Stress Balls a Sensory Activity

Materials

• 1- Balloon (9”)
• 1- Sand Packet (3 oz.)
• Yarn
• 2- Rubber Bands
• Sharpie
• Scissors

Procedure

• Slightly blow up one of the balloons with air
• Fill the balloon up with sand
• Slowly let the remaining air out of the balloon and tie the balloon shut- use rubber bands if needed!
• Cut yarn into equal pieces and attach to the balloon with a rubber band. This creates funky hair!
• Use a permanent marker to draw a face on your stress ball. Test it out and distress!

Adaptations:

• If your child is hypersensitive, use gloves to ensure little to no contact with sand. Pour sand into the balloons using a cup or funnel
• If your child is hyposensitive, allow as much contact with sand as needed through scooping, squeezing, etc.

The Sensory Skills Behind it:   

Sensory Stress Balls provide reinforcement and further development of both motor and sensory skills for children of any age. Motor skills include praxis and execution, hand-eye coordination, fine motor skills, and gross motor skills. Praxis allows the child to conceptualize, organize, sequence, and perform motor actions. Additionally, this activity is universal by providing tactile and visual sensory experiences for all children.