Sensory
LINKS
Modifying vestibular inputs:
Waking up - to arouse and balance hyposensitivity
Beneficial activities are swinging, bouncing, spinning, rocking, climbing, inverting, sliding, riding and swimming.
Calming down - to pacify and balance hypersensitivity
Beneficial activities are the slow and gentle linear movements in one direction like bouncing up and down or rocking forward and back or side-to-side, which has additional benefits for calming the nervous system.
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Swinging is the most effective activity for vestibular sense organisation.
Spinning is a powerful form of sensory input and can have long-lasting effects on a student's brain and self-regulation (15 minutes of spinning can affect a student for 6-8 hours).
Spinning is often an intense, arousing and stimulating experience for students :
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Have the student sit in the rainbow top. Use the handles to spin them around. First in one direction (approximately 10 times), and then in the other direction (approximately 10 times).
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This can be a useful technique for students who are hypersensitive to spinning, as speed can be increased promoting improved tolerance.
Vestibular Independent Rocking
Being in control of vestibular input and facilitating the rocking themselves, provides a self-soothing activity for students.
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Have the student sit in the rainbow top, or another foam rocker, and independently rock.
Vestibular Assisted Rocking
Each student responds differently to movement speed. Slow, rhythmic movements are typically calming, while fast movements are more intense and alerting.
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Having a student lay on their back, tummy or side increases intensity.
Most vestibular input is received during the start/stop phase of movement. Quick/sudden starts and stops are most alerting.
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Have the student sit in the rainbow top and slowly rock the student through different planes of motion (front and back, and side to side). The brain responds differently (and usually more intensely) to vestibular input when provided by someone else.
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Have the student sit in the rainbow top and ask the student to move through different planes of motion themselves by using the handles provided.
Mat Rolling/Barrel Rolling
Rolling can provide excellent vestibular input.
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Primary Focus: Vestibular, motor planning, hand eye coordination, energizing.
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Rolling on mat:
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Have the student cross their arms and lay down on the mat with their legs extended. Instruct the student to 'log roll' down to the end of the mat and back again. Depending on the student's tolerance to vestibular input, instruct the student to roll back and forth on the mat a certain number of times. If they are able to, you can have the student count while they are rolling.
Barrel Roller:
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The student can either have their arms extended out of the barrel or crossed within the tube. Instruct the student to lie down in the barrel and 'log roll' a certain number of times or roll to reach a certain point. You can grade this task by pushing or having another student push the roller while the student is still in the barrel. Having someone else be in control and deliver vestibular input changes the way our bodies react to that input.
Precautions:
Be cautions of the student holding the rim of the barrel while rolling as their fingers could be run over and hurt. Be aware of other students in the space when the student is rolling in the barrel. As with other vestibular activities, be aware of overstimulation. Sensory overload may present as disorientation, nausea, sweaty palms, dilated pupils and changes in respiration.
Barrel Balance
Straddling the barrel increases postural muscle strength, as well as improves equilibrium responses (related to the vestibular system).
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Have student straddle the barrel, with one leg on each side.
- This can be used with functional tasks in order to promote other activities. For example:
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While using the tactile board to increase tactile stimulation.
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While throwing discs at a target to work on eye-hand coordination.
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Dizzy Disc​s
Vestibular Assisted Spinning
Useful Equipment for the Vestibular System
Primary Focus: Vestibular, motor planning, balance, eye-hand coordination, energising.
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Have the student sit on a spinner (e.g. rainbow top, large tube etc.) and spin moderately fast about ten times in one direction. Stop the spin, and have the student throw several discs towards a target. Then spin the opposite direction, stop and throw.
Precautions: Students may become overstimulated quickly. Never allow prolonged, unsupervised spinning. Stop immediately if a student becomes nauseated, dysregulated, or sleepy. No longer than five minutes.
(Adapted from Kurtz, 2014)
Vestibular Independent Rocking
Vestibular Assisted Rocking
Vestibular Pencil Roll
Vestibular Independent Tube Rolling
Vestibular Assisted Tube Rolling
Balancing
Balance + Activity
Tactile Wall + Balance
