Benefits of Sensory play for Autism

When a child is born, they use their senses to discover the world around them, these senses include smell, sound, sight, taste and touch. This is usually the reason why parents must keep both eyes on their kids 24/7, as we normally find babies and toddlers trying to put everything into their mouths; this is only because they are trying to explore everything around them!

​Children with autism can have difficulty with sensory stimulation as well as social communication and interaction. The benefits of sensory play for autistic children is huge.

It not only encourages them to focus on something with their hands to improve coordination, it can stimulate the brain and provide them with a sense of calm.

​The texture, scent and bright colours of our Gelli and Slime stimulates their senses and allows them to explore their likes and dislikes when it comes to sensory play.

​What is Sensory Play?

Sensory Play are activities which help stimulate the senses. Such activities promote and naturally encourage children with autism to play, create, investigate and explore all whilst they use scientific processes during these activities which help them develop such things like:
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• Language Skills
• Social Skills
• Fine Motor Skills
• Cognitive Development
• Creative Development
• Physical Development

Sensory Play is perfect for helping children understand and develop their understanding of sensory information, therefore, increasing and creating stronger connections in the brain. By allowing children to partake in activities which are varied, fun and exciting this will grant autistic children the opportunity to expand on their understanding of their senses and take control of their own sensory experiences. 

Activities for Autism and how Zimpli can help
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So, we bet you’re wondering why we’ve been rambling on about Sensory Play, when you want to hear about how Zimpli Kids products can help instead? Well, we have you covered with a super fun variety of activities that are perfect for autism and sensory play.

​Tuff Trays
​Tuff Trays are the perfect mini activity which will really challenge and test a child’s sensory skills.

Creating a Tuff Tray is like creating a piece of artwork, art is whatever you want it to be and the same goes for creating a tuff tray.

​This activity is great for boosting a child’s concentration and imaginative skills, it will also allow them to get used to feeling, smelling and seeing the different varieties of Gelli and Slime products that we offer. 

​Sensory Tub
You may think that a sensory tub is like a tuff tray, however you’d think wrong. Sensory tubs are great for their ease and are an amazing idea for a rainy day. All you’ll need to do is grab your child’s favourite toy i.e. toy dinosaurs, action figures and etc; then use one of our many products either Slime or Gelli and ‘hey presto’, you have yourself a sensory tub.

​Adding characters will enable an autistic child to create magical worlds all whilst getting used to the touch, smell and sound of Slime and Gelli. You could also throw in some of our pop-tastic Crackle Baff for an extra sensory twist! 
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​Sensory Bags
​We understand that not all autistic children are the same, they all have different things that they love and hate. We’ve been told a couple of times by parents that their child hasn’t been a massive fan of the way our products feel, which is absolutely fine!

​This challenged us as a team to create other ideas of how all children can enjoy our products. We came up with the idea of Sensory Bags or how we like to call them ‘feely bags’. All, you’ll need is a couple of zip lock bags, so you’ll have no need to worry about any leakages. Therefore, creating a brilliant sensory activity for children who are still getting used to the feel of foreign or unusual materials. 

Crackle Baff Colours
​As mentioned before our Crackle Baff Colours is the ultimate sensory product! Bursting with pop and crackle sounds and vivid colours, it’s the perfect product for kid’s who are that bit more adventurous.

​Crackle Baff is great for a unique bath time experience or it can be used in a tub for messy play!

For a super amazing activity, you can also get experimental by adding a variety of our products together in a bowl too see what gooey creations you can make with your child. Add in some Crackle at the end for a super cool result! 

What do Parents think?
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On a daily basis, we reach out to many influencers to review our products and we ask them to give us honest opinions about our Gelli and Slime. We’ve recently started reaching out to more parents who are struggling to find activities which will help their child with autism. Here is what a couple of them had to say:

     Zimpli Kids is a UK-based company that specializes in sensory play products. Their flagship products are Slime Baff and Gelli Baff, which transform ordinary water into a thick slime and goo, respectively. They both provide for really unique textures.

“     My 6 year old on the other hand was not sure and certainly not keen on the idea of jumping in like his brother. He struggles with new things as he needs processing time and the idea that you can have a green bath was new to him. We put some of the Slime Baff in the sink for him to play with and get used to the texture first. After about 10 minutes he joined his brother in the bath.” 

      Faye is a real sensory seeker; she seeks out sensory feedback constantly. We plan lots of sensory time into our day to day activities to meets Faye’s sensory needs. Faye spent a long time playing with the slime, adding in some bath toys halfway through her bath. Faye particularly enjoyed letting the slime drip through her bath net.”