5 Reasons to Give Children the Gift of Sensory Play This Holiday Season
It’s that time of the year again—holiday shopping! Most parents would agree that an ideal children’s gift is something that they’ll not only enjoy, but also something that they’ll benefit from. If you’re on the hunt for the perfect gift that achieves this combo, look no further than themed sensory activity kits from Busy Box Child.
Suitable for children three years or older, each of our sensory activity kits contains three jars of playdough and themed objects that promote learning through sensory play—a type of play that stimulates children’s senses. To suit every child’s interests, there are several themes to choose from, such as Mermaid Life, Mission Space, Fairy Garden, Dinosaur Explorer, and Beach Vacation, just to name a few! We also offer seasonal Christmas- and Hanukkah themed kits to celebrate the magic of the holidays and spark learning about sacred traditions.
The benefits of sensory play
What makes sensory kits such a great holiday present for children? Here are the top five reasons you won’t regret giving your little ones the gift of sensory play.
- Supports cognitive development
As your child’s brain develops, it needs to build and strengthen nerve connections (or neural pathways). A child develops (and maintains) these pathways through experience—a process called neuroplasticity. If children aren’t stimulated enough in their early years, their neural pathways won’t properly develop and strengthen, which can cause learning delays.
When a child looks at, feels, smells, and plays with new objects, their brain is processing all of the information they’re receiving. If they’re given objects of different shapes and sizes, for example, it teaches them that some are heavier than others. By playing with a variety of different objects, your child will be creating neural pathways that encourage learning, problem-solving abilities, and the development of sensory processing systems.
- Improves fine motor skills
In a sensory kit, there are several interesting objects and materials for your child to grasp, squeeze, scoop, pour, and pick up. Handling these different objects is not only fun, but also improves your child’s fine motor skills, including hand-eye coordination, grasp strength, dexterity, and pinching. These skills are crucial for performing skills such as writing, shoe-tying, buttoning, and zipping, among many other movements.
- Encourages calmness
Young children can easily become overstimulated, anxious, or frustrated. This is especially true for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) who tend to have sensory processing issues. By playing with the objects contained in a sensory kit, children with autism (as well as those without) are able to train their brains to react differently to various stimuli. As a result, this can strengthen their self-regulation abilities and help them cope with their reactions to touch, sound, scent, sight, and movement.
Also, playing with these unique, kid-centric objects is just plain fun! Children often forget about whatever was bothering them when they’re fully engaged with the objects, which can further help to promote calmness.
- Promotes creativity
Sensory play is completely open-ended, meaning there’s no right or wrong way to engage with the items in a kit. There is no goal except for the children to explore and play with colorful, fun objects. This freedom allows them to improve their imaginative skills and creativity.
- Builds social skills
Sensory activity kits can be used by one child at a time or several at a time. When used by several children at once, the children learn to build social skills as they interact with each other. They might talk about the objects or join forces to create something new together. This process teaches them how to share and work with others, and develops their communication and language skills.
The bottom line
Children use their senses to explore, learn, and try to make sense of the world around them. Sensory activity kits are the perfect holiday gift for children, as they’re not only super fun, but will also encourage your little ones to build important skills that will benefit them for the rest of their lives.
Busy Box Child’s sensory activity kits are available to purchase individually or as a monthly subscription. With the monthly subscription, one themed kit will be delivered to your door each month. Your child’s eyes are sure to light up with joy when they unwrap these fun, themed kits this holiday season.
Until next time...
XO
Carolyn
References:
https://biglifejournal.com/blogs/blog/teach-kids-growth-mindset-neuroplasticity-activities
https://www.verywellfamily.com/why-sensory-play-is-important-2086510
https://www.hopebridge.com/blog/10-easy-sensory-activities/