Free Sensory Diet Activity Planner

Browse 40+ sensory activities organized by type — proprioceptive, vestibular, tactile, and more. Build a daily sensory diet schedule and print it. No signup required.

Building a sensory schedule?

Enter your IEP goals and accommodations manually in the lesson planner. Tool results are not transferred. Review and adapt the lesson draft before use.

40 activities

Wall Push-Ups

Proprioceptive

Student places hands on the wall and does push-ups, providing deep pressure input to joints and muscles.

2-3 min📍 Classroom🎒 Wall👤 Ages 3-5

Chair Push-Ups

Proprioceptive

Student pushes up from their chair using their arms, lifting their body off the seat. Provides heavy work input.

1-2 min📍 Classroom🎒 Chair👤 Ages 6-8

Heavy Work: Carrying Books

Proprioceptive

Student carries a stack of heavy books to another location (library, office). Provides proprioceptive input through heavy lifting.

3-5 min📍 Classroom🎒 Books or weighted items👤 Ages 6-8

Resistance Band on Chair

Proprioceptive

Attach a resistance band around the front legs of the student's chair. They can push against it with their feet during seated work.

Ongoing📍 Classroom🎒 Resistance/therapy band👤 Ages 6-8

Animal Walks

Proprioceptive

Student does bear walks, crab walks, or frog jumps across the room or hallway. Great for body awareness and calming.

3-5 min📍 Gym / Motor Room🎒 None👤 Ages 3-5

Weighted Lap Pad

Proprioceptive

Place a weighted lap pad on the student's lap during seated activities for calming deep pressure input.

15-20 min📍 Classroom🎒 Weighted lap pad (2-5 lbs)👤 Ages 6-8

Pushing/Pulling Wagon

Proprioceptive

Student pushes or pulls a wagon loaded with items (books, supplies) to deliver to classrooms.

5-10 min📍 Classroom🎒 Wagon or cart👤 Ages 9-12

Hand Squeezes / Stress Ball

Proprioceptive

Student squeezes a stress ball, putty, or hand exerciser during instruction or independent work.

Ongoing📍 Classroom🎒 Stress ball or therapy putty👤 Ages 9-12

Yoga Poses

Proprioceptive

Guide student through calming yoga poses: downward dog, tree pose, warrior. Provides proprioceptive and vestibular input.

5-10 min📍 Classroom🎒 Yoga mat (optional)👤 Ages 13+

Isometric Exercises at Desk

Proprioceptive

Student presses palms together, pushes hands on desk, or interlocks fingers and pulls. Quiet proprioceptive input.

1-2 min📍 Classroom🎒 None👤 Ages 13+

Spinning on Office Chair

Vestibular

Supervised spinning on a swivel chair (limit to 10-15 seconds). Provides vestibular stimulation.

1-2 min📍 Classroom🎒 Swivel chair👤 Ages 6-8

Swinging

Vestibular

Use a platform swing, tire swing, or regular swing for rhythmic vestibular input. Linear swinging is calming; rotary is alerting.

5-10 min📍 Gym / Motor Room🎒 Swing👤 Ages 3-5

Rocking in a Rocking Chair

Vestibular

Provide a rocking chair for the student to use during reading or independent work. Rhythmic rocking is calming.

10-15 min📍 Classroom🎒 Rocking chair👤 Ages 6-8

Balance Board / Wobble Board

Vestibular

Student stands on a balance board for brief periods. Provides vestibular input and improves core strength.

3-5 min📍 Sensory Room🎒 Balance/wobble board👤 Ages 9-12

Jumping on Mini Trampoline

Vestibular

Student jumps on a small trampoline for vestibular and proprioceptive input. Very alerting and organizing.

3-5 min📍 Gym / Motor Room🎒 Mini trampoline👤 Ages 3-5

Head Inversions

Vestibular

Student hangs head over the edge of a mat or does forward bends. Brief inversions can be very alerting.

30 sec-1 min📍 Gym / Motor Room🎒 Mat👤 Ages 9-12

Walking on a Balance Beam

Vestibular

Student walks forward, backward, and sideways on a balance beam or taped line on the floor.

3-5 min📍 Gym / Motor Room🎒 Balance beam or tape👤 Ages 3-5

Sensory Bin Exploration

Tactile

Student explores a bin filled with rice, beans, sand, or water beads. Can hide and find small objects inside.

5-10 min📍 Sensory Room🎒 Bin + filler material + small objects👤 Ages 3-5

Playdough / Therapy Putty

Tactile

Student kneads, rolls, squeezes, and shapes playdough or therapy putty. Provides tactile and proprioceptive input.

5-10 min📍 Classroom🎒 Playdough or therapy putty👤 Ages 3-5

Fidget Tools

Tactile

Provide textured fidgets (spiky ring, tangle, textured strip) for the student to use during instruction.

Ongoing📍 Classroom🎒 Fidget tools👤 Ages 6-8

Velcro Strip Under Desk

Tactile

Attach a strip of Velcro (rough side) under the student's desk for quiet tactile stimulation during work.

Ongoing📍 Classroom🎒 Velcro strip👤 Ages 6-8

Finger Painting / Shaving Cream Writing

Tactile

Student practices letters or shapes in shaving cream, finger paint, or sand. Multi-sensory learning activity.

10-15 min📍 Classroom🎒 Shaving cream, finger paint, or sand tray👤 Ages 3-5

Weighted Blanket / Compression Vest

Tactile

Student wears a compression vest or uses a weighted blanket for deep pressure tactile input during calm activities.

15-20 min📍 Sensory Room🎒 Weighted blanket or compression vest👤 Ages 9-12

Hand Massage / Lotion

Tactile

Student applies lotion to hands with a brief self-massage. Calming tactile input for transitions or before demanding tasks.

2-3 min📍 Classroom🎒 Unscented lotion👤 Ages 13+

Noise-Canceling Headphones

Auditory

Student wears noise-canceling headphones during independent work or in noisy environments to reduce auditory overload.

As needed📍 Classroom🎒 Noise-canceling headphones👤 Ages 6-8

Calming Music / White Noise

Auditory

Play soft instrumental music or white noise during work time. Can use personal earbuds for individual use.

15-30 min📍 Classroom🎒 Music player or white noise machine👤 Ages 9-12

Sound Matching Game

Auditory

Student matches sounds to pictures or identifies environmental sounds. Builds auditory processing skills.

5-10 min📍 Classroom🎒 Sound cards or audio clips👤 Ages 3-5

Humming / Singing

Auditory

Encourage the student to hum or sing during transitions. Provides organizing auditory and oral motor input.

1-3 min📍 Classroom🎒 None👤 Ages 3-5

Reduced Visual Clutter

Visual

Minimize visual distractions on the student's desk and in their line of sight. Use desk dividers or study carrels.

Ongoing📍 Classroom🎒 Desk divider or study carrel👤 Ages 6-8

Calming Visual Timer

Visual

Use a visual timer (sand timer, liquid timer) so the student can see time passing. Reduces anxiety about transitions.

As needed📍 Classroom🎒 Visual timer👤 Ages 3-5

Lava Lamp / Glitter Jar

Visual

Student watches a lava lamp or glitter jar for calming visual input during breaks or transition times.

2-5 min📍 Sensory Room🎒 Lava lamp or glitter jar👤 Ages 6-8

Dim Lighting

Visual

Reduce overhead fluorescent lighting. Use lamps or natural light instead for students sensitive to bright lights.

Ongoing📍 Classroom🎒 Desk lamp, light covers👤 Ages 9-12

Chewy Tube / Chew Necklace

Oral/Gustatory

Provide a food-safe chew tool for students who seek oral sensory input. Helps with focus and self-regulation.

As needed📍 Classroom🎒 Chew tube or silicone chew necklace👤 Ages 3-5

Crunchy Snack Break

Oral/Gustatory

Provide crunchy snacks (pretzels, carrots, crackers) for oral motor input. Crunching is organizing and alerting.

5 min📍 Classroom🎒 Crunchy snacks👤 Ages 6-8

Drinking Through a Straw

Oral/Gustatory

Have the student drink thick liquids (smoothie, applesauce) through a straw. The sucking provides calming oral input.

3-5 min📍 Classroom🎒 Straw + thick liquid👤 Ages 6-8

Blowing Activities

Oral/Gustatory

Student blows through a straw to move cotton balls, blow bubbles, or play a whistle. Calming respiratory activity.

3-5 min📍 Classroom🎒 Straws, cotton balls, bubbles👤 Ages 3-5

Deep Breathing Exercises

Interoceptive

Guide student through belly breathing: breathe in for 4 counts, hold for 4, exhale for 4. Teaches body awareness.

2-3 min📍 Classroom🎒 None (visual card optional)👤 Ages 6-8

Body Scan

Interoceptive

Guide student to notice how each part of their body feels, from toes to head. Builds interoceptive awareness.

3-5 min📍 Sensory Room🎒 Quiet space, mat optional👤 Ages 9-12

Feelings Check-In Scale

Interoceptive

Student rates how their body feels on a 1-5 scale at regular intervals. Teaches recognition of internal states.

1 min📍 Classroom🎒 Feelings scale visual👤 Ages 6-8

Progressive Muscle Relaxation

Interoceptive

Student tenses and releases muscle groups one at a time. Teaches awareness of tension and relaxation in the body.

5-10 min📍 Sensory Room🎒 Quiet space👤 Ages 13+

Need lesson drafts with sensory supports?

Enter your IEP goals and accommodations manually in the lesson planner. Tool results are not transferred. Review and adapt the lesson draft before use.

Sensory Systems Explained

💪

Proprioceptive

Body awareness through muscles and joints

🌀

Vestibular

Balance and movement sense

Tactile

Touch and texture processing

👂

Auditory

Sound processing and sensitivity

👁️

Visual

Light and visual input processing

👄

Oral

Taste, texture, and oral motor

❤️

Interoceptive

Internal body signals awareness

🧩

Multi-Sensory

Combining multiple inputs

Using this tool: questions and answers

How do I find an activity in the planner?

Browse the activity list or filter it by sensory type and age label. Search checks activity names and descriptions. Filters narrow the catalog; they do not assess whether an activity is appropriate for a particular learner.

How do I add or change entries in My Schedule?

Use + Add on an activity, then open My Schedule. A new entry receives the next unused listed time slot. You can change its time with the dropdown or remove the entry. Adding an item or assigning a time is a scheduling action, not a recommendation about activity choice, duration or frequency.

Does the planner create an individualized sensory program?

No. You assemble a schedule from the existing catalog. The tool does not assess sensory needs or validate an activity for the student. Activity selection and use need the qualified review appropriate to the learner's existing support plan.

Can I save or print my schedule?

With at least one entry in My Schedule, use Print to open a separate print window. Review it and choose a PDF destination if available. The schedule is held in the current page session rather than saved to your account; leaving or reloading the page can lose it. Full-planner signup requires manual goal and accommodation entry and does not transfer this schedule.

Synthetic interface example

search “headphones,” add the matching catalog item and open My Schedule to inspect the time selector and remove control. This demonstrates the interface, not a recommendation to use headphones.