I have talked about my son's oral motor sensory seeking behaviors quite a bit in the past. We've come up with DIY chewelry solutions and we've also tried countless oral motor sensory activities.
In addition to these non-food oral motor sensory ideas, I like to provide him with the appropriate oral sensory input that he needs by feeding him specific types of snacks.
For this free printable list of sensory snacks for kids, I focused on healthy snacks. No junk food. However, there are a few treats on this list, such as fruit gummies, lemonade, and ice cream. I have included them because there are a variety of healthy versions and DIY recipes available that use real fruit, natural sweeteners, and no artificial colors or flavors.
This list of sensory snacks can also be paired together to make a great sensory-rich meal for lunchtime at school.
Grab a variety of foods from this list for the kids' lunch boxes and you can help them get the oral motor sensory input they need while at school!
Alerting Foods for Oral Sensory Input
These foods are meant to waken up a child's senses while providing lots of proprioceptive and oral sensory input. So when your child seems sluggish or off, then these snacks are a perfect way to get them back on track!
Chewy Foods
- Dried fruit
- Dates
- Beef jerky
- Fruit leather
- Bagels
- Granola bars, especially with caramel
- Cheese
- Celery
- Fruit gummies
- Sausage sticks
Sour, Tart, & Spicy Foods
- Pickles
- Greek yogurt
- Lemon or lime slices
- Lemonade
- Kiwis
- Grapefruit
- Olives
- Pickled beets
- Cranberries
- Salsa
Cold Foods
- Popsicles or ice pops
- Smoothies
- Frozen yogurt bites
- Ice cream
- Sherbet
- Frozen yogurt
- Milk
- Frozen peas
- Frozen corn
- Frozen berries
Crunchy Foods
- Pretzels
- Nacho chips
- Crackers
- Nuts
- Popcorn
- Roasted chickpeas
- Sesame snaps
- Pumpkin seeds
- Sunflower seeds
- Carrots
- Apples
- Granola
- Banana chips
- Dry cereal
- Toast
- Snap peas
- Dried veggie chips like beet or sweet potato
- Kale chips
- Peppers
- Cucumbers
- Graham crackers
- Arrowroot biscuits
- Pita chips
- Rice cakes
Calming Foods for Oral Sensory Input
These calming snacks are perfect when your kids are bursting with energy!
Sweet Foods
- Bananas
- Strawberries
- Cantaloupe
- Honeydew
- Watermelon
- Peaches
- Pears
- Plums
- Berries
- Grapes
Smooth & Creamy Foods
- Yogurt
- Hummus
- Hard boiled egg
- Applesauce
- Cottage cheese
- Avocado
- Oatmeal
- Peanut butter or similar alternative like almond butter, sunflower butter, or Wow butter
- Spinach dip
- Guacamole
- Smoothies
- Pudding
Warm Foods
- Soup
- Hot chocolate
- Tea
- Oatmeal
