THERAPY ACTIVITY

Sand Box

Touch Sensory Integraion | Tacile Defensiveness | Fine Motor Skills | Auism Communicaion

Assisive Audio Cues — Supplementary, Not a Subsitute for Hands-On Guidance

WHAT IS IT?

● An AI-integrated interactive sandbox where children play with responsive, sensor-enabled sand

● Touch sensors and depth camera detect hand movements and patterns in the sand — triggering activity responses

● Projector overlays activity visuals directly onto the sand surface — the sand itself becomes the interface

● Activities range from simple touch-response to complex pattern recognition — increasing in difficulty as the child progresses

● Offers supplementary assistive audio cues for blind and partiallysighted children; because SandBox depends on tactile hand placement in the sand, audio cues reinforce direction rather than replace hands-on or sighted-aide guidance

WHY IS IT USEFUL?

● Autism children commonly suffer from tactile defensiveness — an inability to tolerate texture or touch sensations

● Sand play is a widely recommended OT tool for sensory desensitisation because its texture is gradual and nonthreatening

● Non-verbal autism children who cannot express through speech engage freely through sand play — opening communication channels for therapists

● Samagra Shiksha identifies sensory integration as a core OTneed for CwSN in In-SRR; sandbox directly fulfils this

THERAPEUTIC BENEFITS — EVIDENCE BASED

● A systematic review and meta-analysis found sandplay therapy has a significant positive impact on outcomes for children with autism spectrum disorder [23][24]

● Most-studied protocol: once per week for 22–28 weeks in early school age — closely matching the In-SRR schedule format [24]

● Sand tray therapy is associated with multisensory, bilateral engagement not typically achieved through talkbased therapy alone [26]

● Sand play is associated with reduced tactile defensiveness and improved fine motor and visual-perceptual skills relevant to school readiness [23]

● A randomised controlled trial confirmed sandplay therapy improves perceptual reasoning and neuropsychological functioning in autistic children aged 6–12 [25]

GALLERY