Spiral Foundation

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Spiral Foundation

Advancing the understanding of Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD) through research and education.http://www.thespiralfoundation.org
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02/17/2026

How to Make Your Own Sensory-Friendly Cozy Corner!

A cozy corner blends comfortable seating, soft textures, and calming sounds and visuals to create a safe, supportive space at home.

Weighted blankets, stuffed animals, or bean bags provide deep pressure, while tools like LED lights, soothing music, and calming images can support regulation.

You can expand your cozy corner with fidget toys, stress balls, chewies, whistles, or sensory bins for extra tactile and oral motor opportunities.

This setup pairs comfort and sensory tools to foster regulation, organization, and emotional well-being through intentional play and relaxation.

In the video, the cozy corner is shown with layered sensory elements to foster regulation, organization, and participation. This is an effective way to support sensory integration and promote emotional well-being through an intentional home setup.

02/14/2026

Weekly Article February 14th: A Structured Sensory-Motor Exercise Program Improves Balance and Parent-Reported Sensory Reactivity in Autistic Children.

Per the abstract, it is highlighted that autistic children often experience sensory processing and balance differences. This randomized controlled trial study followed a 16 week sensory-motor exercise program to see if it would improve these differences. "The primary outcome was balance, and the secondary, exploratory outcome was parent-reported sensory reactivity." This study suggests the functional benefit and improvement in participation in daily life activities that may occur with the implementation of sensory-motor exercises in therapeutic work with the autistic population.

Interested in a full article review? Click the link in our bio for access options!

02/12/2026

Gotta Catch 'Em All!

This activity is great for all of our Pokémon lovers out there. Set up some Pokémon cards or print some out, draw and cut out a Poké Ball, grab a straw and start playing! Use controlled breaths to blow the Poké Ball until it slides and lands on a Pokémon and then you’ve caught it! Keep blowing until you have caught them all.

This activity is great to use to support regulation - we love using it as a cool down for in clinic sessions or for a break at home!

Make the activity more challenging by hiding Pokémon all over and having the client blow the Poké Ball and crawl after it to find the Pokémon or make it two player and play against someone else. Have fun!!

This video depicts a person lying on their stomach and using a straw to blow a paper Poké Ball onto 3 separate Pokémon cards.

# OTactivity

02/11/2026

New FREE Resource Highlight: Going to the Dentist! 🦷

Going to the dentist doesn't have to be an overwhelming experience! Check out our new resource for tips and strategies to support previewing, planning, and preparing for your next dentist visit.

We hope this can be a useful tool for many, so please feel free to share, including your dentist's office!

Link to our FREE resource in our bio!

02/10/2026

Whale Swing Clip Transfer! 🐳

This fun activity uses just the whale swing and a few clips! While bouncing on the whale swing, reach for clips placed on the ropes of the whale swing. This activity is great for fine motor skill development, crossing midline, bilateral coordination, postural control, and balance. Adjust the level of challenge by adding more or less clips, or bouncing higher or lower 😊

It also provides some great vestibular and proprioceptive input while bouncing- some of our clients benefit from an input driven warm up BEFORE adding any more of a challenge!

This video shows a person sitting on a whale swing, moving 4 small clips, one at a time, from one side of the ropes of the swing to the other.

02/07/2026

Weekly Article February 7th: A Polyvagal and Sensory Integration and Processing Approach to Supporting Development in Young Children with Autism.

Per the abstract, the autistic population often experiences sensory processing and regulation differences, which can influence their day to day functioning, including felt safety across contexts. "The polyvagal theory, [the theory the auditory program, Safe and Sound Protocol, is based on,] presents a framework for understanding the autonomic nervous system’s role in influencing behavior, engagement, and connection." The program is "designed to stimulate the vagal system and support nervous system regulation."

Two themes were identified as a result of the qualitative data gathered to interpret the impact of the SSP on "regulation, engagement, and skill acquisition." The participating population was 2-3 year old autistic children, enrolled in an early intervention program. The results support the use of the SSP in treatment, as it showed "dynamic integration of regulation, attention,
and engagement supporting participation; and exploration supporting praxis, engagement, and skill
development."

Interested in a full article review? Click the link in our bio for OPEN access!

02/05/2026

Balloon Animals! 🐶🐨🐷

Making balloon animals or creations is a great way to work on upper body bilateral coordination, hand strength and fine motor skills! All you need is a hand pump and long, thin balloons.

Grade the activity down by having the client pump and the therapist do the tying. Grade it up by finding a more complex balloon animal to create by following instructions.

Make sure to be intentional about which clients you try this activity with because balloons can (and often do) pop! This is often not a good match for sensory defensive folks or those can become dysregulated by surprises. Consider using noise cancelling headphones or previewing what *could happen* when needed!

This video depicts a person using both hands to manipulate a hand pump to blow up a long, thin balloon.

02/03/2026

Fishing in Boat Swing – 2 Positions, 4 Ways! ⛵️🎣

This activity is a fun way to engage proprioceptive and vestibular input while targeting praxis, postural control, distal control, hand-eye skills. This activity also targets visual vestibular integration when the swing is moving. Laying prone in the swing also promotes different postural control demands to hold your head, neck, and shoulders up while catching the fish.

This activity could also be graded up by putting the fish farther away or by only catching a specific color of fish!

The first part shows a person sitting in a boat swing and using a magnetic fishing pole to pick up fish. The second part shows the person sitting in the swing while it is swinging forward and back and picking up the fish. The third part shows the person lying in prone in the swing and picking up the fish. The fourth part shows the person lying in prone and picking up the fish while the swing is moving.

01/31/2026

Weekly Article January 31st: The “Sensory Paradox”: Exploring the Positive Association Between Hyper- and Hypo-Responsivity to Sensory Stimuli in Autism and Beyond.

Per the abstract, it is known that autistic individuals often experiences sensory processing differences and that hyper- and hyporesponsivity to sensory input are typically discussed as separate constructs. It is also known that sensory processing may influence cognitive processes, so it is imperative "to understand the relationships between hyper- and hyporesponsivity within and across modalities, as well as the relationship between sensory processing and other aspects of development in both autistic and typically developing (TD) children."

This article, currently in preprint, is important because it's findings suggest that there are "positive correlations between hyper- and hyporesponsivity both within and across sensory modalities, which [the authors] term the “Sensory Paradox,” [which] may provide key clues to understanding sensory processing in autism and other neurodevelopmental disorders by pointing towards neural circuit-level mechanisms that may underlie neurodevelopmental conditions."

Click the link in our bio for OPEN access to the full preprint of the article!

01/29/2026

Treasure Hunt in the Hammock Ball Pit!

Want to change your ball pit set up? Well, this one is a kid favorite! To set up, we took a Lycra hammock and hung up all four corners and dumped our ball pit balls in.

This activity provides proprioceptive and tactile input. It can also provide some vestibular input depending on much moving you do in the ball pit. The dynamic surface encourages postural control and body awareness. This activity can also target tactile discrimination by hiding items in the ball pit and searching for them by feeling around with your hands.

The hammock ball pit can promote regulation and provide a potential womb space. The Lycra hammock makes it easy to sink under the surface and be surrounded by the balls, providing some deep tactile pressure.

This video depicts a person sitting inside a ball pit within a stretchy hammock. They are searching for small items within the ball pit, with their hands.

01/27/2026

Target Practice: Feet Edition! 👣

This simple activity is a great way to work on postural control in a clinic, school, or home-based setting! Sitting in this position propped up on the elbows and keeping the knees and feet flexed and raised is a great way to increase core flexion stability.

Set up 3 targets (pillows, pop tubes, rubber dots, etc.) in a row and assign them a point value. Sit in this flexed position a couple of feet away from the targets and place a few bean bags or stuffed animals by your feet. Pick up an object one at a time with your feet and toss it towards a target while keeping control of your core and legs. See how many points you can get!

Use lighter objects for an easier challenge or use heavy objects for a greater postural challenge. Vary the weight of the objects to work on force discrimination.

Have fun!

This video depicts a person propped up on their elbows in a supine position and using their feet to pick up bean bags and toss them into 3 rings in a vertical line on the floor.

01/24/2026

Weekly Article January 24th: Exploration of Children’s Interoception, Emotional Regulation, or Anxiety and Occupational Participation: A Scoping Review with Narrative Synthesis.

Per the abstract, it is understood that children develop many key skills and body functions that influence their ability to engage successfully across various occupations. "Interoception, emotional regulation, and anxiety management skills" can impact a child's functional participation in these occupations, and this scoping review aimed to gather current literature and identify gaps regarding the relationships between these skills and occupational participation.

Two themes were identified as influences on occupational participation : "(i) interoception and emotional regulation may be related, and (ii) education may improve interoceptive awareness. No anxiety-related themes were identified." This review is important as it identifies existing research on the links between the aforementioned concepts and highlights the need for additional research.

Interested in a full article review? Click the link in our bio for OPEN access!

Address

74 Bridge Street, Suite 200
Newton, MA
02458

Telephone

+16179694410

Website

https://linktr.ee/thespiralfoundation

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