Heavy work activities focus on whole body movement work to calm a child's nervous system for several hours, according to the Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired website. Tasks include moving boxes, books or toys, pulling a wagon, sweeping or vacuuming, wearing a weighted vest while completing daily activities, jumping on a trampoline, riding a horse, climbing on playground equipment or a rock wall or other activities that match physical activity with some form of resistance.
Tactile activities expose children to unfamiliar textures. Let your child explore a water or sand table. Offer a range of textured materials, such as modeling clay, shaving cream, lotions and peanut butter for your child to explore. Encourage your child to play with these textures on a cookie sheet or make designs in them with a fork. Invite your child to help you cook in the kitchen for exposure to new food textures. Provide her with an assortment of textured art supplies, such as glitter, chenille stems, finger paint and fabric and let her create her own masterpiece.
Vestibular, or balance and spacial orientation, activities provide balancing practice and assistance to kids with sensory integration difficulties. Simple vestibular activities involve your child balancing on one foot, playing games, such as "Simon Says" and participating in relay races on a slight incline. Other vestibular activities include balancing on a yoga ball, walking along a balance beam, playing on a swing set or see-saw and jumping on a trampoline. Walking with swim fins or shoe boxes on his feet helps your child with vestibular difficulties as well, according to the Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired website.
Proprioceptive, or body awareness and stability, activities provide assistance to children with motor control and planning difficulties, notes the Sensory Processing Disorder website. Focus on having your child complete movement tasks, such as running, jumping and climbing on play structures. Work on fine-motor control with pouring activities, such as transferring sand or rice from one container to another or pouring water from a pitcher to cups. Create an obstacle course with pillows to climb over, beanbags to crawl around and inner tubes to hop in.
Oral motor challenges related to sensory integration issues often lead to speech difficulties, picky eaters or a constant need to put objects in the mouth. Let your child play with toys, such as whistles, straws, bubbles and teething rings. Introduce your child to unusual and unfamiliar foods and flavors. Let her play with new food items before eating them. Provide oral stimulation with oral massagers, toothbrushes or washcloths.