Our senses are an incredible part of how we are fearfully and wonderfully made that help us to learn about and engage with the world around us.

Babies and children first learn about the world around them through their senses – it’s partly why they put things into their mouths and like to crash their toys about to make loud noises – that playing and interacting stimulates the senses and helps them to learn and develop. We know that good sensory input is vital for healthy brain development – it’s what helps our brain to literally build and to form.

However, it is estimated that as many as 15% of children may struggle in some way with sensory processing –

Children who have experienced developmental trauma may have been in sensory deprived spaces through neglect – or in sensory overloaded environments – with lots of noise and chaos – and that can hinder healthy development of their ability to process sensory information.

Other learning needs such as ADHD or autism can cause sensory processing difficulties – in fact, it is estimated that 90% of children with autism will also experience sensory processing difficulties.

Regardless of the cause, sensory processing difficulties affect lots of children – which is why I think this is a key issue that everyone journeying with children or young people should be aware of and seek to understand!

If we are going to journey well with every child in our care and enable them to feel seen and safe – then we need to be aware of what makes them feel unsafe!

But understanding our senses isn’t just important if we are journeying with children who struggle with sensory information – we are all sensory beings -we all use our senses to learn and to help us engage with the world around us – and we are all affected by our senses. Information received through our sensory systems can alert us and it can calm us down… it can cause us distress and it can bring us great joy!

Our senses are also linked to our memory – they play a big part in how we retain and store information! The more of our senses we can engage, the better we will understand and remember information.

To be honest, that’s not really new learning – it was Confucious, the great chinese philosopher who was born in 479AD, who said:

‘I hear and I forget. I see and I remember. I do and I understand.’

Throughout the Bible we see God interacting with His people through sensory acts of worship – Deuteronomy 6 is a great example of that!

In verses 1-9, God’s people are encouraged to remember His wise instructions by talking about them in their homes with their families or as they walk along the road – to write them in their houses and tie them to their bodies – to engage their whole bodies, through their senses, in their worship.

I find that engaging my senses in moments of Stillness enables me to be more present. That might be lighting a candle or burning incense as I sit and read my bible or walking as I pray, noticing what I can smell, what I can see, what I can hear …

We are all sensory beings – that’s how God created us – it’s how He designed us!

So – how can we engage the senses in our children’s ministry? Well, one great way is to use Sensory Stories!

Sensory stories, as the name suggests, are stories that engage the senses and enable children to more fully experience the narrative – What can they see? What can they hear? What can they taste? What can they smell? What can they touch?

To give you an idea – check out the free “Sensory Stories’ resource on the Wonderful Me! website which includes my version of Mark 4:35-41 when Jesus calms the storm.

It’s taken from the Wonderful Me! Exploring Emotions resource which is available in the WM! shop – which also includes further information on how to use the story well within a session.

So, let’s get more sensory aware! How can we bring a more holistic approach to our own well-being but also to the way we journey with our children and young people that engages their whole bodies and helps them feel safe and involved?

How can we create safe spaces that soothe the senses and interactive programmes that engage the senses?

What might it look like to ‘taste and see that the Lord is good?’

And if you’re reading this and thinking that this is an area where you could benefit from some further learning and development – then get in touch! I offer a days training called Soothing the Senses that explores this further and is jam packed full of practical ideas to help you consider how you can create safe spaces that soothe and engage the senses – perfect for children’s and youth teams AND for parents.