EarlyVention's quick tutorial shows how to make your own calming lap weight / lap pad for under $15! It's super easy and saves you 70% of the cost of animal lap pads currently on the market! Lap weights provide deep pressure, help improve body awareness and can help children regulate their own body and emotions. Make sure to include up to 10% of your child's body weight (e.g. 4 lbs for a 40 pound child) to create the most benefit!
For EarlyVention’s DIY Lap Weight, you will need:
Sandwich size Ziploc bags (we used 6 bags)
River pebbles (we used two 32 oz bags from the Dollar Tree to accommodate a child who weighs 40 pounds) or other type of stuffing (e.g. sand, beans, rice, lentils). Did you already fill the toy, but need to increase the weight? Consider adding fishing weights / sinkers!
Duct tape
Clean dish towel
Calming essential oils (optional – we used Lavender)