December Planner from Rhyming Multisensory Stories!

Welcome to your monthly guide from the wonderful Rhyming Multisensory Stories. Please support Victoria’s work by checking out her store on Mash.ie.

Teaching ideas and activities to celebrate the month of December PLUS download your FREE ‘Dear Santa’ Multisensory Teaching pack and watch the FREE Christmas multisensory training video.

Dates at a Glance

• 29th Nov – 5th December National Handwashing Week
• 8th December Bodhi Day
• 13th December Saint Lucy’s Day
• 14th December Celebrate the Discovery of the South Pole
• 16th December Celebrate Jane Austen’s Birthday
• 16th December Learn about The Boston Tea Party
• 18th Dec – 26th Dec Hanukkah
• 21st December Winter Solstice
• 21st December National Robin Day
• 25th December Christmas Day

29th Nov – 5th Dec

National Handwashing Week

With Covid, winter colds, flu and bug season soon upon us it is important to continue to promote and practice good hand hygiene.

This resource is aimed at helping individuals to overcome barriers to their hand hygiene.

The resource includes:

• ‘Washing Hands’ Multisensory Poem
• Printable Handwashing Poster
• Handwashing Visual Support Timeline
• ‘Treasure Soap’ Recipe
• ‘Soapy-Doh’ Recipe
• Glitter Germ Game.

DOWNLOAD YOUR FREE TEACHING RESOURCE

https://mash.ie/washing-hands-a-multisensory-poem-sen-3-19-covid-19.html

8th December

Bodhi Day

Bodhi Day marks Siddhartha Gautama achieving enlightenment and becoming the Buddha or ‘awakened one’

• Buddhists teach that we should show kindness to all living things and not to be greedy. Can the students do something kind today? This could be sharing, helping another person or being a good friend.
• Decorate a tree with multi-coloured lights and shiny objects.
• Taste rice pudding (said to be the first meal Buddha ate after fasting.)
• Practice mindfulness with meditation. Dim the lights. Play gentle music in the background. Offer a hand massage with or without (scented/unscented cream) or brushes and rollers.

If you would like to explore a guided meditation adventure with your students you might like…

‘The Sleigh Ride – A Guided Relaxation Adventure’

Join Santa and his reindeer for a magical Christmas Adventure as they take to the skies!

13th December

Saint Lucy’s Day

St Lucy was an early 4th century martyr from Sicily.

Legend says that Saint Lucy took supplies to the Christians hiding in the catacombs.

It is believed she wore a candle-lit wreath on her head to light the way.

Activity Idea

• Can students dress in a white robe? (Raid the airing cupboard for a white sheet!)
• Dim the lights and give students LED tealights or torches (if you do not have LED tealights but have an interactive whiteboard, play footage of a candle burning with music playing in the background.)
• Can the students explore the cause and effect of the switch that turns the LED light ON/OFF?
• Can the students carry their lights in a procession?

Tip! A head torch is a great hands-free option

14th December

The Discovery of the South Pole

The South Pole was discovered on this date in 1911.

Make a South Pole Sensory Bin

A sensory bin is a container filled with themed items that provide a calming activity and the opportunity to learn through exploration whilst engaging the senses and meeting sensory needs.

This sensory play develops fine motor skills as the student manipulates the objects, problem solving skills through experimentation, creativity and imagination through exploration and the opportunity to build language and communication skills.

Find a container

A large tray, cardboard box, bucket or a large plastic storage box.

Add a Base Layer

Dried rice, dried oats, ice cubes, flour, cotton wool balls, white sand, polystyrene packing peanuts, foam, foam, ice, cloud dough, white confetti. (Placing these items in the freezer beforehand will create an authentic experience)

Add Fine Motor Tools

Cups, spoons, forks, measuring jugs, colander, whisk, sieve, funnel, pipette, food tongs, wooden utensils, scoops, paintbrushes, chopsticks.

Add Items to Encourage Scientific Investigation and Exploration

Torch, magnifying glass, magnets, pen/paper, egg carton/ice cube/cake baking tray for sorting items, plastic tweezers and a mirror.

Add Small World Play Items:

Add toy penguins, dolphins, fish, whales, sealions, seals and seabirds.

Add Flora and Fauna

Add grasses.

Ensure that play is supervised at all times and be aware of any potential choking hazards or allergies.

16th December

The Boston Tea Party

This was a political protest against the ‘Tea Act.’

Activity Ideas

• Hold a tea party
• Engage the senses as students explore different types of tea: Aniseed, Chamomile, Cinnamon, Eucalyptus, Fennel, Ginger, Lemon, Lemongrass, Liquorice, Mint, Passionflower, Raspberry, Rose.
• Does the student show a preference for the smell or taste of a tea?
• Explore herbal & fruit & cold tea infusions.
• Can the student mix the tea leaves to create new blends?

16th December

Celebrate Jane Austen’s Birthday!

Jane Austen is known for writing novels, she also wrote poetry.

‘This Little Bag’ by Jane Austen

‘This little bag I hope will prove

To be not vainly made

For, if you should a needle want

It will afford you aid.

And as we are about to part

T’will serve another end,

For when you look upon the bag

You’ll recollect your friend’

Activity Idea

Explore sensory bags.

Sensory or feely bags are a cheap and fun way to engage the senses and develop language skills.

Theme your bag. You could make a Christmas themed sensory bag or a Hanukkah themed bag (see below)

• Choose a non-see-through bag that is tactile and catches the eye. (If you don’t have a bag then use a pillowcase)
• Place a variety of items inside the bag.
• When choosing items think of engaging all the senses. Add items to stimulate vision, touch, smell and taste and items that make a variety of interesting sounds.
• Give the bag a gentle shake to gain the student’s attention.
• Invite the student to place their hand into the bag and select an item.
• Encourage the student to use their sense of smell, touch, hearing and taste to guess what the item is. (If the student is unsure then provide plenty of clues.)

Build functional language skills

• Ask the student to tell you or show you what you might do with the item and where you might find it. (If the student is unsure, model what to do with the item and see if they can copy your action.)
• Allow the student time to explore the item and process the information then shake the bag again for them to select another item.

Remember:

• Keep language simple.
• Focus on phrases such as ‘Choose’ or ‘Take One’ when presenting the bag.
• Focus on the name of the object e.g., ‘Tangerine’, ‘Pinecone‘, ‘Whistle’ and two-word phrases e.g. ‘Shiny Bauble’, ‘Red Tinsel’.
• Add verbs such as ‘smell’, ‘eat’, ‘touch’

18th December

Hanukkah

Celebrate the Jewish festival of lights.

Enjoy Traditional food

Potato pancakes, doughnuts, and fritters.

Play a Dreidel Game

Dreidel’s can be bought cheaply on the internet and used each year.

Make an Edible Menorah

You will need

• Banana
• Breadstick
• Chocolate Spread/Yellow Buttercream/Yellow icing

Method

1. Cut a banana into thick round slices. A slice of banana will form the base of your Menorah.

2. Dip the end of a piece of breadstick into chocolate spread or yellow buttercream/icing (this will be you flame)

3. Place the other end of the breadstick into the middle of the banana slice (this will be your candle)

Make a Hannukah Sensory Bag

• Place items related to the festival into a non-see-through bag: candles, gold coins, star shaped objects (playdoh cutters), LED candles, tinsel, cinnamon sticks, apples, pretzels.

21st December

National Robin Day

This is a day aimed at raising awareness for small birds and wildlife.

Promote communication skills (Listening & Speaking)

• Play an audio clip of a robin’s bird song (this can be via an iPad, Dictaphone or single switch communication device (Talking Tile, BIGmack or similar)
• Can the student communicate a request to listen to the sound again?
• If using a switch, BIGMack or Talking Tile, can the student activate the device independently?
• Can the student imitate the sound using their voice or a flute/recorder/whistle? Record their vocalisation and play it back.

Promote Physical Development, coordination, balance, control & movement.

Watch footage of a robin.

• Small birds like robins hop as they can move further in lots of little steps. Can the student hop like a robin?

Build Understanding of the World & the Environment and Engage in Outdoor Learning

Re-Create a Robin’s Nest.

• Head outdoors and collect leaves and moss.
• Layer a container with dead leaves.
• Add a layer of moss.
• Create a small ‘bowl’ of hair (you could use wool), this ‘bowl’ protects the eggs.

Feed the Birds and don’t forget to leave them a bowl of water!

Famous December Birthdays

December is the anniversary of the birth of several opera singers including:

Phyllis Curtin, Maria Callas, Deanna Durbin, June Anderson and Phyllis Curtin

Activity Idea

• Listen to a piece of opera music during snack time, circle time or a relaxation session.
• Can the student(s) sing like an opera singer?
• Can the student(s) tell a story through song? This could be a well-known rhyme or a narrative about a task e.g., how to make a sandwich or make a cup of juice.

Christmas Resources

Table of Contents

• Dear Santa – A Fully resourced, step by step Christmas poem.
• Sourcing Props
• Christmas Listening Game
• Christmas Sensory Bag
• Festive Activities
• ‘The Sleigh Ride’ A Guided Relaxation

WATCH THE ‘DEAR SANTA’ MULTISENSORY TRAINING SESSION

‘Dear Santa’ Mini Training Session

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dXIWhsMqQk0

Student Enterprise

Your students may have been invited to contribute to a student enterprise. These may be items to sell at a Christmas Fair or gifts to take home.

Here are some ideas:

1. Decorate fairy cakes or biscuits.

2. Make your own wrapping paper by printing on rolls of brown paper.

3. Make Christmas decorations using ribbon and pinecones.

Bee & Butterfly Seed Bombs

This is a lovely sensory activity that will reap rewards next year and help our much-loved bees and insects

You will need

• Meadow Flower Seeds
• Compost
• Water
• Powdered Clay
• Mixing Bowl

Method 1. In a bowl, mix 1 cup of seeds with 5 cups of compost and 2-3 cups of clay powder 2. Slowly add the water with your hands to create a paste. 3. Roll the mixture into balls. 4. Leave the balls to dry on a sunny windowsill.

5. Package in little paper bags (students could decorate these bags) 6. To plant the seed bombs simply throw into the garden or hedgerow.

Other December Teaching Ideas

• Christmas hat-making competition. Use recycled materials to see who can make the wackiest hat!
• Don’t forget Christmas jumper day!
• Christmas maths activities – have fun sorting sizes and colours of baubles and lengths of tinsel.
• Decorate cookies.
• Make your own plastic-free Christmas crackers using cardboard tubes and crepe paper. Write your own jokes to place inside.
• Explore how Christmas is celebrated around the world.
• Sing Christmas songs and carols. Play along with musical instruments.
• Hold a competition to see which class has the most festive classroom door (Warning: This can get extremely competitive with the adults!)
• Open an advent calendar. Write little tasks inside the calendar doors to challenge students e.g., do five jumping jacks, sing a song, tell a joke or choose an item from a sensory bag.
• Arrange a coat collection or gather unwanted toys and donate them to your local charity shop.
• Donate food to a foodbank or supplies (food or old towels) to a local animal shelter.
• Feed the birds, (don’t forget their water!)
• Collect pinecones to decorate.

Explore Gingerbread!

• Make a Gingerbread House
• Taste food containing ginger: Ginger Snaps, Ginger Jam, Stem Ginger, Ginger Cake, Ginger Chutney, Ginger Tea and (Non-Alcoholic) Ginger ‘Beer’.
• Explore a knobbly ginger root

The Gingerbread Man – A Multisensory Story

https://mash.ie/the-gingerbread-man-a-multisensory-adventure.html

”She sprinkled in ginger then kneaded the dough

Taking her time, nice and slow

She rolled out the pastry until it was flat

Cut the shape of a man and gave him a hat…”

Table of Contents

Story Props Checklist

How to Tell a Multisensory Story

The Gingerbread Man Fully Resourced, Rhyming Multisensory Story

Developing Understanding & Comprehension

Story Map

The Gingerbread Man Listening Game

The Gingerbread Man Sensory Bag

The Gingerbread Man Sensory Bin

Let’s Explore…Foxes

Ginger Food Tasting

Ginger Arts & Crafts

Salt Dough Gingerbread Man Decorations

Running Races

Gingerbread Man Hunt

How to Grow Ginger from a Root

Classic Gingerbread Man Recipe

Vegan Gingerbread Man Recipe

Essential Oil Scents of the Month

Almond, Clove, Frankincense, Ginger, Pine, Orange, Star Anise and Tangerine.

21st December

Winter Begins

‘I woke up this morning and to my delight,

A carpet of snow had fell in the night.

I put on my gloves, scarf, and a hat

And followed the tracks of a bird and a cat…’

Explore the sights, sounds, smells and textures of winter with this this fully resourced step-by-step Multisensory Story.

https://mash.ie/winter-a-multisensory-exploration

Table of Contents

• Winter- Fully Resourced, Step-by Step Story
• Sensory Snow
• Winter Themed Sensory Bin
• Winter Clothes Exploration
• Frozen Nature Blocks
• Expanding Water Experiment
• Feed the Birds
• Let’s Explore…Robins
• Winter Sensory Walk
• Magic Marshmallows
• Winter Food Tasting
• Snowflake Decorations
• Winter Sensory Ideas & Inspiration

Winter Nature Walk

Head outdoors for an Autumn walk or forage around your outdoor learning area:

• Find five different items to look at
• Find four different items to touch
• Find three sounds to listen to
• Find two things to smell
• Find one items to taste

Look for: Acorns, Algae, Animal Tracks, Bark, Beech Nuts, Beetle, Berries, Birds (Blackbird, Blue Tit, Brambling, Bullfinch, Chaffinch, Coal Tit, Clay, Dunnock, Fieldfare, Goldcrest, Long Tailed Tit, Nut Hatch, Redwing, Robin, Starling, Waxwing), Bird Nests, Feathers, Grasses, Fallen Branches, Holly, Logs, Chestnuts, Crab Apples, Frost, Fruits, Fungi, Hazelnuts, Ice, Mist, Mistletoe, Moss, Mud, Natural Water Springs, Nuts, Oak Tree, Pinecones, Puddles, Rosehips, Seeds, Sloes, Snowdrops, Soil, Spider Webs, Trees, Twigs, Worms.

Visit the Store on Mash

https://mash.ie/rhyming-multisensory-stories

Your questions, queries, comments & feedback are always welcome!

email: rhymingmultisensorystories@outlook.com

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Wishing you all a safe and happy Christmas.

Thank you for your support

See you next year!

Victoria:)

Your questions, queries, comments and feedback are always welcome!

Contact me via email

rhymingmultisensorystories@outlook.com

or send me a message via social media:)

Health & Safety Advice & Disclaimer

Please Read Before Engaging in Any of the Activities

• The author has used their best efforts in preparing the information on this website and makes no representation or warranties with respect to the accuracy, applicability, fitness or completeness to the contents.
• The information is for pleasure purposes only.
• If you wish to apply any ideas and activities contained in this blog, on the website or in any of the multisensory stories or resources, you are wholly responsible and take full responsibility for your actions.
• The activities are designed to be led and supervised by a responsible adult at all times.

A Note on Allergies/Intolerances

• If you have any doubts regarding any activity or prop used, then seek advice before starting.
• Be aware of potential choking hazards.
• Check the ingredients in any items you may be using for any potential food or skin allergies or respiratory reactions. If you see any signs of redness, swelling or other symptoms of a suspected reaction seek immediate medical advice.
• The interactions should be led by the sensory explorer who should be allowed to participate without expectation.
• Never force stimuli and stop the activity if the story explorer shows signs that they are not enjoying the session.