Foam Plate Sensory Play

Foam Plate Sensory Play Set Up
A foam plate with a design to poke holes in and a cork with a toothpick stuck in one end

A foam plate…hmmm, this has interesting possibilities for sensory play…

Uh oh, Leland seems out of sorts this morning, I better give him something interesting to do right away…

Maybe he'd like to stab holes in the letter ‘L'… I'll draw a leaf too…there, that's kind of cute…

Sure Mom, I can stab the ‘L'…

Foam Plate Stabbing with Toothpick
He played along with my idea for about 30 seconds.

Oh, but if we get that paper out of the way I can stab  and scratch the foam!

Scratching the foam plate
Then he decided scratching and stabbing without paper was better sensory fun.

Hey- flipping this over is even better! >stab< >stab< >stab<

Upside down foam plate being stabbed
An upside down foam plate offers yet another senesory experience

This stuff feels neat when you break it! Look what I can do!

Foam plate destruction fun
Eventually just stabbing with a toothpick was not enough.

My work here is done.

On completely sensory played out plate.
Complete destruction was what was needed.

And with his sensory needs filled, he calmly sat down and ate his breakfast.

Alissa Zorn stands near a pond with an orange shirt on wearing a black button down over that.

Alissa Zorn is an author, and founder of the website Overthought This. She's a coach and cartoonist passionate about helping people overcome perfectionism and shame to build authentic, joyful lives. Alissa is certified through the International Coach Federation and got her Trauma-Informed Coaching certification from Moving the Human Spirit. She wrote Bounceback Parenting: A Field Guide for Creating Connection, Not Perfection, and is always following curiosity to find her next creative endeavor.