{"id":34764,"date":"2025-12-11T16:14:01","date_gmt":"2025-12-11T16:14:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/support-schools-settings\/?page_id=34764"},"modified":"2025-12-11T16:14:04","modified_gmt":"2025-12-11T16:14:04","slug":"sensory-physical-strategies","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/support-schools-settings\/ordinarily-available-inclusive-provision\/targeted-support-framework-eyfs\/sensory-and-physical-needs-ey\/sensory-physical-strategies\/","title":{"rendered":"Whole setting strategies to support sensory and physical needs"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Gross motor skills development<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Learning is made accessible and effective in relation to <strong>gross motor development<\/strong>, this includes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Offer <strong>opportunities indoors and outdoors<\/strong> every day for children to explore movement freely and safely.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Include activities that build strength<\/strong> in shoulders, elbows, and wrists, such as lifting and carrying weighted items (for example, buckets of sand), pushing wheelbarrows, and mark-making on vertical surfaces.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Support core strength and balance<\/strong> through engaging resources like balance bikes, tunnels for crawling, and climbing structures.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Give babies <strong>daily tummy time<\/strong> in a safe, comfortable environment.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Invite children to<strong> try activities in different positions<\/strong>, such as standing to paint, to promote varied movement experiences.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>When children sit in a &#8216;W&#8217; position, gently <strong>suggest and model alternative positions<\/strong> (for example long sitting, side sitting, cross-legged, or sitting on a small bench) to support healthy posture.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Incorporate cross-lateral movements<\/strong> (for example crawling, touching left leg with right arm) to strengthen coordination and brain connections in playful ways.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Health and self-care<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Encourage independence<\/strong> in toileting and self-care through positive reinforcement and clear, simple modelling.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Support children<\/strong> to access snacks, dress and undress, and pour drinks independently, offering help only when needed.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Follow a clear toileting policy<\/strong> and work in partnership with families to ensure consistency and age-appropriate expectations (for example using <a href=\"https:\/\/eric.org.uk\/\" rel=\"noopener\">ERIC and Bowel &amp; Bladder<\/a> resources).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Display self-care routines visually<\/strong> with step-by-step guides and refer to them regularly.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Use social stories <\/strong>to help children understand health and safety practices in a reassuring way (for example, safe climbing, tool use).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Fine motor skills development<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Offer a variety of resources<\/strong> that match children\u2019s fine motor skill levels and interests (for example, grasping, turning, pinching, manipulating).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Include open-and-close tools<\/strong> like tongs and squeezers for playful exploration.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Provide appealing fine motor activities<\/strong> indoors and outdoors that reflect children\u2019s preferences and cultural backgrounds.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Support pre-writing skills<\/strong> through engaging activities such as finger gym, dough gym, and creative mark-making.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Offer resources that develop finger mobility<\/strong> (for example musical instruments, nuts and bolts, yoyos, spinning hoops, scrunching paper into balls for target games).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Sensory processing<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Ensure all practitioners understand the seven senses<\/strong> (visual, auditory, tactile, gustatory, olfactory, vestibular, proprioception) and how they influence learning.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Recognise that sensory experiences can feel different for each child<\/strong> (hypo- or hyper-sensitive), and adapt provision accordingly.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Create a sensory-supportive environment<\/strong> by considering lighting, colour, seating, organisation, and quiet spaces.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Prepare children<\/strong> for new or unusual sensory experiences in a calm, reassuring way.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Work closely with families<\/strong> to share observations and strategies for supporting sensory needs.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Gross motor skills development Learning is made accessible and effective in relation to gross motor development, this includes: Health and self-care Fine motor skills development [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":981,"featured_media":0,"parent":34763,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"class_list":["post-34764","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-04-28 22:02:24","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/support-schools-settings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/34764","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/support-schools-settings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/support-schools-settings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/support-schools-settings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/981"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/support-schools-settings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=34764"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/support-schools-settings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/34764\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":34833,"href":"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/support-schools-settings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/34764\/revisions\/34833"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/support-schools-settings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/34763"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/support-schools-settings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=34764"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}