In a different world, children would be ready to learn at all times.

In an alternate universe, children would not have temper tantrums or meltdowns in shopping centres.

In another time and place, all of us would be well-regulated all day and all night!

But that’s not how the world works! And anyone spending time with children will know that there are moments when they are out-of-sync and not quite themselves.

We all experience dysregulation at one point or another, and it's all part of a child's journey of growing, developing and learning. You will be happy to know that when you are faced with these challenging times, there is a powerful tool you can use to help children become more regulated…

Heavy Work!

Heavy work supports our abilities to learn, focus, attend and participate in every day tasks. 

We all have ways to support our own regulation to help us to remain calm and organise ourselves. Some children just need an extra bit of support with navigating this.

Here, we’ll cover what heavy work is, when heavy work is needed, and specific heavy work strategies that you can try with your child at home.

What is Heavy Work?

Heavy work is an activity that requires effort from our muscles and these tasks usually involve activation of the muscles and joints of the body through the proprioceptive system by movements such as pushing, pulling or lifting. The movement activities create resistance input to the muscles and this feedback is ultimately what calms and regulates the sensory system.

The sensory system that is activated during heavy work activities is called the proprioceptive system. The proprioceptive system receives messages when the muscles move to do work. These messages flow back and forth to the brain. The brain decides how much force a muscle should use based on the task at hand.

This allows children to use the correct amount of force when they need to hold something gently or when they need to lift something heavy.

It’s a complex system that is constantly adjusting to make sure the brain is getting the right information from all the joints and muscles in the body and as well as making sure the muscle output is appropriate to the task. This concept is also known as body awareness and allows us to know where our body is in space and how to move our body.

The proprioceptive system is a universal and powerful regulator.

By working with the proprioceptive system you can even out disturbances in other sensory systems. You can increase energy levels if you need to, and you can reduce high energy levels to help children reach a calm, comfortable space to interact with the world.

 

When to do Heavy Work

The beauty of heavy work is that it is really easy to incorporate at home. Adding heavy work to a child’s daily routine will contribute to the development of their sensory processing and their regulation. 

Children will also gain valuable tools that they can use when they feel that they need to regulate themselves. How often you use heavy work input will depend on the individual child. Be guided by your child’s enjoyment and response to the activity that you introduce.

Consider including a heavy work activity in the morning before going to school and again in the afternoon when children arrive home from school. Heavy work can also be incorporated into bedtime routines to help the sensory system feel calm and restful.

Here are some easy Heavy Work activities you can try at home:

Carrying heavy objects:

• Carrying a box or basket of bean bags
• Carrying laundry in a laundry basket
• Carrying shopping from the car
• Walking whilst carrying a backpack filled with their toys

Arm movements:

• Sweeping with a brush or a broom
• Digging in the garden or in sand at the beach.

Pushing games such as:

• Pushing a wheelbarrow, shopping trolley, toy brick cart, or toy box on wheels filled with heavy objects
• Push against palms of a partner in a high kneeling position: face your palms together and push firmly, holding for 5 to 10 seconds
• Chair push-up: push on the chair with flat palms holding for 5 to 10 seconds
• Wall push, hold for 5-10 seconds.
• Tug of war using a rope, sheet or towel. Do this in sitting if you prefer.

Eating and Drinking:

• Drinking water or milk through a thin straw
• Drinking a thick milkshake through a thin straw
• Drink from a sports bottle or experiment with curly straws
• Eating crunchy or chewy foods for snack and for meal times (bagels/French stick, chewy fruit bars or dried fruit, raw carrot/apple/cereal bars etc.)

Deep Pressure:

• Giving your child a firm hug
• Press down on their shoulders
• Roll or wrap your child up in a blanket (keeping head and neck free) and pretend to make a sausage roll

Other Activities such as:

• Play dough or ‘Theraputty’ which involves squeezing.
• Squishy ‘stress balls’ will provide similar input.
• Army crawling
• Crab walking
• Activities such as swimming, climbing or children's yoga
• Use a climbing frame, monkey bars, climbing ropes, to encourage muscle stretching
• Obstacle course requiring climbing over and crawling under obstacles. You could use large cardboard boxes to crawl through. Add extra resistance by placing bean bags or sand bags on your child’s back and pretend that you are playing dinosaurs.
• Jumping i.e. hopscotch or bouncing on a trampoline or space hopper – these give strong sensory feedback.