There is something about light. Perhaps it's the clarity, meaning, and joy we feel when we're surrounded by light. It may be a dark time of year, but in a multisensory room, you can witness a tantalizing light show with just one or two great tools. There are many options for interactive sensory room lights that encourage calm, focus, attention, eye-tracking, and environmental control. For clients with autism, ADHD, Alzheimer’s, dementia, and sensory processing disorder (SPD), this can be a world unto itself where lack of control is replaced with environmental control and awareness. Indeed, calming sensory lights are one of the most effective products for this special population. So, without further ado, let's take a look at five ways to light up your multisensory room!
Our IRiS LED Fiber Optic Sensory Lights & Qube Bundle
Fiber optic sensory lights come in a variety of forms, from strands, to sprays, curtains, and even carpets offering a contained LED light that can be touched and manipulated. This can be highly engaging and provide touch awareness as well as visual tracking and calm. Drape your fiber optic strands across a chair or beanbag, mount your cascade mid-room for a tantalizing effect, or lay your carpet on the floor to encourage motor planning and floor work.
Our Bubble Tube Mirrors, perfect for creating a multiple bubble tube effect
The bedrock of a multisensory room is a bubble tube backed by mirrors (if positioned in a corner). Pair an IRiS Talker (wireless controller) with any IRiS model bubble tube (or other IRiS equipment/Listener) or select a superactive or touch-sensitive bubble tube, and you have room control at your fingertips. That means the user of the sensory bubble lamp can change the color of the light, offering a mesmerizing experience that's both soothing and alerting. This makes the sensory bubble lamp/tube one of the most useful calming autism sensory lights on the market, as well as for other special populations also.
Though not for every room, a mirror ball can dazzle and provide a stimulating effect that can awaken your most reticent room participant. Mirror balls reflect light and splash it onto your walls, ceiling, and floor for a fun yet therapeutic multisensory experience.
A projector will project light onto your walls, ceiling, or floor, displaying imagery and creating the atmosphere you’d like for your environment. A projector can be isolated to one wall or one spot, or can move across the room to offer a full multisensory room effect.
A light spreader is just that. It places focused light onto one area of your floor or wall, drawing attention there and literally pulling you toward that location. Choose an LED light spreader or light strip to direct soft lighting wherever you want to focus activity or vision. LED light strips can be mounted on the wall, creating a color wash bright with intense color and lighting to create a special effect.
Lighting should be at the heart of your sensory room to encourage mood and/or activity, for all sensory needs. Using mirrors can enhance your existing lights via reflection to create more light, which is especially useful if you have a lower budget, and want to make the most out of your sensory equipment. Interactive switches can put lighting into the hands of those who may just need it the most.
If you require more help setting up your sensory room lights, please don't hesitate to get in touch with our friendly team of sensory experts! Alternatively, keep reading our blog for more sensory resources.
