Ten Tips for Sensory Friendly Origami

As you know, origami is a beautiful Japanese paper art tradition. It’s also a multi-sensory activity, involving hand-eye coordination, bilateral coordination (using both hands is so important!), patience, sequentiality, focus, detailed instructions, and the magic of turning a two-dimensional object into a three-dimensional one.
So, my ADHD/SPD kid has taken on origami this past month, inspired by an Around the World unit at school. Like many ADHD children, he has laser-sharp focus when he’s interested in something, but the addition of Sensory Processing Disorder, along with delays in fine motor skills and visual perception to the mix, caused him to literally fight with his body to accomplish an origami project. There were tears. There were screams. There was howling.

Um, let’s take a collective breath and dig in, shall we? Here are some tips that can help kiddos that desperately want to engage in this awesome activity:

1. Start with the easiest projects. It goes without saying, your kid may be very ambitious in the beginning because origami is so cool. Explain that it’s all about learning the basic folds first and building on them. The simplest projects will help them build self-confidence and memory skills. Simple animal shapes, like a dog’s face, a kitty or bunny are great. Kids can even decorate with markers. Let your kid choose.
2. Check out books available at your local library. Bring home a few and let your child peruse them. The ones that seemed the most basic and helpful for my kid were these: Easy Animal Origami and Easy Origami.
3. Make sure step-by-step video instructions are age-appropriate. Videos are awesome. However, my kid made the mistake of watching YouTube videos that were way too fast and advanced for his age and abilities. That said, after learning a few origami pieces from the library books, he wanted to share his knowledge with other kids, so I created a YouTube channel where he teaches a couple of projects slowly. It’s not a super production by any means, but it might be helpful others. He’s a good little teacher!
4. Origami papers are optional. It’s great to have pretty, light-weight origami paper but I’m not going to sweat using office paper. If you’re on a budget, I say skip it.
5. Follow along with your kid on a first project or two. This really helps with his/her anxiety and frustration. I have to say, I struggle with three dimensionality myself, but even simple folds are difficult for kids with sensory issues. I was not afraid to say “I don’t get it”. It was also good for my kid to see that not knowing how to do something is not Earth-shattering and I’m not throwing a hissy fit about it. You just move on and come back to it when you’re ready for the complexity of that one project. Shake it off.
6. Point out the sequence. This is a companion tip to #5 and is particularly important in the beginning when building spatial skills. We adults may take it for granted, but following sequential steps also helps with focus and reading skills.
7. Casually point out the hidden math. Math is very abstract for young kids, but the problem-solving nature of origami offers many real-world applications of math, like fractions (folding in half and quarters), and symmetry, in addition to creating and manipulating real geometric shapes. Manipulating shapes is very different than seeing them two dimensionally, especially for a kinesthetic learner.
8. Origami is a window into the Japanese culture. Learning about another culture is always a plus in my book. My kid learned about about Japan in class, but nearly all the books from the library contained information about origami history.
9. Understanding and appreciating precision. Lining things up exactly, pressing down along a fold, folding symmetrically—these are great exercises for little fingers and mind. You can gently remind your kid that precision is important to achieve the final result. This also helps greatly with concentration.
10. Set boundaries. That laser-sharp focus I was talking about… yeah, it can also be there at 7:30 AM when you’re trying to leave for work/school. Instead of engaging in a power struggle, let your kid know that the origami will still be there in the evening and it will be a great Together Time activity.

How about you? Let me know if you have additional tips for origami fans!
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