Planning Holiday Activities with Little Ones

Do you remember the excitement of this time of year when you were a kid? It is even more fun to get to experience it all through the eyes of your own child! While holidays are an incredibly fun time of year, they can also be a little stressful. With travel, decorations, gatherings, and all kinds of activities, things can get a little overwhelming. However, with a few of our tips and tricks and a whole lot of patience, any family can have a magical experience- that is hopefully a little less stressful. If your child has sensory issues, this may be extra helpful for you!

Prepare, Prepare, Prepare

Preparation is key for any fun activities with your kiddos, sometimes the only thing between a great adventure and a total meltdown is a granola bar. (For your child AND for you! We all get a little hangry sometimes.)

Before even planning these events remember that it is okay to say no. Is your child not a morning person? Maybe skip morning donuts with Santa. Is that parade during nap time? Maybe next year. It is important to take care of you and your child’s wellbeing. 3 well-planned activities may bring a lot more magic and joy than 10 stress filled activities.

When preparing for an activity or gathering here are some things you can do;

-Have a schedule and create a visual schedule for your kiddo so they know what’s going on throughout the day. In this schedule, PLAN FOR BREAKS and make sure the schedule is flexible enough to handle unexpected breaks such as bathroom accidents or emergency snack breaks. 

-Remind your child of expectations (only walking feet, hands in your pockets at these times, etc) Make sure your child knows they have the opportunity to take a break if they need it. 

-Give them a heads up. If your child needs more preparation, visit beforehand or show pictures of where you are going the day before so your child can mentally prepare.

-Bring back up. Make sure to bring snacks, sensory toys, spare clothes, and water if allowed.

-Don’t forget you! Prep yourself with a 5 min meditation or a nice cup of coffee. Remember that not everything will go according to plan and that is okay. Something that you anticipate being exciting and fun may be overwhelming for your kiddo. They may cry while visiting Santa or only eat mashed potatoes at family dinner, this is okay! Memories can still be cherished even if they aren’t perfect.

Need some ideas on things to do with your kids for the holidays? This list is tailored for children with sensory sensitivities but can be useful for all children!

Here are some activity and regulation ideas for different sensory preferences: 

• Visual seeking: Look at lights, watch parades, enjoy the busy-ness of the mall, Christmas movies running but muted.

• Visual avoidant: Candelight services, dim the lights at home, and just use the tree or a fire to light up the living room, avoid excessive decorations, use lights that do not flicker or flash.  Encourage the use of sunglasses when needed to ‘mute’ the visual stimulation.

• Auditory seeking: Music! Enjoy concerts, caroling, plays, and singing at church, provide headphones and allow noisemaking with bells, musical instruments, and keeping white noise running in the bedroom.

• Auditory avoidant: Crafts such as stringing popcorn, making gingerbread houses, cutting snowflakes, nature activities like a nature walk or sledding, visiting a state park while everyone else is busy shopping, providing noise-canceling headphones when needed.

• Tactile seeking: Heavy work – carrying things in from the car, building a snowman, helping with the Christmas lights, having a small tree that they can take the ornaments off and put them back on, sledding, going on hikes, therapy putty, play dough, stress balls. 

• Tactile avoidant: Watch the seams on clothing – don’t stress about dressing up (uncomfortable clothes will stress certain children more than others), encourage them to feel involved without having to do anything like touch cookie dough or touch the tree as you’re decorating it.  Encourage what they want to do, and don’t push them to have to deal with different touches at this stressful time of the season.

Remember, every child is different. Some of these things may not work for your kid or need some adjustments!