Supporting Children on the Autism Spectrum with Sensory Needs

Many children (in particular those on the autism spectrum) have sensory sensitivities that make daily situations very difficult for them, and can result in very challenging behaviours. For children who have particular sensory sensitivities, the world can sometimes be overwhelming. During this session we will explore our different senses and what hyper (over) and hypo (under) sensitivity looks like in each area, and how to determine the sensory issues children might be experiencing. We will consider ways to respond to sensory needs and share some recipes/ideas to respond to different sensory needs. This will include a range of practical and inexpensive suggestions of ways to modify the environment, and resources to make that might support children within your services.

Expert

Jane Warren, Lecturer, Early Years, Faculty of Arts, Social Sciences & Humanities, School of Education, University of Wollongong, Australia.