top of page

Sensory and Regulation/Skills

In my classroom I do my best to help my students get ready to learn. I teach second grade to in a regular classroom setting (meaning that academically we teach the second grade core) with special education, self regulation, sensory regulation, accommodations. Many of the students I work with have Autism Spectrum Disorders, social cognitive delays, or some just process emotions and sensory information differently. Below are listed activities to help calm, alert, and organize students’ sensory needs. If you need other supports, please contact me by email under the homepage, email supports.

Sensory Regulation

Students may be over-sensitive or under-sensitive to sensory input (and this may differ from day to day, or even within the same day), and they may seek sensory input or withdraw from it. The way that students process sensory information affects their attention span, behavior, organization, and their ability to regulate their emotions.

Alerting Activities

  • Dancing: dance to music for 2 minutes.

  • Hula Hoops: pretend to move as if you had a hula hoop around your middle.

  • Silent Wave: hold hands in a circle and have one person in the circle start the wave and send it around the room.

  • Making rain: soft patting of your hands on the table, then clicking, then rubbing your hand, and then slapping them on your legs, then stomping your feet. Do the same in reverse to bring the storm down.

  • Head, Shoulders Knees and Toes: sing and do the movements to the song.

    Calming Activities

  • Deep Breathing: smell the flower....blow out the candle 5 times

  • Hugs/squeeze: give yourself a hug or a squeeze.  Sit on your pockets and hug your legs into your chest and hold for 5 seconds.

  • Lights down: sit in a darkened room and do deep breathing.

  • Music: listen to calming music with a beat between 45-60. 

  • Deep pressure: wrap up in a blanket and squeeze.

  • Yoga: Cosmic Kids Yoga on You Tube .

  • Stretching: legs slightly apart and reach from one side to your body to the other and hold more 10 seconds.  Stretch up to the sky and hold for 10 seconds.  Stretch down with legs slightly bent and hold for 10 seconds.  

  • Massage: rubbing lotion on hands with firm pressure.

Organizing Activities

  • Chair Push ups:instruct students to grip the sides of their chairs. Instruct them to lift their bottom off the chair, using only their hands/arms.

  • Hand stands: Kick up into a handstand position against the wall or invert your handstand.

  • Marching: swing your arms while you march to music or around the room.

  • Cross overs: stand and cross your left elbow to touch you right knee and then alternate for 2 minutes.

  • Left to Right: put the book on your left side and reach around and lift it to your right side of you body.  

bottom of page