Great Gift Ideas for Teens and Young Adults on the Autism Spectrum

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            It's hard enough to buy gifts for teenagers and young adults, but when they have special-needs the challenge to find useful, practical gifts grows even harder. Here are a few ideas that just might do the trick.

    Sensory and stress relief gifts

·         Pinch Me Therapy Dough or Thera-putty – Along with aromatherapy, this dough reduces anxiety, provides distraction, and strengthens fine motor skills

            

·         Fidget toys such as squeeze balls, tangle Jr., fidget cubes, playdough, slime or silly putty.

·         Vibration reminder wristband – helps students with ADHD to stay on track with gentle timed vibrations.

·         Sound cancelling headphones – A fantastic help for auditory processing issues, sound cancelling headphones provide privacy when listening to music and help to block out unwelcome sounds.

·         Weighted blanket or pressure vest– helps with relaxation by providing just the right amount of pressure (if you are buying for someone else, be sure to ask their weight – blanket weight must match individual’s weight)

·         Oral aides such as chewelry necklaces and bracelets, or chewable pencil toppers- helps reduce anxiety

·         Inflatable pea pod, provides a calming, cocoon-like calming effect as well as deep-touch pressure.

·         Liquid motion timers, lava lamp, jellyfish lamp – the mesmerizing effect of bubbles and oil in motion has a calming effect

·         Calming music – Ryan Judd is one of my personal favorites

·         Flowing sand panels – provide relaxation and help with focus

·         Cocoon bean bag chair

2.    Educational gifts

·         Almanacs, encyclopedias or books with lots of facts

·         What should I do now? Family game that teaches social decision making

·         Teen talk cards or Teen talk in a jar – set of question cards to spark conversation and teach communication skills.

·         The empathy game – learn to interpret non-verbal signals and determine how to respond appropriately

3.    Energy burning gifts

·         Yoga ball. Helps with balance, fidgeting and distraction

·         Indoor or outdoor trampoline

·         Punching ball with stand and gloves.

·         Indoor or outdoor swing

·         Carousel spinner

·         Scooter

·         Stationary exercise bike – Learning to ride a regular bike can prove too challenging for some individuals on the autism spectrum, so the stationary bike often proves a better option.

4.    Other

·         Light up alarm clock – clock lights up at preset time, so child knows when it’s okay to get up

·         Building toys such as Legos, Magna-tiles, Magformers, K’Nex, Connectagons help develop creativity – be sure it’s at your child’s level or this could produce more frustration than pleasure.

·         Non-competitive games such as the Ungame, Tall Tales Story Telling Board Game or Rory’s Story Cubes