Summer Activity - Sensory Bunting

It can be a struggle to be creative with children and adults who have a significant visual impairment. It can also be difficult to do things which are meaningful and can be enjoyed by everyone. C is going to be having a garden party in August with some of her Mum’s friends so we have made bunting for it. For me, the key outcome of this is the experience that the child has whilst exploring the different textures and the sounds they make when touched. The end result, in this case the bunting, is a by-product for everyone else to enjoy. But the experiences the child has whilst making the bunting is of paramount importance and not perfectly neat bunting.

For this activity you will need:

Paper or card

Paint in the colours of your choice

Shaving foam

Ribbon or string

Buttons, bells, beads

I also laminated the triangle bunting so it would last longer but this is not necessary, it’s entirely up to you.

Hole punch

How we did it:

Whilst C sat in her postural seating, with the tray on, I squirted paint and shaving foam onto her tray. The shaving foam makes a great noise when coming out of the can which can be a good motivator. I then supported C, with hand over hand, to explore the mixtures before she did this independently. It’s fair to say that we had paint everywhere and went through lots of wet wipes and old tea towels whilst cleaning up! You know the person you are supporting best so you’ll know off they put things in their mouth, throw etc, so plan the activity in a space accordingly.

Once the paint and shaving foam had been mixed we put paper on top of the tray and used our hands to push down. C loves banging on her tray so this was great fun. We then let the paper dry and the big clean up began.

The following week, after I had cut out triangles and laminated them and punched holes in the top for the ribbon to go through, C explored the laminated bunting triangles. She loved the noise they made when she flicked them and enjoyed being fanned by them. We then explored the ribbon, buttons, beads and bells. Some of the beads were smelly beads (I think I got them from Smyth’s some time ago) to enhance the experience for C. She loves dropping things off her tray and the sound they make when they hit the floor. As a result I ended up picking up lots of beads from the ground whilst C laughed! I threaded the items onto the ribbon as we were exploring their textures and sounds. The final bunting has tiny bells attached as well as buttons, beads and laminated triangles so the experience was thoroughly enjoyable for C and looks lovely in her garden.

Happy bunting making!

Paint and shaving foam on the tray and ready to be explored…..

The tray after some hand-over-hand exploration

The tray after lots of self-exploration and paper added and pushed into the paint and foam mixture

The paper drying on a large towel to prevent the family’s carpet being painted on too…..

Not a great picture of C exploring the ribbon, buttons and bells but it’s quite tricky to get photos when you’re supporting someone……I’ll try and get better

The bunting laying out not the grass as we worked on the other end of the ribbon……doing this outside had it’s challenges as the wind suddenly picked up. Apparently this was hilarious……

The finished bunting looking fabulous in the tree

Close up so you can see the paint texture and beads, bells and buttons ;-)