Winter Activities for Kids with Autism

BY EMILY CRANE, HEALING HAVEN

We can all probably agree—winter is often hard to get through.

Cold, icy days nix the option for frequent outdoor play. If your child needs some cabin fever relief, we’ve compiled some DIY winter activities for kids with autism. These projects are super easy to assemble and extremely cost-effective— it really doesn’t take much for kids to have fun! Many of these activities require similar materials that you can buy in bulk and have on-hand. Additionally, these winter activities for kids with autism, Down syndrome, as well as typical kids, promote sensory imput promote sensory input, social interaction, and fine and gross motor skills.

Indoor Winter Activities

Winter is the perfect time to mix it up with unique indoor and outdoor activities. Some tried-and-true indoor winter activities that we love recommending to parents:

• Creating fake snow – search YouTube for “shaving cream and baking soda snow”. Kids can squish the “snow”, create a winter scene and more!

• Making a frozen “treasure hunt” by freezing a bin full of water, toys, and winter-themed objects and then have your child dig or pick through the ice using child-safe utensils (like turkey-basters or droppers of warm water)

• Making “snow ice cream” by combining fresh snow, condensed milk, vanilla extract and other fun flavorings and toppings.

• Building a cozy fort.

Sensory Winter Activities

Sensory activities and projects are great for kids anytime, but especially fun when you’re stuck indoors due to cold weather. And fortunately, they are also very easy to create and participate in. Some sensory activities to try with your child include:

• Making “squish bags” using resealable plastic bags, hair gel and various craft items.

• Making sensory bins with small items of different shapes, size, color and use tweezers or scoopers to pick up items.

• Making a sensory bottle using a recycled plastic bottle, clear glue, food coloring and tiny items that have fun color, texture or shine.

Outdoor Winter Activities

Living in an area that gets snow in the wintertime provides the opportunity for many fun outdoor activities for any child. A few great snow activities include:

• Creating a maze through the snow.

• Creating a tic-tac-toe game in the snow using various

nature elements like sticks, twigs, rocks or pinecones.

• Creating paintings in the snow using non-toxic, water-based paint.

Social Activities

When the weather is too “frightful” during the winter, it makes room for social activities indoors. This is a great chance to help your child practice social and play skills by inviting a playmate over and encouraging the kids to share either a toy or activity, or even just the same space. If your child has good interaction skills, turn-taking games can also be a great way of practicing various important social skills with your child and others.

Be Mindful of Screen Time

During extended periods of time indoors, it’s good to be mindful of screen time. Set boundaries and think of alternatives you could offer, like reading a book, putting a puzzle together, or try some activities listed above.

We hope these winter activities for kids with differnt needs provide some fun during these long cold days, while also providing sensory and fine motor input. To learn more about the unique autism services at Healing Haven, visit thehealinghaven.net.