Holiday
Activities for Families with Special Needs Children
by Shannon Nash
1.
Making holiday cookies is always
a special activity that deals with sequencing,
measuring, and a host of other skills.
2. Making ornaments for the tree.
Great idea. Collect pine cones, twigs, acorns,
etc. Use craft materials and mix with Mother Nature
to see what you can come up with.
3. The five senses: Using fresh
fruit and a blindfold, work with your child to
try to guess what fruit he is eating. Have him
describe what it taste like, feels like. Repeat
this activity with different types of nuts.
4. Home made holiday cards. Use
family photos and have your child make cards from
scratch.
5. Sing holiday songs. Find which
ones are your child's favorite and have
the whole family join in. Videotape your child's
performance.
6. Clear out your child's toy box
of toys that he has grown out of. Make room for
new toys. Donate old toys to charity or to family
members who may be in greater need. Your child
will appreciate helping out others as well.
7. Dramatic Play. Act out your
favorite bible story. Have family and friends
join in and videotape this event. Play it back
the next year.
8. Design your own stocking.
Instead of purchasing ready-made stockings, have
your child make his own.
9. Review basic skills:
> identify colors of holiday lights
> identify size of gift boxes: big, bigger,
biggest
> identify textures of ornaments: soft, smooth,
bumpy, pointy, etc
> vocabulary development: hot, cold, frozen,
icicle, melt, frost, etc.
10. Awesome time for a nature walk.
Identify all of the animals you see on your walk.
How do the trees look? How did they look the last
time you went on a nature walk? What is the temperature
like? How did you have to dress to prepare for
your walk?
11. If you are traveling, have your child
keep a journal of what he did, what he
saw, who he played with, etc. A polaroid or digital
camera can really spruce it up and make it even
more visually appealing.
These are all activities that your child will
enjoy for sure. Especially with time off from
work, take advantage of your time together.
Shannon
King Nash volunteers her time with several special
needs and autism non-profits. Shannon is an attorney,
CPA and freelance writer who primarily covers
issues relating to autism and developmental disabilities.
She is a graduate of the University of Virginia
School of Law. Shannon is currently writing a
handbook for special needs parents on the top
10 issues that they should know. Shannon lives
in California with her husband Bill, sons Jason
and Kyle,, and Charlie, her chocolate Labrador
Retriever. She may be reached at specialneedscorner@hotmail.com
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