Autism is a neurodevelopmental disorder that especially leads to developmental disabilities in the child. Children suffering from this disorder often experience severe difficulty learning, behaving, and interacting like other people and they may also struggle to build social interactions while maintaining verbal and non-verbal communication. The symptoms of autism can affect the daily activities of the child which also includes playing and learning new things. It is vital to provide your child with the best autism treatment in Siliguri so that they can experience healthy growth and development.
Although playing activities can be quite difficult for autistic children, it is still important to indulge your child in various engaging activities. There are various engaging and playful activities available for autistic children that can help them imitate, observe, and learn new actions, words, and skills. You must know that as a parent it is your responsibility to take extra care of your child, understand their needs, and select the best activities accordingly. Some of the key benefits that you can get from this step are improved communication, enhanced creativity, and the development of social skills and motor skills.
Ways To Select The Best Activities For Your Autistic Child
It can be quite similar to selecting the right activities for an autistic child just like selecting for other normal children. Herein, the first thing that you must consider is to understand their interests and strengths. If the children love to take part in the activity then it will contribute hugely to increase their attention skills and focus. You also shouldn’t forget to prioritize their senses where you must note down the sights, sounds, textures, and smells that your child loves.
This will help you to create an interesting and structured activity plan. Additionally, remember that autistic children are visual learners so try to select activities that are visually appealing and look interesting. Once you’ve selected the right activities, try to keep the instructions about those short since autistic children can become overwhelmed by seeing too much of directions and communication.
Effective And Engaging Indoor Activities For Autistic Children
1. Homemade slime
Homemade slime is one of the best activities for autistic children that can improve sensory integration and perception. The procedure of making slimes offers children a great opportunity to learn about the cause-and-effect technique. Herein, you can provide your child with baking soda, glue, and other slime-making ingredients so that they can witness the transformation from liquid to a solid and slimy texture. This game can encourage creativity and experimentation that engages various senses.
2. Colouring and painting activities
If your child loves witnessing vibrant colours then don’t forget to add some exciting painting and colouring activities that can engage them in tasks and enhance cognitive development. Some such activities you can consider are colour mixing and footprint or finger painting. These activities can get quite messy but are a great way to introduce a hands-on and visual approach to the child for a sensory-rich experience.
3. Sensory bins
Another sensory integration activity that can keep your autistic child engaged is sensory bins. This is a versatile option to engage the child in discovery and tactile exploration. Herein, you can understand the interests of your child and then create a themed sensory bin which can be beach or winter-themed so that the children get encouraged to sift and explore the bins. This engaging activity is hugely effective for children experience challenges related to sensory processing.
4. Sorting games
While contacting one of the best doctors for autism treatment in Siliguri, he may also instruct you to include sorting games in the activity plan for your child. This is definitely a great activity to teach organizational and categorizing skills to your child. You must note that this is a flexible activity that can be curated for preschool as well as older autistic kids. Some cool sorting games include sorting letters, colours, words, or coins.
5. Bead threading
Your child will also love doing bead threading during free time. This is considered one of the best activities to enhance motor skills that not only improve hand-eye coordination but also challenge their dexterity. Herein, you can find various colourful strings and beads of different textures, shapes, colours, and sizes to match the interest and skill levels of your child.
6. Role-playing
An autistic child may lack social skills and to improve this skill, you can introduce your child to role-playing. This activity allows your child to be a part of different scenarios and try different roles that will help them understand social perspectives and situations. To make the role-playing activity more engaging, you can also include various costumes and props in it. Having a tea party, visiting a store, or consulting a doctor are some of the scenarios that you can consider.
7. Puzzles
Another indoor activity that you can add to the plan of autism treatment in Siliguri to engage your child is puzzles. You can initially start with simple puzzles and then move towards complex ones to enhance hand movements, spatial reasoning, and problem-solving skills. Both cognitive and motor development skills can be improved while solving puzzles which may also engage the child’s motivation and attention.
8. Turn-taking games
If you want your child to understand the concept of turn-taking then you must introduce some turn-taking games such as playing cards and simple board games. This is indeed a great game for fostering social skills where they build patience while waiting for their turn in the game. Starting from improving empathy and social communication to language skills, there are various benefits of playing these games.
9. Memory matching
Another fun and engaging activity that can enhance the short-term memory skills and the concentration level of the child is memory matching. To play this game with your child, you can use certain objects and cards of animals, shapes, or other everyday objects where the child will try their best to find its pair. This effective activity can encourage the child to recall memory and remember the location to search for the pair which will surely contribute to cognitive development.
10. Jumping, pulling, and climbing
Children with autism often experience challenges with body awareness since they are quite loud, overly cautious, and clumsy. To overcome these issues, you can choose activities like climbing, jumping, carrying, and pulling in your daily activities. Herein, you can encourage your child to carry a laundry basket, jump on a trampoline, climb rock walls, and pull raking leaves to develop enhanced spatial and body awareness.
Not only parents but caregivers and teachers can also make autism treatment in Siliguri more effective by blending learning with playing. Don’t forget to understand the needs, strengths, and interests of the autistic child while selecting the activities to make them fully engaged.
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