Families with children with special needs can often find it difficult to find activities and events that cater to sensory concerns of individuals with autism. This post will offer some suggestions for fun and engaging sensory-friendly events that everyone in the family can enjoy in the Chicagoland area.
Sensory-Friendly Theater
The Chicago Children’s Theatre has developed The Red Kite Project which offers camps, classes, and performances purposely designed for kids with ASD. Similarly, the Filament Theatre in Chicago provides performances that use fewer lighting effects like strobe lights, softer sounds, and smaller audiences that are allowed to sit or move throughout the performances.
Sensory-Friendly Play Places
We Rock the Spectrum have gyms in Palatine and Franklin Park that offer gross and fine motor activities for kids of all development levels. They currently take bookings by appointment only during the pandemic, and many other gyms are offering private rentals during this time. The Sky High Sports Trampoline Park in Niles offers Special Needs Day every Tuesday where music is off and other distractions are minimized from 4-6pm.
Sensory-Friendly Museums
The Field Museum hosts Sensory Saturdays once a month. This event welcomes families and children with disabilities as well as with sensory processing needs (siblings, family members, and caregivers are also welcome). It is free with advance registration. While many museums in the Chicagoland area are closed or partially closed at this time, many offer other sensory-friendly sessions when they reopen.
Sensory-Friendly Movies
AMC offers Sensory Friendly Film showings at select theaters around the Chicagoland area. On their site they announce that they’ve “partnered with the Autism Society to offer unique movie showings where we turn the lights up, and turn the sound down, so you can get up, dance, walk, shout or sing!”
Other sensory-friendly movie screenings can be found at Studio Movie Grill locations, Marcus Theaters, and Hollywood Boulevard.
Reference:
Majewski, N. 2021, March 15. Sensory-friendly Chicagoland: activities and events for special needs. Mykidlist.com. Retreived from: https://mykidlist.com/sensory-friendly-events/