The way that children perceive the world is determined by what they see, hear, feel, smell, taste, and perceive with their bodies. This is sensory processing.

There are many sensory activities that children can engage in to develop sensory processing. As a result of the increased attention to sensory development, there are also a growing number of sensory toys.

This article will give you the rationale behind providing sensory toys for your children, as well as a list of some of the many sensory toys available. Believe it out not, you may already have some of them in your home.

How Sensory Toys Aid in Development

As young children grow, their senses sharpen to help them experience their world. The signals sent from these senses through the nervous system to the brain integrate, helping children to interpret what their senses are experiencing and allowing them to develop responses to those experiences.

These responses allow children to interact with the world and learn from it. Sensory play, and in particular play that incorporates touch with the other senses, helps to stimulate cognitive development in the brain (Butcher & Plecher, 2018).

Research supports the importance of sensory play in the overall cognitive, emotional and social development of young children.

One recent study showed that play activities offering moderate to high levels of tactile and vestibular sensory input were positively related to levels of positive affect in children with sensory differences and mobility impairments (DeBoth, et. al. 2019).

Another study focusing on a pilot intervention model found that sensory play activities helped to improve self-regulation and attachment in foster children (Sanders, et.al., 2016). Sensory play also helps to stimulate creativity in young children (Howard-Jones, et.al, 2010).

Sensory toys add a critical level of sensory input and interest to sensory play. Some sensory toys target a specific area of sensory input to facilitate the development of that sense, while other sensory toys offer multiple methods of sensory input to help the senses integrate.

Children who are developing normally instinctively select sensory toys that target those senses currently developing in a child’s neurological system. For example, a child who repeatedly selects sand toys or play foam during play time may be seeking tactile input for a developing sense of touch.

A child who rides a toy tricycle around and around the living room may have a developing vestibular system and may be seeking vestibular input. These spurts in sensory play change and end as children’s sensory systems mature.

Children who have sensory differences or Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD) may require some assistance when selecting and playing with sensory toys.

Children with sensory processing differences may avoid certain types of toys due to sensory sensitivities or may overly focus on one type of sensory toy while ignoring others. Parents, teachers, and other adults may need to guide children with sensory differences as they play with sensory toys.

The following lists of sensory toys are meant as a guide. Do not feel that you have to purchase or make every toy on the list to provide your child with the sensory variety that they need during play.

Remember that your child’s preferences will give you an indication of their sensory needs, so you may want to follow their lead. That being said, it can’t hurt to have a sensory toy or two from each sensory area available as your child grows.

Briefly, here is a review of the body’s senses:

• Vision – perceiving the world through sight.

• Hearing – perceiving sound, also called auditory.

• Touch – also called tactile, this sense uses the nerve endings under the skin to send signals to the brain.

• Smell – called olefactory, sense of smell and taste are closely tied together.

• Taste – perceiving the different characteristics of food, liquid and anything else that goes in the mouth.

• Vestibular – controlled by the inner ear, this sense lets the body know whether it is moving or still and where it is in relation to its surroundings.

• Proprioception – this sense comes from the nerve endings in the body’s joints and tells a person where the arms, legs, and other body parts are in relation to each other.

• Interoception – a recent addition to the sensory list, interoception helps the body to know how it is feeling inside. Hunger, thirst, pain, fatigue, and the feeling of sickness are all communicated to the brain through interoception.

Everyday Sensory Toys

Everyday sensory toys are toys that you may already have in your home. If not, these toys are common and easy to obtain. You will be able to find most of these toys at your local discount department store if you don’t already have them. Because these toys are common and well known, we have not included descriptions.

Sensory Toys You Can Make at Home

Feeling creative or on a budget? Here are a few sensory toys that you can make for your child at home.

Homemade Stress Ball: Fill a balloon with sand, rice, beans, or beads. Tie the balloon off. Your child will enjoy squeezing this homemade stress ball to feel the textures inside.

Homemade Play Dough: Moms have made play dough for their kids for years. The great thing about homemade play dough is that you can add your own colors and scents, making them as sensory stimulating as you want to. Here is a link to a good homemade play dough recipe.

Homemade Slime: Making slime has become a favorite craft project at schools and daycares now that the gooey substance can be made without Borax. Here is a recipe for slime from the same website as the play dough recipe.

Weighted Stuffed Animal: If you have even basic sewing skills, you can turn one of your child’s stuffed animals from his toy box into a weighted stuffed animal. Use a seam ripper to open up one of the toys seams and remove some of the poly fill.

Replace this fill with heavier poly pellets, dried beans, or bean bags, until the toy is the desired weight. Sew the seam closed and your child will have a weighted stuffed animal to snuggle with.

Sensory Bottle: This is an easy sensory toy to make. You can even add small beads or plastic shapes to add interest. Make sure you glue the lid on each bottle once you have filled it to prevent leaks. Here is the link to the instructions.

If you would like more information about sensory toys and where to buy them or how to make them, type the following search words in your web browser:

• Sensory toys

• Sensory toys for special needs

• Homemade sensory toys

• DIY sensory toys

There are literally dozens of resources and online stores that provide sensory toys, so you should have no difficulty finding that perfect sensory toy for your child.

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