Enabling Environments: Tried and Tested - Sensory resources

BOING LIGHT BALL

NES ARNOLD

AGE: 3+

PRICE:£4.75

CONTACT: www.nesarnold.co.uk or 0845 1204525

This light ball, which changes colour at the squeeze of a hand, has seven different colours and a fast-slow flashing phase.

Tested by Your Child Matters Childminding Service, Dartford, Kent

'This is an excellent addition to our sensory box. The children found it very easy to use and extremely tactile. I have two children on the autistic spectrum, aged five and four, both with speech disorders. They quickly worked out how to change the colour with the simple squeeze of the hand. They were very animated throughout their play and it held their interest. I also used it for recognition of colours and counting with the other children. It promoted language as the children discussed the feel and texture of the ball, and we also used it as a tool for learning our colours and numbers in French, as we have a child who is bilingual. The product seemed completely safe and well-made and it was easy to clean. It also appears more robust than others I have come across, and it is reasonably priced. The only negative is that the instructions tell you not to drop the light ball from a height or bounce it, as this may damage the electronics. Having said this, the children did drop and throw it and no damage was done.'

STAR RATING: **** Very good

RAINSTICK

REFLECTIONS ON LEARNING

AGE: 0+

PRICE: £5.99

CONTACT: 01732 225850 or www.reflectionsonlearning.co.uk

A thick plastic tube full of brightly-coloured beads that fall when turned to make the sound of heavy rainfall.

Tested by Little Peoples Day Nursery, Flintshire

'The babies loved looking at the colours of the beads as they fell to the bottom of the tube. It was too heavy for them to hold, but they enjoyed rolling it on the floor and it really held their interest. For the older ones it was a good size to hold and shake. We used it as an instrument in our music and movement session. All the children were able to produce a sound with the rainsticks, and it helped with movement and dexterity as they tried to build up a rhythm. It's a great addition to the music box but could also be used at circle time or during Topics to discuss

the environment and the sound of rain. It was a lot of fun and it is a very solid product that we would definitely buy.'

STAR RATING: **** Very Good

SQUIDGY SPARKLE COLOURS

TTS GROUP

AGE: 3+

PRICE: £19.99

CONTACT: www.tts-group.co.uk or 0800 318686

The pack contains seven flat disc circles, 19cm in diameter, each containing a small amount of coloured fluid. Inside each circle are small 2D shapes and glitter that move around when squashed. Shapes include square, rectangle, octagon, oval, circle, isosceles triangle and scalene triangle.

Tested by Green Park Day Nursery, Cheshire

'Each child was given one of the circles and asked to identify the colour, the shape that was inside and how many shapes they could count. This promoted much enthusiasm and encouraged use of mathematical language, numbers and colour recognition. A couple of the children realised that if they put two circles on top of each other they were able to make another colour. They then piled them all up on top of one another and one child said, "it's nothing but dark". One child recognised that there was a red, orange and green circle and said, "We can use these as traffic lights". This then led to conversations about traffic lights, crossing the road and road safety. The children were asked what the circles felt like - hard, soft, squidgy, round, flat. One child said, "I can feel water" and another said, "If you press it like this the glitter moves". This product is good value for money, as the children can use them in many ways. It's a good resource to have on the shelf and I would definitely consider buying it, providing I was assured that it did not leak. One of the children stepped on a circle and it leaked and on another day a child was playing with circle on a table top when the fluid was noticed on her sleeve.'

STAR RATING: *** Good

SOFTIES MIRROR PACK

SPACEKRAFT

AGE: 0+

PRICE: £24.95 (set of 5)

CONTACT: 01274 581007 or www.spacekraft.co.uk

This set of five hand- held mirrors consists of a red convex, an orange concave and yellow, blue and purple plain mirror.

Tested by Smart Tots, Banbury, Oxfordshire

'These mirrors created good learning opportunities for group play and language development. They were first introduced to the children inside a tent with dressing-up clothes, and then we placed them on a table. They proved more popular when combined with another activity. The mirrors encouraged the children to use language as they repeated their own names and the names of others they could see in the mirror. They also found the different images that the convex and concave mirrors made funny, and spent a lot of time looking at how their faces looked. We think the mirrors are good value for money. They are a lovely design and provide many opportunities for play in lots of different situations. We like the soft texture of the mirror frames. However, when the 18-month-old children put them to their mouths, the bite marks stayed on the mirrors. Over time, I would be concerned that a chunk could come off in a child's mouth.'

STAR RATING: **** Very Good

GLITTER TUBE

SPACEKRAFT

AGE: 3+

PRICE: £9.95

CONTACT: 01274 581007 or www.spacekraft.co.uk

A battery-operated LED tube reveals a bright, sparkly glitter effect. With the flick of a switch you can illuminate the tube with blue, red or mixed colours. Size: 75mm diameter x 360mm long.

Tested by Happy Child Nursery, Shepherds Bush, London

'The children were fascinated with the colours and lights, but after a short while the attraction wore off and the children went on to other objects. They used it as a light to read books and tell stories in a tent that they made with the staff. The children with additional needs were more captivated by the light and glitter. They held it to their eyes and watched the water flow, but could not hold it for long because it was heavy. One child got very excited with the lights and told everyone to look at it. We wouldn't consider buying this because it's too big and heavy for the younger children to hold. I might buy if it was smaller.'

STAR RATING: ** Satisfactory

DISCOVERY PLAY TENT

TTS EDUCATION

AGE: 12 MONTHS +

PRICE: £34.99

CONTACT: www.tts-group.co.uk or 0800 318686

This 'Amazing Animals' pop-up tent has mesh windows to play peek-a-boo and contains different fabrics, sounds, and colours.

Tested by Cufos Playgroup, Muswell Hill, London

'The children were attracted to the brightly-coloured tent and the jungle theme. The crawlers enjoyed touching the number pads at the side of the tent, which were filled with polystyrene balls. They also liked listening to the sounds that the lily pads made when squeezed. A two-year-old used them as stepping stones and concentrated hard on not falling off. Some of the toddlers ran into it and we had to put mats underneath to prevent it from slipping. The children loved peering out of the net that covered the top of the tent and talking or making gestures to their friends. I think it's more suited to under-twos, because some of the toddlers were too tall to stand freely in it. It has some nice touches - it helped with number recognition and counting, and a lot of discussion occurred around the zoo animals, but I would not consider buying it because I don't think it's robust enough. It's much more suited to a home childcare environment.'

STAR RATING: *** Good

All prices exclusive of VAT and post/packaging

BEST BUY

For Sarah Murray, reception teacher, Downsend Epsom Lodge, Surrey

'Ogosoft balls are great for sensory play. They are made of touchy-feely rubber strands and are really soft and tactile. They travel in the same way as an ordinary ball, but they have the advantage of not hurting if hit! They are great for indoor and outdoor use and can be used in paint or other sensory play materials.'

- £29.99 per pack of 30 balls from Direct Educational Services on 0800 0434142 or www.des-uk-shop.com