Most County Fairs and other community events like Town Festivals and local Carnivals are a bit overwhelming for sensory sensitive kids and adults. Many families decide to stay away for that reason. But…what if you knew there would be a place at the event for your sensory sensitive loved one to take a break and regulate? Check out what Joy Niehaus, a mom of children with autism, made happen at her local County Fair.
When did this idea spark for you?
The original idea came from another event our family used to go to. Our kids loved street fairs and festivals but they were often so draining and hard for us (at the time we didn’t know our kids were autistic). A few years later I was talking with the fair director about silent dance parties and how much my kids loved them and suggested they have one at the fair. He then asked me to come pitch the idea to the fair committee. They liked the idea and agreed to split the cost of the equipment with the Recreation Department. My daughter and I were asked to man the tent. That was three fairs ago (2022). We have been growing ever since.
How long have you been doing this and how has your tent changed from the beginning?
The first year we had a tent, the silent dance party equipment and my daughter and I bought a few glow sticks and some candy at the dollar store. Three fairs later and it had grown a LOT! This year we had three tables. One with sensory play for in the tent. We had the silent dance party headphones, two seasonal sensory bins, six calm down bottles, and six eye spy bottles. We also had a table full of glow sticks, stickers, erasers, and stamps for the kids to take with them, and a third full of fidgets. We ended up giving away close to 500 fidgets to people of all ages.
Who helps you with the set up, interactions with those who come, and breakdown?
The fair gives us around $100.00 toward fidgets, and we fund the rest from our family budget along with some donations from friends and family. We made all the sensory play items ourselves. The local Virginia Tech Extension office donated some of the supplies for that.
The Public Works department for the County typically sets up our little tent. As far as the rest of the set up, manning the table, etc it’s entirely our family. The first two years it was just me and one of the girls, this past year we kept the tent up the entire time of the fair (not just one or two evenings) so my husband, Josh, came and helped. It was really cool, he is better at interacting with people than I am and he was able to offer encouragement to some younger special needs dads. That was really cool!
Can you tell us some examples of how this is making a difference for a family’s county fair experience?
This was the first year we had the sensory play and were open during the day. There were families that came and sort of set up shop. Most people would stay for about five minutes, but you could tell the families that were overwhelmed. They would come and stay for 20,30 or 40 minutes. The kids’ faces would light up when they would put on the head phones and could drain out the rest of the noise and dance with their parents. You could see kids visibly relax while playing with the sensory toys. Some families came multiple times during their visit and it let them stay at the fair longer.
There were families that weren’t necessarily special needs, but hung out and played for a long time and were able to get a “Souvenir” from the fair without having to pay extra. Being able to provide a free activity is helpful to everyone, not just kids with ASD. The best part is when people come in and read our signs explaining the tools and our family and get so excited because they feel less alone. It also makes people feel more seen and supported that the fair is working to create a safe inclusive space.
How has this been helpful to you and your family?
That’s been the biggest help for our family too. It gives us a place to belong at the event. It helps my kids see all these other teens and kids and families who need a few extra supports to enjoy the fair. It is also a tool in teaching self advocacy to our girls. We saw a need, we spoke up, and we took steps to make it happen. It’s a good model for them in the future.
What would you say to the person who is thinking about doing something similar?
To someone that wants to do something similar, I would say go for it! It never hurts to ask. People are more likely to listen to suggestions if you are willing to back it up with action. I would also say don’t get discouraged if it takes a while to catch on. It started as a silent dance party, but what people really latched onto is the sensory play stuff. It also took a few years.
Do you think this idea could work in other settings besides a county fair tent?
I definitely think this would work in other venues. We loaned out the sensory play items to the recreation department for their Halloween event, and I would love, love, love to set it up at a (church) event some day. We are creating Christmas themed sensory bins and sensory bottles to take into the local elementary school along with headphones for a Christmas music dance party. We will go to their Cookies with Santa event in December. We won’t do free fidget this time since we are struggling to afford Christmas gifts for our own kiddos, but I think the sensory play will go over really well. It would work well at an event geared toward special needs, or even just large events/fairs that could be potentially overwhelmed. If I could afford it I would go someplace once a month and do this!
Thank you, Joy, for giving us all ideas of simple things that can be done to make more places of belonging for those who struggle with sensory overload.
If you would like to have a conversation to brainstorm how you might implement some of these ideas, we are here for you. Email us at Champions4Parents@gmail.com or text us at 410-746-9010 and let us know your desire to connect. We can meet by email, telephone, Zoom or in person if you are local to Central Virginia.
Much love,
Tom & Julie Meekins
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