Makaton - Aunt, Uncle, Cousin, Grandmother and Grandfather
/Here is another makaton signing video - still lots of mess in the kitchen to ignore but happy signing!
Makaton - Halloween, witch, spider and cat
/Here are 4 halloween themed signs in makaton - please excuse the mess in the background but I was working from home and you know what it is like……!
Happy signing!
Making playdough
/Playdough is such a great resource for sensory sessions and child/adult development and relaxation. However I am using it with groups of children so buying it can work out quite expensive. I had a look online and came across this one which seemed really easy to make and edible, should it accidentally be put in the mouth. I've used plain flour so it is not suitable for anyone with a gluten/wheat intolerance to eat but should be ok to touch. However you know who you are making it for so use your knowledge of them to see of you think it's suitable.
As usual the video skills are quite poor but I'm uploading it as otherwise I'll never get anything uploaded whilst I'm trying to improve.......it's going to take some time I can tell you that! Unfortunately I cannot remember where I found the playdough receipe but here it is:
You will need:
* 8tbsp plain flour
* 2tbsp table salt
* 60mls warm water
* 1tbsp vegetable oil
* Food colouring - a few drops (I also added some flavourings too)
What you do:
1. Add the flour and salt to a mixing bowl and stir.
2. In a measuring jug add the water and then add the oil and colourings/flavourings. Give this a good stir.
3. Add the wet ingredients into the mixing bowl and stir with a wooden spoon.
4. Lightly flour the surface you are working on and tip the dough out. Form a ball and knead until smooth and pliable.
5. The dough can be put into an air tight sandwich bag and kept in the fridge until needed. (I'm not sure how long it will stay in the fridge but I'm guessing several days at least).
Happy playdough making!
Etsy shop finally open
/If you’re interested in purchasing any of the sensory packs I have put together please check out my Etsy shop: Marjorie and Me by Kerry
In 2017 I open my Etsy shop to sell craft items but over time my business progressed and I had less time to make items to sell so I had to close it. I’ve been meaning to re-open it but my confidence has prevented me. However, sometimes you have to just be brave. What am I fearing? Nothing. I have no problems failing. I have no problem with it not being successful. But I do have a problem with not having a go. So , here we go……
I’ve uploaded 9 items to my shop. These are designed to support young children, children with SEND, adults with learning disabilities and people who require a sensory approach, to enjoy sensory toys. I’m interested to see if these sell in packs or if buyers would rather buy the toys individually, or if there is no interest at all in buying these items from me.
I’m also looking at developing resources for PMLD which can be explored on trays, in bowls and from a variety of different laying, sitting and standing positions. I’m looking at linking these to stories to start with.
I feel like I could waffle on more but I’ll save you from that. I’m happy to hear your feedback on the items I have in my shop and any thing you think I should/should not do. Thank you.
Have a lovely day
Makaton Tactile Signing
/I have been so fortunate today and met (well over a webinar anyway) the amazing Shelina Mitha. Selina is a Speech and Language Therapist and one of her many areas of specialism is tactile signing with children who are blind, as well as those with MSI (Multiple Sensory Impairments) and PMLD (Profound and Multiple Learning Disabilities). Selina has been a Senior Makaton Tutor for 10 years and today she gave a presentation to makaton members on Tactile Signing using Makaton.
Shelina’s knowledge and passion for this subject matter is so clear to see. I found myself thinking of ways to use such signing techniques and with who. But. This is not why I wanted to write a quick blog post on tactile signing. At the end of the session Shelina answered questions. A lot of the questions were around whether The Makaton Charity would be standardising a package of signs for use with children and adults who are VI, MSI and PMLD. The Charity staff alluded to the fact this proposal was not in their business plan, but Shelina seemed keen on this happening.
And then Shelina said: “STANDARDISING GIVES YOU A COMMUNITY”. And isn’t that true and surely what we are all about? Individuals with these complex needs struggle to communicate their choices and needs, let alone initiate communication with others. They are supported by staff and family members and their ‘friends’ are other individual with similar needs in the same class/group as them. If a communication system is standardised then others can communicate with the individual (and not just those who know the individual well). To only be able to communicate with your immediate family and paid professionals is a sad state of affairs to me.
Sooooooo, let’s hope Shelina’s influence can encourage the Makaton Charity to consider this task of standardising tactile signs as a priority.
I’ll keep you updated. Until then, enjoy the sunshine!
Image taken from Google Images and not my own.
Summer Activities - Cornflour and water
/Well, this is clearly being uploaded on the wrong day - it’s too wet to be outside today exploring cornflour and water! So, if you’re doing this activity indoors, put a giant towel or blanket on the floor first. The joy with cornflour is that if it gets on your clothes then it washes off so easily as it’s just flour.
This video is aimed at supporting families and carers to create accessible activities for the individuals they care for. It is not for the individuals themselves. When I refer to ‘individuals’ I am referring to young children, children with SEND, adults with learning disabilities and people who require a sensory approach to their understanding and day to day life.
Boxes of cornflour are available in all supermarkets and a box costs a round 50p. This can last for the whole summer.
Enjoy exploring cornflour and water!
Summer Activities - shaving foam and paint
/Finally! I pressed ‘upload’ on my YouTube account and posted this video about using shaving foam and paint with the individuals you have/support. It is aimed at families and carers to give them ideas of accessible and sensory activities to do over the summer break. Have fun!
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 ;-)
The Woodlands Secondary School Cafe is open!
/The Community Cafe at Woodlands is awesome. This is a fact. The cafe is part funded by the Duke of Edinburgh Award and is run by a dedicated team of staff at school. The cafe lead is employed full time to run and teach in the cafe and is supported by a colleague with catering experience. The cafe is staffed by the students; all of whom have SEND and are aged 14-18 years.
I know I’m biased, but it really is an awesome little oasis tucked away in Luton. Yesterday was my first day back in school and I made sure I booked my lunch in the cafe. I had a tuna salad bowl with a Diet Coke. The salad is made by the students following the TEACCH principles; working left to right and adding a handful of each salad item to the bowl. This is such an accessible way of promoting independence and employability skills for students with additional needs and/or autism.
The prices are so accessible too as the cafe is not-for-profit and it is a training cafe, for want of a better word, so my lunch plus a cappuccino only came to £4.40. Brilliant! Plus, the new mugs match the colour of the walls = winning at co-ordination. Ha ha ha
I’m back there today……..lunch already ordered ;-)
Take care
The flowers are on
/I’ve finally got around to changing the batteries in my home-made flower vase. It looks so pretty now, even if I say so myself! The flower lights were around £5.00 from Primark, several years ago, and the ‘vase’ is a properly cleaned out gherkin jar from Costco. This little creation makes me so happy and I love it on my table or on my cooker. It’s the little things in life that should be focused on……..
Have a lovely day and enjoy the sunshine
My inflatable saxophone had a slow puncture
/Today I provided a free Makaton session to a group of fantastic adults with learning disabilities and older people from Central Bedfordshire Council. Everyone was amazing and it was great to see some old faces from 20 years ago……one of which still remembered me and my car!
I was trying to make Makaton accessible and motivating so that the staff can continue it, going forwards. I love signing to music as I feel this is the best way to make Makaton accessible to anyone and everyone. Today we learnt the 10 signs needed for ‘The Lion Sleeps Tonight’ by The Tokens. Some of the people knew Makaton as a user but perhaps did not use to regularly, but the signing prompted them to remember the signs for colours and songs. It was totally magical and I can’t wait for next week……
This week the group learnt the following signs and saw the matching symbol (Widgit symbols):
Jungle
Lion
Sleeps
Tonight
Quiet
Near
Village
Darling
Don’t
Fear
What an amazing achievement for 30 minutes!
During one of the musical sections of the song we mimed playing the saxophone. Unfortunately my saxophone was floppy as I thought the bit you blow into was letting air out……so I glued it shut with super glue (no extreme actions here!) but it kept going down so I think it had a slow puncture. However this did not deter my enthusiasm…..!
Makaton is developing a workshop for people who are getting forgetful and their carer. I’m attending a webinar (ooooo get me!) in August about it so I’ll let you know about it then, but perhaps this is something that some of the people attending today’s zoom session may benefit from in the future……?
It's all about the McFlurry
/Every weekend I support an amazing little girl with profound and complex learning disabilities. Prior to the pandemic I was supporting her to increase her tolerance of new experiences, sounds, smells and tastes. Unfortunately the pandemic prevented us from continuing on this path, however being safe and well is definitely more important than anything else so that has been our priority.
However, as things are slowly returning to ‘normal’ I decided this weekend we would start exploring a new opportunity; McDonald’s Drive-Thru. This challenged C is a variety of ways; she does not like the car stopping, she is not a fan of people talking that she does not like (especially men) and she hates it when the car stops properly and the engine is turned off…….so this was going to be interesting……
C was amazing; she coped really well with everything until I stopped the car to give her the ice cream. She did her usual and started to scream but once the first spoonful of ice cream had been tasted she instantly calmed and enjoyed herself immensely! McFlurry has healing powers…….ha ha ha.
Sometimes it is easier and safer to do what is familiar and predictable. However stepping outside of our comfort zone does us all good from time to time. So I’ll repeat this several more times before introducing a new experience but then we will try something new. Ensuring C has a great quality of life, filled with experiences that stimulate and motivate her is my goal. And McDonald’s was a success!
Have a great week and take care
Sensory Pencil Cases - this may not be their name.......?
/Soooooooooo, as you know I find putting myself ‘out there’ a terrifying experience. I doubt myself, worry and eventually talk myself out of things. But I’m putting on my big girl pants today and being brave and talking about something that I’ve been thinking of, making, and dreaming of selling………and that’s ‘sensory pencil cases’. I’m not sure this is what they will be called but something like this.
I’ve attached 3 practice photographs below. They are practice because I actually want to photograph them on a white/lighter background……rather than my kitchen table!
As a carer/support worker/personal assistant (or sibling, parent, etc) I support children young people and adults with complex and additional needs to access the community. I find that I need a back pack full of items to support and engage the individual. I’m not just talking about anti-bacterial hand gel, wet wipes and tissues. I’m talking; sensory toys, craft activities and books. As you know I absolutely love The Works for their amazing £1-£2 craft activity packs (and have a box full of them…….just in case) so I always have a couple of these to hand. But I wanted something small and accessible to contain sensory items which could be used at a coffee table or restaurant table as well as in the car or park. I also wanted something that did not scream ‘I’ve got special needs’ or seemed too ‘young’ for an adult. I also wanted something to support children. So I’ve got a huge box of stuff that will hopefully meet these needs and will offer individuals, their carers and family an accessible resource to support them in a variety of situations. These will be sold in my shop on my website (I think……). As you can see, the details are still a little vague but my enthusiasm for resources like these remains so high.
Photos below and I’ll keep you updated……
Have a lovely day
Last week of facilitating Wellbeing sessions over zoom!
/My time of facilitating wellbeing sessions over zoom is finally coming to an end as I’ll be back in school from next week. It’ll be great to return to face-to-face sessions where the relationship with the young people can be built upon and developed to support them to reach their full potential.
It’s fair to say that 2 years ago I never thought I would be facilitating sessions over zoom, or saying things like ‘you’re on mute!” or “can everyone mute please”, but there I was doing it all. My IT skills have definitely developed over the past 18 months, as have everyone’s, due to the pandemic and the fact that it was online or not at all. The young people with SEND have been outstanding in their acceptance of all the changes over the past 2 academic years. It has not been an easy path, but everyone has tried their best and been amazing as a result.
No more ‘Kerry in the laptop’ photos from next week (although some of my work remains online, my sessions with the school are returning to face-to-face) so I’ve included my last one below.
This week in the Wellbeing Sessions we have been discussing Boris Johnson’s speech on Monday about the easing date moving to 19th July, from 20th June. The young people had lots to say and were brilliant in sharing their thoughts. We then discussed what kind of arty and crafty activities we found enjoyable and relaxing as this linked to the topic of this year’s Learning Disability Week. Lots of young people liked to paint but others enjoyed writing and drawing their own stories, creating models with lego or exploring play dough. Another great week with some amazing young people.
What arty or crafty activities do you enjoy?
