The Christmas season is fast approaching and this is a good time to think of the gifts that you need to get for your little ones so that they can have a fun-filled, exciting and memory holiday.
But things might have been tough for you over the year and most probably, you do not have a dime to spend on gifts.
Do not worry. The best gift that your child will really appreciate is the gift of your time, attention and love.
Yes, you do not have to spend a dime for that, do you?
And yet, the child will love being with you, playing with you and all the attention that you are going to accord to them.
But what if you still have some few dollars to spend?
In this post, we will be giving you informed advice on gifts that you need to get for your autistic child be they a toddler or teenagers.
Christmas gifts for autistic toddlers
Mini indoor trampoline
The trampoline has been found to be a great play therapy accessory for kids on the autism spectrum disorder.
What the trampoline does it that captivates the child and help them expend all the excess energy that they might be having. With a mini trampoline around the house, you can be assured that your child is really going to enjoy time indoors and will indeed appreciate the addition of the accessory at your home.
Other than expending excess energy, the trampoline encourages social play especially when you have more than one kid using it. The kids will have to engage with each other as they communicate on whose turn it is to have fun on the trampoline.
See and spell game
For autistic kids who might be preverbal, this holiday is a great time to push them to think more about talking. Get them away from the TV, smartphone and tablet screen with this fun filled, educative and developmental toy.
And what better toy do we have for preverbal toddlers other than the Melissa and Doug see and spell game. What the see and spell game entails is taking flash cards that have images of common animals and things around the house. It also contains the names of the objects neatly spelled out in colorful fonts that will engage and captivate the child.
Melissa animal puzzle
Another great addition in your autistic child’s toy set is the Melissa animal sound puzzle. What the puzzle contains is a range of domestic animals that need to be fitted on the puzzle board. Once the child fits the animal in the right slot, they are rewarded by the sound of the animal.
It is indeed thrilling and entertaining for the child who will be looking forward to filling the puzzle slots correctly so that they hear the bleat of the sheep, the mooing of the cow or the grunting of the pig.
Weighted lap pad
Not a play toy as such, but a weighted lap pad proves to be very functional for autistic toddlers. The weighted lap pad is going to help your toddler as they struggle with anxiety and fidgeting.
They are going to focus more whether they are in class, in the church or even at home without so much up and down movements. Since it is calming, it also takes care of unnecessary stimming and fidgeting
Christmas gifts for autistic teenagers
Autistic teenagers would also need Christmas gifts so that they feel that you indeed do appreciate them.
As they hit their teenage years, these kids need toys that are hip and cool and at the same time functional in helping them battle with their day to day anxieties and fidgeting. So what suggestions do we have?
Compression vests
The compression vest is nothing but a weighted jacket. It helps the teenager feel calm and focused and would be great for them to wear as they go to class or in concerts where one would be required to sit still and concentrate.
To make it hip and cool, you could look out for fancy designs that the teen is going to appreciate and love.
Noise cancelling headphones
As they move to new environments that are filled with strange sights and sounds, autistic teenagers are going to get overwhelmed by the sensory overload.
Heck, they might even have a meltdown and you really do not want that. For one it reflects badly on them since other kids might go ahead to call them ‘weirdos’ or ‘freaks’ as they did call Sam Gardney in Atypical movie.
You could take control of the situation by getting your teen some comfy and fancy noise reduction headphones. What the headphones do is that they muffle out unnecessary loud noises that might make the child have a sensory overload.
Ideal headphones do have a NRR of between 20 to 26 decibels.