Core Skills Analysis
English
- Arrie practiced listening comprehension by following the squishy kit instructions read aloud and using the information to complete each step with support.
- Arrie built expressive language skills by asking what the activities were, requesting drawing help, and joining in conversations with the support worker and occupational therapist.
- Arrie strengthened vocabulary for procedures and materials through naming, discussing, and working with kits, slime, stickers, and drawing references.
- Arrie showed early planning and oral interaction skills by contributing to future activity ideas, including the face masks planned for next week.
Science
- Arrie explored hands-on material changes by making squishies and slime, noticing how ingredients and textures combine to form new objects.
- Arrie used sensory observation while handling sticky, squishy, and creative materials, which supports noticing properties like softness, stretchiness, and consistency.
- Arrie participated in simple cause-and-effect learning by seeing how following the kit steps changed the final product.
- Arrie’s interest in sensory activities suggests she learns well through experimentation, touch, and immediate feedback from materials.
Mathematics
- Arrie likely practiced sequencing and order by completing the kit steps in the correct progression with support.
- Arrie used visual comparison when choosing inspiration from her iPad and matching it to the drawing the support worker created.
- Arrie engaged in pattern-like decision making by moving between activities and selecting preferred materials, which supports flexible problem-solving.
- Arrie’s collaborative making activities encouraged attention to quantity, portions, and whole-to-part thinking when assembling craft materials.
Health and Personal Development
- Arrie practiced emotional regulation through shared support, food, space, and calming preferred activities after becoming dysregulated.
- Arrie worked on social participation by including the support worker and occupational therapist in activities and planning.
- Arrie showed emerging self-awareness by expressing discomfort when discussing her self-care box, even though this led to distress.
- Arrie’s covered drawings when she made mistakes suggest sensitivity to error and a need for reassurance while building confidence.
Tips
Arrie would benefit from short, predictable activity routines that start with a visual plan, then move into hands-on making, and finish with a calm review of what she created. To strengthen communication, invite her to choose between two simple options, explain what she wants next, or describe materials using feeling words like sticky, soft, or stretchy. For emotional regulation, practice gentle transition supports such as a warning before changing tasks, a calm-down corner, or a choice of one preferred reset activity after challenging moments. You could also extend learning by turning the slime or squishy session into a mini “follow the recipe” lesson, where Arrie helps read, sequence, and check off each step as it is completed.
Book Recommendations
- The Day the Crayons Quit by Drew Daywalt: A playful book that supports talking about feelings, choices, and creative expression.
- Press Here by Hervé Tullet: An interactive book that encourages following directions and noticing cause and effect.
- The Kissing Hand by Audrey Penn: A comforting story about emotional reassurance and coping with separation or stress.
Learning Standards
- English — AC9E6LY01: Arrie used interaction skills by asking questions, making choices, and joining shared conversation during the activities.
- English — AC9E6LA05: Arrie responded to spoken instructions and supported discussion, showing how language can guide action and influence participation.
- Science — AC9S9I01: Arrie’s making tasks involved informal inquiry through trying steps, observing changes, and noticing how materials responded.
- Mathematics — AC9M6N05: Arrie followed multi-step processes in order, supporting problem-solving and strategy use during the kits.
- Science — AC9SPS01: Arrie observed movement and changing textures in sensory materials like slime and squishies.
Try This Next
- Draw-and-label worksheet: Arrie labels the materials used in the squishy or slime kit.
- Sequencing quiz: Put the making steps in order from first to last.
- Feelings check-in chart: Match emotions to calm-down strategies used during the session.
- Creative prompt: Draw a picture of your finished squishy and write one sentence describing how it feels.