Sensory Regulation
Self regulation is necessary to adapt to changing demands of the environment.
Dysregulation can look like:
Easily frustrated
Impulsive, aggressive
Hyperaware to environment
How to determine if this is a sensory response (vs behavioral)
Not asking for something prior to behavior
No concern with reaction to behavior
Does not appear to be aware of surroundings/others
Areas of Sensory Integration
Auditory (hearing) → allows us to take in sound information, process it, and generate an appropriate response
Important for listening skills, communication, and social skills
Difficulties can result in misinterpreting information or missing parts of sentences
Over responsivity
Covers ears
Avoids loud places
Makes noises
Easily distracted by sound
Under responsivity
Does not respond to commands and/or name called
Needs instructions repeated often
Sensory craving/seeking
Makes noises, humming, etc.
Plays loud music
Activities
Singing
Blow whistles
Rain stick
Sound machine
Listening to music
Adaptive tools
Noise canceling headphones
Quiet retreat/space
Vision (sight) → uses the eyes to collect information to identify and understand what the eyes sees
Visual system works closely with other senses to help us safely navigate and locate objects in our environment
Difficulties may significantly impact academic performance
Over responsivity
Sensitive to light (e.g. squints, wearing sunglasses)
Frequently rubbing eyes
Under responsivity
Loses place in reading and math
Difficulty tracking
Difficulty with spatial relations
Reverses letters
Sensory craving/seeking
Stares at bright and/or spinning lights
Stares at moving objects
Activities
Sensory bottles or jars
“I Spy”
Mazes, dot-to-dot
Bubbles
Light table
Adaptive tools
Sunglasses for outdoors/ tinted lenses indoors if sensitive to glare
Limit toys/items placed out to avoid visual overload
Dim lights
Spaces with minimal visuals
Visual screen/divider
Gustatory (taste) → allows a child to discriminate between food flavors and tastes. Taste is received through taste buds and receptor cells on the tongue.
Difficulty might cause children to be a picky eater or crave oral input, demonstrating challenging behaviors during meal time
Over responsivity
Eats limited number of foods
Vomits/gags or is sensitive to taste/textures
Under responsivity
Prefers strong flavors (e.g. spicy)
Stuffs mouth with food
Sensory craving/seeking
Stuffs mouth with food
Eats too much
Activities
Explore textures (smooth, crunchy, chewy, lumpt, etc)
Explore tastes (sweet, sour, salty, spicy, bitter)
Adaptive tools
Chew gum
Vestibular → responds to changes in head position and body movement through space. Coordinates movements of the eyes, head, and body to help with balance. Tells a child when they are moving and the direction and speed of that movement. Inner ear
This sense provides us with gravitational security → the feeling that we can maintain a position without falling
Difficulty can result in a child who needs to move constantly to feel satisfied or a child who is fearful of movement because it makes them feel insecure or unbalanced. May result in difficulty coordinating and planning motor tasks
Under responsivity
Does not use playground equipment
Avoids movement
Fearful of uneven surfaces
Gravitationally insecure
Often nauseous
Over responsivity
Difficulty sitting still
Constantly moving, seeking out movement
Rocking
Craves running, spinning, jumping
Sensory craving/seeking
Enjoys being upside down and sideways
Does not get dizzy
Shows no signs of postrotary nystagmus
Activities
Use a scooter board
Swing
Trampoline
Rocking chair
Jumping jacks
Roll on the floor or down a hill
Adaptive tools
Flexible seating (e.g. wobble stool)
Olfactory (smell) → helps to differentiate between different odors and determine if they are dangerous, foul, pleasurable, strong, or faint. Helps create the flavors tasted in food.
Difficulty can result in children who crave smells and may not understand safe versus dangerous smells. Children with an aversion to smells may have trouble at meal times, as other children may gag from smells that most people don't notice or consider unpleasant
Over responsivity
Avoids strong smells
Under responsivity
Does not notice bad/foul odors
Sensory craving/seeking
Smells others
Seeks odors that may be offensive
Activities
Scratch and sniff stickers
Scented bubbles
Adaptive tools
Use scented markers and crayons
Diffuser/essential oils (calming- vanilla and lavender; alerting- peppermint and citrus)
Tactile (touch) → helps detect light touch, deep pressure, texture, temperature, vibration, and pain. Allows a child to determine what he/she is touching without the use of their vision
Difficulty can have a significant impact on a child’s emotional well-being. Tactile input helps children develop body awareness, hand use skills, and motor planning
Over responsivity
Avoids messy play
Prefers not to touch sticky items
Sensitive to seams and tags on clothing
Under responsivity
Seeks out messes
Feels things and people, even if inappropriate
Does not notice messy hands or face
Sensory seeking/craving
Frequent fidgeting
Drums fingers and bounces legs
Seeks out experiences to touch items
Mouthing objects (oral)
Activities
Finger paint
Sand/water play
Playdough
Sensory bin (rice, beans, etc)
Adaptive tools
Joint compressions
Weighted lap pad
Chewys (oral input)
Proprioception (body awareness) → Allows a child to determine his/her body’s position in space and regulate the direction and amount of force to use when moving. Sense is detected through sensory receptors in the joints and muscles.
Stimulated when experiences pressure or moves their limbs to push, pull, lift, or hang
Engaging in activities that offer proprioceptive input, a child may also show improved attention and a more regulated arousal level. This is beneficial for learning, playing, socializing, and completed daily tasks
Over responsivity
Fatigues easily
Under responsivity
Falls on to floor
Prefers heavy blankets/items
Grinds teeth
Kicks/stomps feet
Sensory craving/seeking
Hitting self/others
Activities
Pull/push heavy objects
Trampoline
Bear hugs
Sweep, vacuum
Animal walks
Yoga poses
Adaptive tools
Foot fidgets (stretchy bands across chair legs)
Weighted blanket (compression)
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