School based occupational and physical therapists play a key role in suggesting therapeutic interventions for students with sensory based behaviors. It is our job to educate teachers, parents and students as to why a child’s behaviors may be sensory based and what sensory strategies can be used to help that child better navigate the educational […]
A feasibility study was published on using posturography to monitor changes following vestibular input in children. The participants in the study included 5 children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and 5 neurotypical children. Each child received 10 minutes of vestibular swing activity with pre and post evaluations of postural stability under four different conditions and […]
In the school setting, teachers discuss various learning styles of students. There are three main types of learning styles: 1. Auditory learner – learns best by using sense of hearing 2. Visual Learner – learns best by sense of vision 3. Kinesthetic/ Tactile Learner – learns best by doing or touching More teachers are now […]
[subscribe2] The Journal of Autism and Developmental Disabilities published research to determine if sensory processing varies along the autism spectrum. Continuous EEG recordings were made to determine how fast the brains of 43 children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) were processing either a simple auditory tone, a visual image (red circle), or a tone combined with an […]
Psychological Science has published research on 9 month old infants reaction to tactile input. The parents sat the infant on their lap while the experimenter stroked the back of the infant’s arm with a paintbrush. The experimenter varied the rate of the brushstrokes among three defined velocities: slow, medium and fast (0.3, 3, or 30 […]
Autism Research recently published research examining whether sensory differences can be used to classify subgroups of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The Short Sensory Profile was completed on 228 children with ASD ages 2-10 years old. The results indicated the following: 1. four distinct sensory subtypes were identified – (a) sensory adaptive (b) taste smell […]
Focus on Autism and Other Developmental Disabilities published research on the sleep problems and symptom severity in children with autism. Using mother’s reports, 109 children with autism (without any co-morbid diagnoses) were studied. The following results were reported: positive correlation between the severity of sleep problems and the severity of autism symptoms sleep onset delay and sleep […]
The Australian Occupational Therapy Journal published research on three adolescent males with autism using a semi-structured interview protocol supplemented with visual cues to enhance the understanding of the way people with autism spectrum disorder experience sensory input. The results indicated the following: preferences for expected, predictable and controllable sensory input unexpected, unpredictable and uncontrollable sensations […]
The Journal of Neuroscience has published research on enhanced motion perception in children with autism. Previous studies have reported that children with autism can have enhanced visual perceptual skills with static objects but this is the first study that indicated an enhanced perception of motion which may help to explain why some children with autism […]
Have you ever considered the influence of culture on sensory sensitivities? Does being from a different country or upbringing influence sensory preferences? One would assume the answer is yes but definitive differences would be hard to categorize. The American Journal of Occupational Therapy published research on a cross cultural comparison of sensory behaviors in children […]