What is a calm down kit?

Think about this for a minute: you’re in a classroom, a playground, a play date, or even at home, and your little one starts to feel overwhelmed.  The next thing you know, a meltdown is in progress, and they’re in full stress mode. So are you. And you feel just as helpless as they do.

Many experts suggest the creation and use of “calm down kits,” which are designed to help minimize an autistic’s child’s frustration and stress. Calm down kits can help when you’re putting your child in a safe, comfortable place, or even when they may be waiting somewhere (like a doctor’s office or a dentist’s office) and bored. Calm down kits can even be used as fun time for you and your child to play together.

Calm down kits are particularly helpful for kids with autism because many suffer with anxiety; when they’re overwhelmed, having something both familiar and fun can mitigate those fears and uncomfortable feelings.
You can have a number of calm down kits in different places – one for home, one for the car, one for school, and one at Grandma’s house, even. Every calm down kit can look exactly the same, or each can be special and different. But each calm down kit should be full of items specifically chosen for your child, made up of things they love and feel good using and playing with, so that it does the job it’s supposed to do.

What are some items you can put in a calm down kit?

You can include the following:

•Books
•Sensory boxes
•Photos
•Wooden toys
•Cotton balls
•Fidget toys
•Autism chew toys
•Dried pasta
•Activity books
•Stickers
•Light up toys
•Spinning top
•Resistance bands
•Mini magnets and a magnetic board
•Stuffed animals
•Weighted blankets
•Play dough
•Paper and crayons
•Mini figurines
•Shells
•Wind-up toys

The possibilities are endless, and you know your child best – so you’ll know how to best put your child's calm down kit together.