We’re delighted to welcome back Victoria with her fantastic monthly ideas for each school month. It’s coming up to September so let’s go!
FREE Sensory-rich and Inclusive September Teaching Calendar. Highlights include:
- Back to School: Peer Matching Photo Card Activity – One Card, One Connection
- Communication Passport / All About Me Sensory Boxes: Celebrate identity through texture, scent, and sound.
- Roald Dahl Day: Explore fantastical characters through the senses.
- Autumn Equinox: Create seasonal sensory boxes.
- Organic September: Sensory farmyard wall display.
- Rosh Hashanah: Symbolic sensory cues for reflection and renewal.
- Sensory Saints and Sacred Days: Explore the story of the nativity of the Virgin Mary through the senses.
- The Great Fire of London – Flames in Motion Sensory Art.
- International Dot Day: Celebrate creativity through tactile mark making.
Also New This Month: Five sensory story packs ready to print prep and go!
Dates At a Glance
2 Sept: Anniversary of The Great Fire of London
6 Sep: Autumn Term
9 Sep: World Teddy Bear Day
11 Sep: Anniversary of the Birth of Ulisse Aldrovandi
13 Sep: Roald Dahl Day
13 Sep: World First Aid Day
15 Sep: International Dot Day
22 Sep: Rosh Hashanah
22 Sep: Autumn Equinox
Whole Month
Back to School
Organic September
Saints and Sacred Days
September through the Senses
What to Look for in Nature
Flora and Fauna
Acorns, blackberries, brambles, conkers, crab apples, dried grasses, dried seedheads, elderberries, fungi, hawthorn haws, oak leaves, pinecones, quaking grass, sloes, spider webs, umbellifers (wild carrot), yew berries
⚠️ Safety Note Some plants, berries, and fungi may be poisonous or cause skin irritation. Do not touch unless guided by an adult. If handling, wear gloves and wash hands thoroughly afterwards. Always check before including natural items in sensory play.
Mammals, Insects and Birds
Badgers, bumblebees, butterflies (Red Admiral, Peacock, Small Tortoiseshell) daddy longlegs (crane flies), deer (red and sika), dormice, flycatchers, goldfinches, grey seals, hedgehogs, hoverflies, house martins, jays, kittiwakes, ladybirds, linnets, mice (wood mice), moths (peacock, red-green carpet), nuthatches, pine martens, porpoises, salmon, squirrels, stoats, swallows, thrushes, warblers (blackcap, whitethroat), wasps, weasels
Bird of the Month: Robin
A small, round bird with a bright red breast and a sweet, piping song.
- Listen to its call: gentle, wistful. Record onto a sound button.
- Re-create the song with whistles or soft bells.
- Explore feathers: red breast, brown wings, and soft grey belly.
- Make a robin nest corner with moss, twigs, and wool scraps.
The September Kitchen
Blackberries, apples, plums, runner beans, courgettes, sweetcorn, leeks, and early pumpkins. Taste and compare textures: crisp apple, soft plum, crunchy corn. Make a simple crumble or soup with seasonal ingredients. Explore scents: earthy beetroot, sweet plum, sharp leek.
The September Sensory Garden
- Plant overwintering crops: garlic, onions, and broad beans.
- Collect fallen leaves, bark, dried grasses, seed heads and acorns for sorting and crafts.
- Join in with Organic September: explore compost, soil textures, and worm habitats.
- Tidy the garden and prepare for autumn rest.
Organic September
Organic September is an annual celebration that promotes organic farming, food, and lifestyle choices — encouraging people to support biodiversity, reduce pesticide use, and choose eco-friendly products for a healthier planet.
Organic Farm Sensory Wall Display
Creating a sensory wall display is a gradual, collaborative journey. Invite everyone to take part — crafting during art or fine motor skills sessions exploring textures. Watch as your working farm sensory wall gently grows, piece by piece, becoming a living landscape of shared creativity and sensory discovery.
Learning Objectives
- Explore a variety of textures, sounds, and scents through farm-themed materials
- Respond to tactile elements such as straw, feathers, felt, and pulses
- Engage with visual contrasts and natural colours across the display
Communication & Interaction
- Make choices between sensory items during craft and decoration activities
- Use sound buttons or cards to initiate interaction and express preferences
- Participate in shared storytelling or role-play using farm animal prompts
Emotional & Social Development
- Experience calm and joy through rhythmic, multisensory exploration
- Build trust and anticipation through repeated, gentle interactions with the wall
- Take part in collaborative tasks such as watering crops or tidying animals
Cognitive & Cause-and-Effect Awareness
- Notice changes over time (e.g. plant growth, sound activation)
- Recognise cause-and-effect through pressing sound buttons or planting seeds
- Match sensory props to symbolic representations (e.g. feathers to duck, straw to haybale)
Motor Skills & Physical Exploration
- Reach, grasp, press, and explore materials with hands or assistive tools
- Practice fine motor control through crafting, gluing, and decorating
- Navigate the wall space with support, using visual and tactile cues
Suggested Resource
‘The Farm – A Multisensory Exploration’
Step into the gentle rhythms of farm life with The Farm, a fully resourced, inclusive sensory story. This poetic, step-by-step guide invites learners into a world of tactile exploration, rhythmic storytelling, and global celebration.
From the Sensory Cow Craft Activity to Making Dough using a range of grains, each activity is crafted to foster connection, support engagement and foster choice-making, and sensory engagement.
Discover Farming Culture Around the World, explore Traditional Methods, and journey through Victorian Farm History with accessible, multisensory cues.
The resource includes:
- Farmyard Art & D&T projects with sensory textures
- Food Technology & Healthy Eating activities
- Farmyard PE & Yoga for movement and regulation
- Farm-Themed Literacy, Numeracy & Sorting tasks
- Plants & Life Cycles, Farm Safety, and Science prompts
- Understanding the World: Farm Animals with amazing facts
- Role Play, Small World Play, and Trips & Enrichment Ideas
- Classroom Wall Display and a spotlight on Fairfield School, Batley
Whether you’re crafting a Sensory Farm, counting with Farmyard Songs, or exploring Sorting & Measures, this book offers a rich tapestry of inclusive learning — poetic, practical, With rhythmic verse and vivid imagery, this sensory story invites story explorers to experience the farm through a multisensory lens, to explore and connect in a space where every sense is welcome.
This Month in History
2 Sep The Anniversary of The Great Fire of London
Marking the Great Fire of London on 2 September invites learners to explore how a single spark reshaped a city, leading to lasting changes in architecture, safety, and community resilience. Its dramatic, sensory-rich story offers powerful opportunities for inclusive storytelling, tactile exploration, and poetic reflection.
Sensory-Rich Activity Idea
Flames in Motion Art
Flames in Motion Sensory Art
Suggested Resource
Includes clear learning objectives to help you plan and assess.
The Great Fire of London Sensory Story and Sensory Rich Activities
Bring history to life and explore the Great Fire of London with this interactive sensory story and inclusive, engaging, and sensory friendly activity pack aimed at sensory learners of all ages.
Relive the fire through a fully resourced, step-by-step sensory story, gain inspiration from the grab and go Sensory Table. Immerse your students in sensory activities as they re-live excerpts from Samuel Pepys’ Diary through the senses, explore how fire and heat change materials, create a sensory wall display, delve into sensory art activities, watch light, and shadow dance across surfaces, recreating London’s fiery night, fight the flames and rebuild the city…and more!
Saints and Sacred Days in September
There are seven saints and sacred days celebrated in the Christian calendar in September.
Activity Idea
Explore the story of the birth of the Virgin Mary through a sensory story.
Excerpt from ‘Sensory Saints – A Sensory Journey Through Seven Sacred Days
SUGGESTED RESOURCE
Sensory Saints – A Sensory Journey Through Seven Sacred Days
Throughout September, seven saints’ and sacred days are marked.
Marking saints and sacred days, each verse in this sensory story invites quiet reflection and symbolic engagement.
The sensory story weaves together props: scents, textures, sounds, and tastes to evoke sacred themes, while soft gestures and sensory cues offer a multisensory pathway to spiritual literacy, emotional ease, inclusive multisensory engagement.
Back to School
Peer Matching Photo Card Activity – One Card, One Connection
Perfect for incorporating into circle time, this activity supports recognition and match visual representations of peers, promoting social awareness, identity recognition, and engagement.
You will need
Laminated headshots of students and staff.
Steps
- Present the single card in the learner’s hand.
- Invite the learner to look at the photo and explore the facial features
- Gently prompt: “Can you find this friend?” or “Who is this?”
- Support the learner in approaching the peer shown and offering a wave, smile, or handing the card—whatever feels comfortable.
- This will foster recognition, interaction, and gentle communication
- Celebrate the connection with a sensory cue (gentle clap, bell, or verbal praise).
SUGGESTED RESOURCE
Back to School Sensory Story and Teaching Guide with Activities
This resource is your go-to for easing into the new term—packed with calming, sensory-rich activities to help learners feel safe, seen, and settled….just print, prep, and go!
This sensory story supports a range of learning objectives, including responding to familiar routines and sensory cues through sound, texture, scent, and movement. It encourages recognition of daily transitions—waking, dressing, travelling, arriving at the school/setting, and enjoying classroom activities though to the end of the day—while promoting expressive communication and emotional connection. Learners are invited to explore sensory materials developing fine motor skills and sensory awareness. The story fosters anticipation and engagement, supports self-regulation through calming and stimulating moments, and builds social confidence by introducing shared experiences and new friendships in a welcoming classroom environment.
Includes clear learning objectives to help you plan and assess.
SUGGESTED RESOURCE
People Who Help Us – The Special School Superheroes
This resource is your go-to for easing into the new term—packed with calming, sensory-rich activities to help learners feel safe, seen, and settled….just print, prep, and go!
This sensory story supports a range of learning objectives, including responding to familiar routines and sensory cues through sound, texture, scent, and movement. It encourages recognition of daily transitions—waking, dressing, travelling, arriving at the school/setting, and enjoying classroom activities though to the end of the day—while promoting expressive communication and emotional connection. Learners are invited to explore sensory materials developing fine motor skills and sensory awareness. The story fosters anticipation and engagement, supports self-regulation through calming and stimulating moments, and builds social confidence by introducing shared experiences and new friendships in a welcoming classroom environment.
Includes clear learning objectives to help you plan and assess.
Communication Passport/All About Me Sensory Boxes
These are Communication Passports/All About Me profiles in the form of a box filled with sensory items that tell another person about an individual. They help people involved in the person’s life to learn and understand more about the person, their likes, and sensory preferences, build bonds and aid communication.
The boxes are perfect to set up in the Autumn term to welcome new students to your setting, and for students changing classrooms as it helps you all get to know one another.
- Fill your box (a shoebox is the perfect size) with sensory items relating to the person’s life.
- If working in an educational setting you can use the student’s communication passport as a tool to help you do this, as well working with the student to find out their personal likes and sensory preferences.
- Involve the family, friends and other people who have been involved in their lives to help you.
- Keep the boxes up to date e.g., new items can be added as the person encounters new experiences (a seashell from a seaside trip)
- Include an item to represent an event in the future.
Below is example of a box I made for a student I made a box with called Reuben. Reuben is 14 years old.
You can change the categories to suit the person.
- Me: Reuben’s favourite activity is riding his adapted bike, so we choose a bike mirror to represent ‘me’ (Reuben) Shatterproof, safety mirrors are advisable, but in Reuben’s case, this bike mirror that straps onto his wrist is a great for a hands-free option helping to promote self-awareness.
- Born: This could be an item relating to the person’s identity. Reuben was born in Manchester and enjoys going to Man Utd’s home matches, so we choose to represent Reuben’s hometown using a football scarf.
- Family: Include a photograph or maybe the person would like to draw a picture of their family members. (For privacy I used a free image from Pexels for the example slide for this article, then if you wish to print the slide you can use it as a template)
- Dad: Reuben’s Dad works away during the week, so Reuben choose one of his Dad’s ties and spritzed his Dad’s favourite aftershave on it. (You could also use a t-shirt or a cloth handkerchief.)
- Music: Reuben loves wrist, and ankle bells and wears them when he rides his bike, Reuben added these to his box.
- Relaxation: Reuben likes to relax with a hand massage and chose his favourite hand cream to place in the box.
- Holiday: Reuben returned from holiday in Fuerteventura over the summer and this magnet signifies their holiday. The magnet has an embossed sunshine and palm trees which are nice to run the fingers over and talk about, and I placed some euro coins into the box to for Reuben to explore with the magnet.
- Future Event: Reuben will be a page boy at his brother’s wedding in November where he will be wearing a bow tie. We placed this inside his box as although he is looking forward to the wedding, he feels a little anxious as he has never been to a wedding before. Talking about this is helping Reuben prepare and look forward to the event.
11 Sept – The Anniversary of the Birth of Ulisse Aldrovandi
Modern history founder Ulisse Aldrovandi was known for his studies of animals, plants, and minerals.
Present a range of animals, plants, and minerals for sensory exploration
Animals: (Fake) fur, suede, chamois leather/leather, wool
Herbs: Basil, lavender, lemon balm, marjoram, mint, parsley, rosemary, thyme.
Minerals: Calcite, crystals, rocks, stones or gold, silver, and copper-coloured items (coins, dress jewellery, foil, stainless steel items.)
Promote Sorting & Categorisation Skills
Can the sensory explorer group the items according whether they are animal derived, plant or mineral?
9 Sept – National Teddy Bear Day
National Teddy Bear Day is celebrated to honour the timeless comfort and companionship these cuddly friends bring to children and adults alike!
Sensory Activity Ideas
- Hold a Teddy Bears’ Picnic to promote social interaction, turn-taking, and shared enjoyment in a familiar, comforting setting.
- Make and send invitations to encourage early literacy, mark-making, and purposeful communication.
- Choose the menu and prepare the food, supporting decision-making and exploring healthy eating through sensory choices and discussion.
- Make teddy bear-shaped biscuits to develop fine motor skills, sequencing, and tactile exploration in a meaningful context.
- Create teddy bear masks to foster imaginative play, self-expression, and awareness of facial features and emotions.
- Hold a ‘best dressed’ teddy bear competition to celebrate creativity, encourage descriptive language, and practise respectful comparison.
- Lay a picnic blanket or table to support spatial awareness, collaborative setup, and anticipation of shared routines.
- Discuss any games that could be played, promoting planning, expressive language, and inclusive participation.
- Enjoy a sensory story to deepen emotional connection, listening skills, and engagement with rhythm, texture, and narrative.
Goldilocks Price £3.98
SUGGESTED RESOURCE
‘Goldilocks and the Three Bears’ Sensory Story and Sensory-Rich Activities
Join Goldilocks on a sensory adventure with the bears with this fully resourced, step-by-step multisensory story with sensory-rich activities.
This story pack invites learners to explore sound, touch, taste, and scent through themed activities that bring the bears’ home to life. From the rustle of a listening game to the softness of an oat bath, each experience is designed to nurture sensory awareness, emotional connection, and creative expression.
Learners will sculpt with salt-dough, stir oat milk in the Three Bears’ kitchen, and discover textures in a hard-and-soft bin. Whether making a bear habitat or sharing a warm bear hug, this journey blends storytelling with sensory play—perfect for inclusive classrooms.
Sept 13 – Roald Dahl Day
Explore the Main Characters in ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’ by Roald Dahl through the Senses
Suggested Props:
Augustus Gloop – Gloop. Mix cornflour and water to the ratio of 2:1, (Option to add food colouring and essences/flavourings)
Charlie Bucket – Bucket
Grandpa Joe – Slippers
Mike Teavee – Large square glasses, cardboard box TV, or old TV remote control (batteries removed)
Mr Bucket (Charlie’s Dad) – Toothpaste or fresh mint (this is a reference to the job he held screwing the tops onto toothpaste tubes)
Oompa-Loompas – Orange/satsuma or orange face paint
Veruca Salt: Salt Dough. Mix 1 cup plain flour, ½ cup table salt, ½ cup water. (Option to add food colouring and essences/flavourings to enhance the sensory experience)
Violet Beauregarde – Parma violets, violet essential oil, violet flowers
Violet flowers are edible. Ensure the flowers are freshly picked, washed, are disease and pest free and have not been treated with pesticides.
Willy Wonka – Walking Stick
Extend Learning
- Give everyone a prop.
- Describe the characters in the story.
- Can the individuals guess which character they are according to the prop?
15 Sep – International Dot Day
A day to promote art, creativity, and individual achievement.
- Explore dotted material and fabric of different textures.
- Explore lights and torches.
- Decorate your hands or feet using face paint.
- Wear polka dot clothing.
- Make 3D dots using scented dough.
Create artwork using different tools and materials to make dots.
Bingo dabbers, cotton wool bud, fingerprints, paint brushes, pipettes, pom poms, sponges, stickers, vegetable printing, paint bubble wrap.
- Stick dot stickers onto paper or card to create artwork.
- Spray paint through card templates/stencils using watered down paint in a water spray bottle.
- Colour through the hole in an old cd to make a pattern.
- Play dot-to-dot.
Take Learning Outdoors
- Look for circles (e.g roundabout, flowerheads)
- Draw in chalk around quoits and hula hoops.
Link to Maths
- Make craft ladybirds, print, and count their spots.
- Explore the dots on dominoes
Link to Literacy
Read or watch the story of ‘The Dot’ by Peter H. Reynolds, a tale of a young girl who thought she could not draw…until she discovered dots! Retell the story using sensory props.
Artwork courtesy of Fiona Hay, the team and students, Kerry and the team and students from The Vine, a specialist SEND provision at Leeds City College whose artwork featured in my sensory story ‘Shapes’
Explore the sights, sounds, smells, tastes, and textures of shapes with this fully resourced, step-by-step, sensory story PLUS 130 shape themed activities linking to areas of the curriculum.
14 Sep – World First Aid Day
Explore the contents of a First Aid Bag/Box This activity will raise awareness of the contents of a first aid box and reduce any anxiety some individuals may have around first aid.
- Explore the contents of the first aid box.
- Practice applying dressings and bandages.
- Discuss how to raise the alarm should there be an incident
- Discuss when and how to ring 999 for an ambulance. Engage in role play practicing making a 999 telephone, call using an old mobile phone (battery removed)
First Aid Box Contents*
- Burns gel dressings
- Adhesive tape to secure dressings
- An updated first aid guidance leaflet.
- Sterile plasters of assorted sizes
- Large and medium-sized sterile, individually wrapped, unmedicated wound dressings
- Sterile eye pads
- Triangular bandage
- Disposable gloves
- Foil blanket
- Sterile wound wipes
- Finger dressing
*The contents of your first aid boxes may differ to the items in the list.
20-25 Sep – Fire Door Safety Week
22 Sep – Rosh Hashanah
A two-day festival celebrating Jewish New Year which begins in the Autumn.
Apples and honey symbolise ‘Sweet New Year’
22 Sep – Autumn Equinox
‘Autumn – A Multisensory Exploration’
‘At the bottom of my garden underneath the apple trees,
I heard a little rustle, amongst the autumn leaves
A sudden gust of wind, blew the leaves apart
And what I saw inside those leaves, lightened up my heart’
Make an Autumn Sensory Box
Autumn Sensory Box
This seasonal sensory box invites exploration through scent, texture, light, and sound. It includes an assortment of leaves—dried bay, curry, lime, and fresh sprigs of rosemary and thyme—to enrich the olfactory experience. A colour-changing light cube adds visual intrigue, while straw evokes the autumn harvest.
To represent hedgehogs, a nail brush and koosh ball offer contrasting textures, alongside a Talking Tile with a recorded hedgehog sound. A piece of bark and scattered pinecones add woodland authenticity.
The hedgehogs are crafted from Play-Doh, with dried spaghetti spikes—an engaging fine motor activity.
Pop in a magnifying glass and torch to encourage scientific investigation and close-up discovery.
You can simplify the activity by adding less items.
SUGGESTED RESOURCE
Autumn Sensory Story with Sensory-Rich Activities
Step into the golden hush of autumn with this fully resourced, inclusive sensory story which includes sensory-rich activities. Rooted in poetic rhythm and rich sensory detail, this collection invites exploration through touch, taste, sound, and scent, celebrating the season’s gentle transformations.
Inside you’ll find:
- A rhyming sensory story that brings autumn to life through evocative language and multisensory cues.
- Themed activities including a sensory bin, food tasting, and autumn walk.
- Nature-based explorations: Let’s Explore Dormice & Hedgehogs, Make a Bug Hotel, and Autumn Leaves Craft.
- Creative prompts like The Sensory Scarecrow and The Colours of Autumn.
- A treasure trove of 40 Autumn Ideas & Inspirations to extend learning and spark curiosity.