A Sensory Shopping Trip

Hannah and I have had a very busy day shopping in Norwich. Firstly we got off to  a bad start going to the wrong park and ride but we didn't let it faze us as we'd already had our McDonald's breakfast fix! 

We weren't looking for anything particular today as we have already done a big Ebay/ Amazon shop for next term but can't help picking up extra bits and bobs. I am on strict orders not to buy myself any more shoes as I've gone a bit crazy for my birthday this year. We went into Office but Hannah made sure I left empty handed this time!

Our first port of call was Smiggle. Smiggle is one of our favourite shops however it can be really expensive. It is great for ideas to sometimes shop around for cheaper online. They do some great key rings that are tactile, visual and smelly! Hannah used them last year as staff signifiers but they didn't work for the class but she has said she would always try again with a different group in the future. 

Here are a few bits we found and some ideas for how to use them. I apologise if we didn't take a note of the prices of things throughout this post, it was sometimes unclear to see and other times we simply forgot! Hopefully if you like something there will be prices on their website. 

Smiggle

I had a great time playing with the twirly ribbon and the glitter tube. I bought one of the glitter tubes last year! There are so many great textures in Smiggle, I love the range of phone cases. This one was bright, tactile and also smelled good too! It gave us an idea to see what other textured phone cases we could find cheap to put on a tactile board. I loved the reversible sequin pencil case, this was very expensive though. An alternative is buying the reversible sequin cushion covers and mounting them onto something more sturdy. We have used reversible sequins to represent a mermaid in one of our sensory stories. I absolutely love snap round bracelets. I have previously used them as part of an African sensory story to represent the giraffe's long neck. The children unpeeled it and loved the
feedback from the clicks as they unwound it. It is also great for anticipation... ready, steady... it always gets a laugh snapping it around their wrist. And might I add this one was also smelly!
We love the ball game but have always found it expensive however, it is on offer at the minute for £10. Again I think it would be great for anticipation games but also for developing grip and mobility in the hand.

Tiger

Theses are great for developing body awareness, making the children aware they have fingers! The first ones might even glow under a UV light. Hannah bought the octopus fingers last year and the children's fingers come alive wiggling! It's also problem solving - how to get them on and off. They give a great feedback through your fingers as you wobble them almost a tingling vibrating sensation.

Hannah and I have the topic of 'Ourselves' next term, particularly looking at people who interact with us in our community. For a two week period we will be focusing on a beauty therapist- an opportunity for massage and getting out the foot spas. These are some great resources for us. I love the foot file as there are 4 different textures to provide the children with opportunity to show preference. I used a yellow version of the fluffy hand mop a couple of years ago to represent a lion in one of my sensory stories. The 'Fod Creme' foot lotion is also great as it is perfume free so you could add your own scent to it. We love the massage roller balls too, they can work well as part of TAC PAC. 

Other finds

These mini whisks are great for making little sensory whisks. I made a black and white whisk for my friends baby with black and white ribbons, giant buttons (very tightly secured) and fairly lights She loved it! Flo often uses sensory whisks as objects of reference or themed for topics. We love her butterfly whisk!

These are actually quite good value. We love water lights!

I loved this for a bit of cause and effect, there is a button on top. Could be great to use as part of a Sensology session (see our earlier blog post to find out more about Sensology). 

I bought all three of these! I want to make some UV whisks for a dark den. Would also be fab under a black umbrella with UV lights. 

 We had never seen cinnamon sticks so big! We are going to put them in our naturals box. 

We loved these as giant clips to attach things to wheelchairs. Hannah bought one for a child to hold her drink bottle to her chair to provide her with more independence. Could also be great for a child who seeks smells. They are a perfect size for a Pringles tube. Jo Grace puts a fresh smell such as lavender and a tumble drier ball in a Pringles tube with holes in the top. As the child shakes it, it releases the smell offering them the control over the strength of the scent. You can find out more about this activity and more by attending one of Jo Grace's fantastic courses. Click here to find out more about Jo's upcoming conferences and training opportunities.

We have loads of these, they make me cringe but most of the children love them. I used it as part of a sensory story about being at the hairdressers. 

A staple in many classrooms!

Another staple - we love a water spray! So much anticipation, plus great to add a scent to. 

I love these due to the turn handle! I have bought a set for a new TAC PAC we have made. 

I bought loads of these and various different cups from tiger last year to put on my hand made light box. They looked great. They also look fab on a handmade UV light box with glow in the dark water (dissolve a B50 tablet). I used it as part of a picnic topic. We had a great time pouring. 

 We have some of these too! We love water toys and they are so squidgy and bright!

I adored this and played with it for a while so it also ended up in my basket. I wondered whether this would also glow under a UV light. I have one child who absolutely loves these. It's such a great tactile experience and also helps develop body awareness. 

 We bought a couple of these for ice exploration. They will be great for rolling (add paint to leave a mark). Once made, another great thing to do is put salt on ice as it crackles. If you have more able pupils you can hide things inside them and use the large pipettes of warm water to melt them. Putting items such as tinsel inside the frozen sphere make a lovely visual experience. 

They would also make great bath bomb moulds. The children made bath bombs for their mums for mothers day this year. They are so easy to make, tipping ingredients in and getting their hands in to mix and squeeze together. The more able were able to choose a smell from a choice of 2 (great to use the smells they are familiar with from Sensology). 

Everyone loved water bombs! Hannah did a great session last year anticipating them bursting! It was amazing how determined the children became in trying to pop them. One little boy soon put his problem solving skills into action using his hand proved ineffective and used his teeth making a tiny hole which squirted the water out to his surprise and delight! Everyone got soaked, it was fab!

I want a white set like this having seen Hannah use squeezy bottles. Hannah has a set with rapeseed oil in for massage- a quick and easy way to dispense the oil during a session. It's also great for vinegar over bicarb as they are a lot easier for the children to use instead of pipettes.  You could even fill them with lemon juice to show under UV light. 

 We bought this for one of Hannah's class for their Sensology boxes. He is working on developing the strength in his hand. 

 Great for TAC PAC. 

Alternative to using sand if your children tend to eat sand, if you want something that flows through a spinney wheel use polenta. 

 We thought these might also glow under UV light, could be great for tracking. 

My class are working on independent living skills so I thought powder milkshake was really great as fairly simple to spoon and shake. 

These are great for a UV den! These giant UV rods are so expensive from a sensory shop but only £3 in tiger!! 

Our favourite find from Tiger was the 'Slimy Starfish'. It has a very sticky rather than slimy texture. If you check out the video below (please excuse the state of our garden!) you'll see how this could make a great visual stimulus for those working on visual tracking. We're sure this could be made even better with a UV torch shining over it to make it really stand out!

The Works

We found some great bargains in The Works today. Too many as we struggled to carry them all around with us!

 This was an amazing deal £3- I love all things water play!

We bought a couple of these as it's a way for the children to control their own bubbles!

This was creepy but amazing at the same time. It was actually really heavy the the glitter was really clear to see. 

So many windmills!

Bargain! Hannah bought 3 bottles. We love bubbles! There appears to be a sale on at the moment in The Works for all kinds of bubbles including scented and giant ones.

We got very excited seeing a fabulous display of giant and sensory bows in Claire's accessories today, until we looked at the price and gasped (£10 each)! Even buy 3 get 3 free couldn't convince us to buy. However we will be looking for funky material to make our own bows. We already have plans for a funky bow umbrella! 

And finally it's not just children who love sensory. I bought myself a pair of sensory shoes at the weekend! My mother was not very impressed but I love them! 

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