I came across this great idea on social media and thankfully parent Emma Dew, the creator of the sensory board allowed me to use her ideas and pictures for this post!

Children who are blind may not independently explore their “regular” environment.  Sensory boards concentrate a variety of stimulating items in a small space with clear boundaries. They can be made to put on the floor, to rest on a table top, to attach to a single wall or to fill a whole corner of a room from floor to ceiling.  An sensory board can be built out of wood, plastic or cardboard. Theming your board can be a great way of giving the child a full sensory experience of a certain topic… In this case Emma’s board has give a full festive sensory exploration experience!

Step one:

Cover an old cardboard box, I used two sheets tissue paper and Sellotape to secure, wrapping paper would also work well. I went for a solid colour which I knew would create most contrast.

Step two:

Attach some sensory items. I used cable ties threaded through and a staple gun as I knew constant supervision would be given. The sensory items I found were all bits I already had – leftover ribbon and gift bow from last Christmas, a felt tree decoration, a small Santa hat, a dog collar with bells on, a Santa hat, some Xmas tree trimmings, a squeaky santa dog toy and an old piece of tinsel.

If you have any festive craft ideas we would love to share them on the Parent Portal! Please get in touch here!