The Sensory Show is hosted by an Occupational Therapist whose mission is to educate everyone about sensory processing disorder in a down to earth way. She has created 50 podcasts over the last 2 years on a variety of related topics.
"He's like a fart in a frying pan"
"A what?!"
"A fart in a frying pan... You know, he goes pop! over here, and pop! over there and he's all over the place, popping up and down. Sit, stand, sit, stand."
"OHHHH! Okay I get it!"
This may seem like a rather unorthodox conversation to you, but it is an actual conversation I had with the regular ed kindergarten teacher whose class my then 5 year old special needs son attended for half of his kindergarten day. I really did get it. And I wasn't offended.
My son is now 10, and has been home for school for the past 3 years, but his early special ed experiences did give me some insight into what worked-- and doesn't work-- with public education. Sensory seeking kids do not fit into a public educational system without A LOT of accommodations. Generally, schools don't even try to accommodate. This was our experience anyway.
Coming home to homeschool was freedom for him, but created a new, weird learning curve for me. The boy who simply CAN NOT stay seated, but doesn't have ADD, can frustrate me, make me just a little bit crazy, and has forced me to become infinitely creative. Here are some ideas which just might work, and just might help, for your child who seeks sensory input throughout the day.
Heavy Work: Have him lift something heavy. The coffee table if he's 5. Sacks of potting soil if he's older. Junior high age? Let him jack the car up and release. Do push-ups, with something on his back if he's older. A small sibling can sit on his back if he's in high school. Give him something heavy to push, pull, lift, or drag and his sensory system will ping in delight. He will probably be much calmer afterward, too.
To Stay Seated: If you must keep your child seated for some writing or other thing that requires it, try using a throw pillow on her lap. My son knows now that he can go get one and put it on his lap while he's seated. It isn't magical, and isn't heavy. It's just a reminder that I need his rear touching his chair. When he goes to stand up he encounters this minor barrier and thinks (sometimes out loud) "I need to stay in my chair!" It works.
Use Movement To Memorize Things or Practice Facts: You can purchase a mini-trampoline at W/Mart for under $20. Around our house, we practice math facts, skip counting, Spanish vocabulary, and work on our Scripture Memory System while the boys take turns jumping on the mini-tramp. It works! It engages their bodies and their minds at the same time. It is particularly a good thing when the sensory system settles into slug mode, and the eyes begin to droop. It wakes up his senses and his brain, and he's ready to GO afterward.
If you have a child who seeks sensory input, get creative. Offer him or her ways to get the input that will enable them to continue participating in your school day. Both of you will be a LOT happier! 
Note: If you are the homeschooling parent of a special needs child, I would love to have you tell your story here. Please use the contact form to drop me a note.
Thank you so much to Dawn for guest posting and sharing your story.
I had a chat with a mama today who had recently received a diagnosis of autism for her child.
It got me to thinking way back to when Elisha was six years old. He was just finishing up his one and only year in public school. Shortly before he started kindergarten, he received a diagnosis of ADHD from the family doctor. That fit, but it didn't seem like a perfect fit.
The school recommended autism testing and I agreed.
The testing is quite involved. I had to fill out a very long form and have a 4 hour interview. My son was observed several times through out the school year. He underwent educational testing as well as specific autism testing. I remember how hard it was to focus so much on the negative aspects of him.
After receiving the diagnosis you are kind of left hanging. My child has autism... now what?
I didn't have too much trouble because I tend to be fairly resourceful, but I know that other mothers are in shock by the diagnosis and just have no idea where to start. I had a small collection of local resources, so I started there. I gathered local resources, I read books, I went to workshops and conferences, and I met other mama's going through similar experiences. If you need help finding local resources, please feel free to contact me (no matter where you live).
I read and learned everything that I could. Then I go to the point where I just could not take in any more information. I had to take some time to let everything soak in. I put the books away and I just took a break. I had to. We still had autism in our family, but I was on information overload and I needed to think about something else.
That break took a couple of years. I visited the books occasionally. I went to a support group for moms of special needs kids (which is awesome!) when I could. I had twins. Life got busy and crazy. Elisha had some areas he was struggling in, but overall, he was doing really well.
I started researching again for an occupational therapist (OT) to help with some sensory issues and fine motor skills. We had an OT early on in our journey, but we just didn't mesh with her as she never connected with Elisha. I emailed a few local OTs and we found one that we LOVE. I can't speak highly enough of her. She is amazing. I think we will keep her forever.
Every journey with autism is different. Every child with autism is unique. What works for one family may not work for another family. We tried many things before we found what worked for our family. Once you find something that works for your family, don't assume it will work forever, most likely it won't. I always remember what the psychologist said to me at the meeting when he announced that our son had autism. He told me to remember that he will have good days and bad days. He will have times where he seems perfectly normal, then he will have times where he is fully showing autistic behaviors and he will swing between the two depending on a great many variables.
Autism is not the end of the world. Sometimes it feels like an overwhelming challenged, but that's what God's grace is for.
I want to leave you with some resources that may be helpful to you on this journey.
What resources have you found helpful in your journey with a special needs child?
Feel free to ask me any questions. I would also be happy to help you find resources for your family.
Have you ever made a sensory bottle?
We made a sensory bottle on Wednesday and the kids all loved it. We started with an empty 2L bottle (but you can use any size). We added in equal parts of water, corn syrup, and cooking oil. Then we added food coloring, plastic beads, and shiny glitter. We put glue on the lid and screwed it on very tight. We turned the bottle upside down and then we shook it. The kids took turns for the next hour shaking the bottle and watching the liquids separate. Overall, it was a success. Here are a couple of pictures during the making.
There are many different ways to make sensory bottles. Here are some simple ideas to get you going:
Since this was our science, we also watched some videos from BrainPop, including Scientific Method, Compounds and Mixtures, States of Matter, and Matter Changing States. BrainPop is an awesome little website with tons of educational animations (and more).
If you are looking for more science resources, you can check out my guest post over on The Tuckers Take Tennessee. I included a list of great sites loaded with fun science experiments.
Check out my Special Needs column if you are looking for more sensory resources.
Have you ever made a sensory bottle? What sensory activities do your kids enjoy?
If you are dealing with a child with sensory issues, then this post is for you.
Take a Sensory Break!
We were discussing our son's sensory issues with our OT recently and she mentioned that another one of her homeschool families takes a sensory break every day. I thought this was a great idea. Purposely plan sensory activities into our day! It sounds like such a simple idea, but really, I had not thought of incorporating the whole family and taking a sensory break.
Sensory breaks could include a variety of different things, calming or stimulating, depending on the needs in your family. Here are some simple ideas for planning your own sensory breaks:
I am sure you have more ideas that you can add to the list. Please leave me your thoughts in the comments.