Outdoor Sensory Activities from Judson Center

SUMMER IS HERE

What better way to make the most of beautiful weather than engaging in outdoor sensory activities at Judson Center? The flowers are blooming and the weather is warming up, so it’s time to get outside. No matter where you live, the outdoors offers the perfect environment to grow, explore and meet important sensory needs. While many sensory-friendly activities are geared toward children with autism, sensory play is important for children of all ages.

THE IMPORTANCE OF SENSORY PLAY

Our senses give us important information thousands of times each day. Children use their senses to learn about and explore the world around them. Providing kids with sensory play opportunities every day offers many great benefits. For a child with autism, sensory processing disorder (SPD), or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), meeting sensory needs supports cognitive development, improves emotional regulation, and increases brain function. Simply put, engaging the senses through play helps children learn and grow. Sensory activities help any child learn essential skills like:

• grasping small items (fine motor skills)

• balancing and walking (gross motor skills)

• developing knowledge (cognitive skills)

• reasoning and planning (problem-solving skills)

• collaboration (social skills)

• learning new words (language skills)

• expressing emotions (emotional regulation skills)

Outdoor sensory activities build a foundation for a healthier, happier child with new skills to help them thrive. Here are some ideas for you, your children, and your whole family to reap all the benefits of sensory play outside this summer!

1. In the Backyard or at Home

Plant wildflowers or an edible garden and bring your children along for the journey. Not only is the experience educational, but digging in the dirt, watering flowers, and taste-testing yummy fruits and vegetables make for great sensory activities.

Get over those pesky grass stains because rolling down a hill is a fun sensory activity. The spinning and rotating result in vestibular input, a type of movement that causes the fluid in the inner ear to flow and hit important sensory receptors.

Grab a sprinkler and let the kids run wild! Jumping through and running away from the sprays of water is a great sensory activity that can help cool them down in the hot summer months.

For a calmer water activity, let the creativity flow with water paints. Fill a bucket or bin with water and several paintbrushes of various sizes, and let your children “paint” the driveway, sidewalk, or porch. Let the sun dry their canvases, and they can repeat the activity over and over.

2. At the Playground or Park

Many playgrounds are built to meet children’s important sensory needs. Look for special playgrounds and structures that allow for swinging, jumping, balancing, music, and nature exploration for a sensory-filled visit!

Most playgrounds and parks have monkey bars or something similar for children to play on. The hard grip and swinging required to traverse the bars are important activities that help improve hand strength and coordination.

Swinging is an important sensory activity for children with autism or other sensory processing disorders. Using different kinds of swings in outdoor play not only helps calm children but also helps them engage in movements that strengthen various skills, such as coordination, balance, and body awareness.

Utilize balance beams or the border around a sandbox or play area to help your child practice balance and coordination. If your child is older, you could make the activity more fun by pretending the ground is lava. Challenge them to get from one point to another without falling.

3. On a Walk or Hike

Explore the outdoors using all 5 senses! Whether you’re out on a neighborhood walk or hiking in the woods, kids will have a blast searching for items on their scavenger hunt list. You can create your own or use ours HERE to get you started.

Climbing is an important sensory activity for children of all ages. The pressure in their muscles and joints while climbing helps with internal regulation. Also, the touch of tree bark, branches, and leaves adds an extra layer of tactile sensory fun!

Help your children build an inventory of sensory items to store and explore when they are outside. While on a walk or a hike, gather flowers, sticks, leaves, acorns, rocks, and other items your kids can use to play with at home.

While on a walk or hike, pretend you’re leading your own parade. Have your kids walk and move like the animal you name. The differences between animal actions like breezy monkey swings, big elephant stomps, and a playful penguin waddle all result in helpful sensory movements.

Bury your child’s legs and/or torso under the sand. The pressure and weight of the sand offer a unique proprioceptive input to help your child learn and develop. For added fun, see if they can be a beach mummy and rise up by pushing through the sand.

4. On the Beach or Lake

Walk with your child at the beach and sink your toes into the sand. Talk about what it feels like to do this on dry sand and wet sand.

Bury toys or rocks in the sand and pretend it’s buried treasure. This is a great way to engage your child in sensory play that meets their proprioceptive input needs. Proprioception is sensory input that children feel in their joints and muscles that tell them where their body is and how it is moving. Beach activities like digging in and carrying sand are great examples of this.

Bury your child’s legs and/or torso under the sand. The pressure and weight of the sand offer a unique proprioceptive input to help your child learn and develop. For added fun, see if they can be a beach mummy and rise up by pushing through the sand.

Have fun running toward the waves and jumping over them, or challenge your child to run from the waves and rush back to shore. This is a fun activity to stimulate your child’s senses.

There are endless opportunities for sensory play in the great outdoors! We hope these outdoor sensory activities help jumpstart your summer and make it one to remember as you laugh, learn, and grow together with your child.