Sensory Play with Sitting Spots

“How are you guys ever going to learn if you keep bouncing off the walls?”

My nerves were fried but I knew there was more school to get done before we could call it a day.

I also knew my kids have genuine sensory needs that need to be met…

Scroll to the bottom for a VIDEO demonstration of these sensory tools in action!

A big thanks to Everyday Educate for sponsoring this post!

When things are getting crazy in our home classroom, I know it’s time to do some multitasking. 

These sitting spots by Everyday Educate are perfect for bringing sensory input into learning. But kids just see it as fun!

Check out just a few of the hundred of ways you can use these colored Velcro stars.

P.S. I’m so glad they stay put on carpet for all the hopping and stomping we do! Everything else we’ve tried slid around.

Find the Colors

This is a fun one for the younger crowd. Pick a body part for a child to place on a certain color.

Place your chin on purple.” “Put your elbow on red.” “Set your head on blue.” Let them go on a hunt for colors while they develop more awareness of their bodies. You could easily make this activity competitive by limiting the number of colors available to your kids and have them race to find the colors.

Body Scramble

A similar activity that works well with older kids, the sensory body scramble is an invitation to stretch and laugh!

Call out a color and either the left or right hand, or the left or right foot. The catch is that all other limbs have to stay in place until they’re called to move elsewhere. This will leave kids in a tangle. To stay in the game, they have to keep everything but feet and hands off the floor.

This is fantastic for strengthening the core, which in turn can help with primitive reflexes, posture, hand writing, and SO MUCH more! There is also a lot of heavy work/proprioception going on as kids balance their body weight.

I also always try to get them into an inverted position. When their heads are upside down, they get a lot of calming vestibular input that can help them regulate for the rest of the day! Check out this post for more upside down sensory ideas!

Literal Skip Counting

Use the sitting spots create a hopscotch path of sorts. Then invite your child to practice their skip counting or multiplication facts while hopping from one star to the other.

Jumping is great for the vestibular system because of the movement and height change. And the firm landing is perfect for the propriceptive system as the joints and ligaments get some serious input.

Your child will have better body awareness as well as a better ability to regulate sensory input overall. Don’t forget, the sensory systems are all connected! Healthy proprioception during the day can translate to less tactile aversion or a willingness to try different food textures!

Wheelbarrow Sight Words

This is one of my personal favorites because there is so much teamwork involved. Have your kids pair up and get into the wheelbarrow position (one child face down with their hands on the ground, the second child lifts the first child’s legs up into the air and becomes their legs).

Place sight words (or math equation answers) on top of the sitting spots. Call out the question or the word they are supposed to find, and have the children saunter over to the particular star. The child that is inverted is getting a bunch of both proprioceptive and vestibular input. It can be quite intense. Make sure if that child requests a break, that their partner honors the request to put their legs down quickly!

My boys gathered their sight words and placed them in the “wheelbarrow”. Ha ha!

The child holding the legs is also getting a sensory workout in the form of proprioception. Talk about heavy work!

I hope this run down of sensory activities gives you an idea how you can you these sitting spots by Everyday Educate for learning in a sensory way! Adapt to your kids interests and skill levels. They’re so versatile!

 

Let me know in the comments ways you’ve thought of to getting sensory input in while doing school!