the Spirit of Adventure (which has now been decommissioned and isn’t a tall ship) and have always wanted to do another voyage as an adult. We were 40 “trainees” aged 19-75 and we had 12 crew. It really was “all hands on deck” to sail the ship as everything is done manually to raise and lower the sails and the large sails like the mainsail took a minimum of 10 trainees hauling each rope to get it up. What a euphoria we had when we had raised all the sails the first time and were sailing without the engine as has been done for hundreds of years sailing ships around the globe.
There was an atmosphere of expectation and excitement from the trainees as we boarded with each of us having personal challenges in mind for our voyage. What an amazing community of positive support we were, recognizing that we are all unique and that what is easy for one person is a challenge for another. We celebrated each person’s achievements, and they celebrated ours. The crew were so skilled at supporting people when they needed it but allowing us to each face our challenges and give things a go without stepping in prematurely. It reminded me of how I work with people with disabilities, aiming for self-determination and empowerment, supporting them as they need it on their journey towards this.
My personal biggest challenge was to climb at least halfway up the mast and push through my fear of heights. I did this with encouragement from the trainees and crew on the deck and when I asked them to sing “Te Aroha” as I climbed, their voices lifted me up and my fear reduced to a manageable level. Other challenges I mastered were sitting out on the Bow Spit net while sailing and climbing up to the deck rail and swinging from a hand-held swing, jumping into the sea at the furthest point out from the ship. I did it 3 times and actually enjoyed it by the last jump!
The children that I work with were a real inspiration to me to push through the difficulties and give things a go as they have to do this daily. One particular example springs to mind; as I swam up to the ship at the end of my first swim, I needed to climb a ladder with rope sides and wet wooden rungs. I felt like I didn’t have the strength to do it as the ladder was only secured at the deck and was going under the side of the boat at an awkward angle. I thought of one young man I work with who despite having cerebral palsy, really works on his upper body strength and can do 1 finger pull-ups on a horizontal bar. I thought; if he can do that, then I can climb to the next rung on the ladder. Rung by rung saying this to myself, I climbed the ladder without assistance. By the end of the voyage I was able to do it with only a little difficulty. It reinforced to me how we can do more than we think we can and that when we dig deep and persevere through difficulty we have a real sense of achievement and develop skills that seemed impossible to us.
I feel so privileged to have had this opportunity and am considering going back as a crew volunteer for some youth voyages. Every year the Spirit of NZ takes an “Inspiration Voyage” for young kiwis aged 16-30 who live with a disability. The Captain told me some amazing stories from previous voyages which inspired me to perhaps volunteer on one of them. I can only imagine how life-changing these voyages must be and the incredible sense of achievement and empowerment the trainees must come away with. I have come away with a reignited motivation to do more adventures and to start doing the other things on my “bucket list”!
I’ve noticed in my work with children that I naturally (or perhaps subconsciously) revisit activities that we have enjoyed and they soon become part of the culture of how we spend our time together. In other words, we have developed rhythms or a bit of a repertoire as our “go to’ structure for our times together. When we start our session we have a chat about how we will spend our time together, remembering things we have done before, with input from them and from me. We revisit this as we go along, revising any plans if we are running out of time or wanting to add in something unexpected instead. By doing this together the children participate in planning, thinking ahead and I have their “buy-in” for things already agreed. This is helpful if they have a tendency towards lots of ideas but very little follow-through. Evidence shows that children learn more from revisiting activities and experiences than from new things all the time. As they repeat things the learning is embedded and there is opportunity to extend their learning and build their skills. Along the way I add in new possibilities and notice when they show an interest about something new; with a view to adding that in to our time together. For example, I noticed that one youth I work with was interested in QR Codes and this reminded me of “Geo- caching” which we now do together as a shared interest in the community.
Excerpt from Repetition and Child Development in Montessori Education | Montessori Academy
“Why is Repetition Important?
• Repetition helps to strengthen the brain’s neural processors for learning
• Repetition teaches children to practice, master and retain knowledge
• Repetition provides the opportunity for practice and reinforcement
• Repetition is needed for skill mastery and success
• Children learn through repetition and memorisation
• Children learn self-discipline and critical reflection through repetition
• Through repetition of movement, coordination is improved
• Through repetition, children learn to differentiate variations and differences in the world around them
• Through repetition, children develop the confidence to progress
• Repetition teaches children to internalise concepts
• Higher order repetition such as synthesis, analysis and application develop the child’s intelligence” It’s great to know that what are natural rhythms for me as a Teacher are supported by the evidence and that seemingly small things like revisiting activities and experiences with children, develops their brains and strengthens their neural pathways. And if it’s fun then the learning is multiplied!
I was asked to do a workshop for professionals about including neuro-diverse people in their external training workshops. In researching information for this I had my own understanding increased. It is important to be clear that neurodiversity is not a diagnosis, rather it is a broad term used to encompass a wide range of specific, non-specific, hidden and/or undetermined diagnoses that include but may not be limited to: Learning (intellectual) and/or Developmental Disability (ID/DD); Communication Disorders (CD), autism or Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD); Specific Learning Disorders (SLD); Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI); and or Foetal Alcohol Syndrome Disorders (FASD). It is estimated that about 20% of children are neuro-diverse learners.
Image from Sue Larkey: https://suelarkey.co m.au
Here is a short video: “What is Neuro-diversity?” Video: What is Neuro-Diversity? by Differing Minds
I discovered that the term Neuro-diversity covers a whole range of diagnoses and calls to question whether neuro-diversity is more common than people think? If that’s the case (which I believe it is) then every teacher, health professional, organisation and employer who wants to engage with people successfully and put them at ease needs a base knowledge of neuro- diversity. One aspect of neuro-diversity that negatively impacts people is that of Sensory Overload. If you have never had any sensory sensitivities, here are some short videos to give you a bit of an idea of how overwhelming Sensory Overload is and how debilitating it can be for someone experiencing it.
So now you’ve had a brief overview of neuro-diversity, I hope you will continue to find out more about this and how to include neuro-diverse people. As these videos show, sensory overload is real and it causes a person to literally shut down or need to escape i.e a panic response. If you want to book a workshop, just email me at actionpathways4u@pm.me
I’ve always loved libraries, the peace and quiet, the friendly Librarians, the thousands of books to spark my imagination. Libraries are safe places in the community for vulnerable people and offer somewhere to go for free to be amongst others and follow your interests. So, I’ve started visiting local libraries with the children with special needs that I work with. What a learning adventure it has been! You may be surprised what a range of activities libraries offer and each one is unique.
These are some of things on offer at the Hawkes Bay and Central Hawkes Bay Libraries: Lego: one young man I work with has rediscovered a love of Lego from doing it at the library. He usually has short concentration and gets easily frustrated but he spends up to an hour there each time happily making his creations. I then photograph them so we can make a photo book. He said the first time “it’s surprising how satisfying this is” after covering a large board in lego bricks (photo). He took his Nan to the library to show her what he’d made (the librarian kindly put it aside at his request). They have now purchased Lego and boards for him to continue this interest at home.
Books, yes books: We look up information in reference books as an alternative to google! Free tea and coffee at some libraries, which makes for a lovely free caregiver break in a comfy chair.
Art: templates for different themes and coloured pencils, scissors and felts.
Computers: another child I work with watched other children at the computers doing an online colouring in page and they told her the website. We started trying them out and then I found one that has colouring by numbers so this adds numeracy to the activity. She has now developed an interest in this and her Mum commented that they have downloaded an app with colouring by numbers which she can do herself (which is a rare thing) so that gives them a wee break at home and supports numeracy development.
Printing and Free wifi: for 20c you can print a black and white page and also use their free wifi.
Computer Coding Classes: My Lego loving friend has now signed up to learn computer coding through the library, which he can do there or at home.
Sewing Machines: we haven’t tried this yet, but I’m planning to see if that’s something that could interest them and be within their capabilities with assistance of course.
School Holiday activities: They may or may not be suitable, but worth a look.
Quiet times: Hastings library is open 5-7pm Tuesday and Thursday evenings and there is hardly anyone there. A perfect time for children with sensory sensitivities to enjoy the library. You can always ask a librarian when their quiet times are too.
Puzzles: Some libraries have a puzzle on the go; we like to try to put a few pieces in each visit. Clean, safe toilets: This a big thing when I’m out with children in the community! I hope I’ve sparked your interest in taking your child along to the local library, they need our support to keep them running as a valued community service.
back as a crew volunteer for some youth voyages. Every year the Spirit of NZ takes an “Inspiration Voyage” for young kiwis aged 16-30 who live with a disability. The Captain told me some amazing stories from previous voyages which inspired me to perhaps volunteer on one of them. I can only imagine how life-changing these voyages must be and the incredible sense of achievement and empowerment the trainees must come away with. I have come away with a reignited motivation to do more adventures and to start doing the other things on my “bucket list”!
