Sensory workout (2206)

What is a sensory workout?

A sensory workout is designed to help calm the nervous system. It includes 3 types of activity:

• Heavy work: helps your child to be more aware of their body. How the body parts feel, move, and workS together. It also helps your child coordinate body movements.
• Fine motor: help improve doing task that use your eyes and hands at the same time. This is also known as hand-eye coordination.
• Calming tasks: help keep the body calm and focused. 

A sensory workout is a quick workout. The workout takes only 5 to 10 minutes each day.  Each type of activity is done for 2 to 3 minutes. A sensory workout should be done several times a day.

Choose one activity from each section to do in each workout.

Heavy Work

Choose 1 set of activities below. For each of these activities do them for 10 to 20 repetitions or an amount of time you and your therapist agree to.

Bosu Ball  

During this exercise the child may need to hold your hands for balance and be close to you or a wall for safety. 

• Stand on the round side of the Bosu and march.  
• Sit or stand on the Bosu and bounce.
• Turn Bosu over with the flat side up. Balance like a see-saw or “surfing” 

Therapy Ball

• Sit on the ball. Bounce up and down. 
• Sit on the ball. March the legs up and down.
• Sit on the ball. Roll the ball back and forth while seated. 
• Lay with the tummy on the ball. Roll the ball forward and backward.
• Hit the ball with both hands like it is a drum. Do it as hard as you can.
• Kick the ball back and forth with someone.
• Throw or roll the ball back and forth with someone. 

Therapy Band

• Have a partner hold the middle section while the child holds both ends and pulls back like rowing.

Weighted Ball

• Take a walk while carrying a weighted ball. Try to include stairs if able. 
• Throw the ball back and forth with a partner. 
• Roll the ball across the room at a target (like bowling). Move the target further away to get more force behind the ball. 

Exercises using just your body

• Jumping or leg exercises: Jumping Jacks, jump rope, high knee jumps, stair climbs, wall squat.
• Pushups: on a wall or using a chair.
• Arm exercises: Arm circles, Windmills.

Exercises using scooters

• Putting your belly on a scooter push yourself back and forth using your arms. 
• Put your belly on a scooter and hold onto a rope or pole that is being held by another person. Then pull yourself toward the person holding the other end of the rope or pole. 
• Toss bean bags, or small items around the room. Put your belly on a scooter and collect each item 1 at a time. Bring the items back to a central spot.  

Dance Party

• Play music and have student dance with big moves. Then stop the music and freeze.

Yoga Poses  

Animal Walks 

Walk the length of the room and back 2 to 3 times. 

• Bear walks: walk with hands and feet 
• Dog walk: crawl on hands and knees 
• Crab walk: walk backwards or sideways using hands and feet 
• Bunny or Kangaroo hops: small hops 
• Frog hops: hops from squatting position 
• Mouse walks: walk on tip toes, squatting down. 
• Giraffe walks: walk on tip toes with arms stretched high above your head Elephant walks: take giant steps stomping feet. 

Calming Tasks

Choose 1 set of activities below.  With these activities dim the lights to help calm the body and refocus 
 
Deep Breaths

Choose 1 or 2 types of deep breaths.

• Snake: Take a deep breath in and blow out with an “sssss” sound for 3 to 5 seconds.
• Bunny: Take 3 quick deep breaths in and then blow out quickly 3 times. 
• Birthday Cake: Hold 5 fingers up and pretend they are candles. Use a deep breath to “blow” the candle out and take away a finger. 
• Hot Chocolate: Hold hand in fist like holding a mug and pretend to take a deep breath.  Then blow out slowly to help cool off the hot chocolate.
• Rock in a chair: Rock with a slow, smooth, and steady motion. Going too quickly may be arousing and this is less calming. 
• Listen to soft music. 
• Play a quiet game like solitaire or coloring. Watch a video on a tablet. 
• Read a book. 
• Lay on back. Dim the lights and close eyes.
• Sit or lay down and play I spy. 
• Watch a calming bottle or kaleidoscope. 
• Blow bubbles. 
• Have a cotton ball race. Use a straw to blow cotton balls along tape on a flat surface.

Fine Motor Focused Tasks

Choose 1 set of activities below.

• Create pictures, words, shapes with Wicki Sticks.
• Play in sensory or tactile box filled with dry beans or noodles, bird seed, or sand.
• During this task ask your child questions like, “Can you find…, what does it feel like? and does it smell?”
• Draw or color.  
• Do Word Search or Hidden Picture games. 
• Do lace cards or string beads. 
• Play board games or Tic Tac Toe.
• Puzzles 
• Use tweezers to pick up small objects. 
• Legos 
• Play with fidget Toys like the squeeze balls, play dough, and play foam. 
• Screw and unscrew the nuts and bolts.