There is a trend at the moment of using sensory toys to help keep children calm, or in fact to calm them down. They are also useful for keep children quiet and have proved to be something of a wonder worker in our house – our eldest child has subtle autism spectrum features which means that some of his sensory perception and the way he reacts as a result, is often askew.
Mass is one such area where we struggle with him and though we don’t like the idea of taking toys for a 5 and a half year old to play with the following sensory activity is one that is easily portable and can be packed full of religious items.
What you’ll need:
- Camera
- Printer
- Laminator
- Hole punch
- A number of coloured objects (I used: Lego, medals, buttons, charms, sea shell, paper clip and a mini peg)
- Enough fabric to cut out 2, 15cm squares and another rectangle 6x10cm long
- 15cm square piece of clear plastic
- Key ring
- Sewing machine
- Uncooked rice
What to do:
- Gather your objects together and take a photo. On your computer make a small bordered square and place your photo inside. Leave room above the photo to write: ‘I spy…’ Print, cut and laminate this rectangle. Hole punch one corner, feed onto the key ring and set aside.
- Cut one 15cm square from your fabric and your plastic, set aside.
- Cut four 12.5×3.5cm rectangles and pin as below. Sew.
4. Sew around inner border for extra stability. Press
5. Pin plastic and border together. Sew around inner border to join together.
6. Pin Fabric square wrong sides together and sew around border leaving a 5cm gap on the upper left hand side. Turn out the right way and set aside.
7. Cut a 6x10cm rectangle from remaining fabric. Fold in half along long edge, right sides and sew. Turn out the right way.
8. Loop material through key ring and sew across the bottom edges. Set aside.
9. Fill bag with rice and objects.
10. When you are happy with the composition, pin looped material with key ring to the gap and sew in place. Sew around the border of the bag for extra durability.
Originally posted 2014-02-03 20:42:22.