What Is Sensory Processing?
Every child takes in information through their senses and responds to it in their own way. But sensory processing isn't just about the five senses most people learned in school. There are eight sensory systems at work, and each person has a unique profile for how they notice and respond to input across all of them.
That profile shapes behavior in ways that aren't always obvious. A child who can't sit still, dislikes certain textures, seeks out lots of movement, or seems not to notice things that bother everyone else isn't being intentionally difficult. They're responding to what their nervous system is telling them.
Understanding the basics of sensory processing gives caregivers and practitioners a different lens for reading behavior, one that opens up more useful responses.
Why Behavior Is Easier to See Than to Understand
Most people are pretty good at noticing when a child's behavior is a problem. What's harder is understanding what's driving it. When a child melts down, shuts down, or pushes back, the behavior is visible but the cause isn't always clear.
Sensory needs are one of the most common and most overlooked causes behind challenging behavior in children. Without a framework for understanding sensory processing profiles, it's easy to respond to the behavior itself rather than what's underneath it.
This course gives you the foundational knowledge to start asking different questions: not just "what is this child doing?" but "what might their sensory system need right now?" That shift changes what you do next.
Big Talks, Little Talks
Understanding How Kids Think, Feel, and Behave — One Talk at a Time
Making Sense of Behavior: The Basics of Sensory Processing is one of eight modules in Big Talks, Little Talks, a video course series by Kelsie Mick Olds covering key topics in neurodiversity and child development. Modules can be purchased individually or as a complete bundle.
Every module in the series includes two videos:
The professional development component. Kelsie walks through the topic in depth, giving you the knowledge and language to understand what's happening and how to respond. Big Talks run approximately one hour and qualify for continuing education credit.
A kid-friendly video that gives children accessible language to understand what's going on in their own bodies and brains. You can show it directly to a child, break it into shorter chunks across multiple sessions, or watch it yourself to pick up language you can use in your own conversations.
Who Is This Course For?
This course is designed for therapists, parents, caregivers, educators, early childhood educators, and anyone who works with or lives with children whose behavior doesn't always make sense on the surface.
Whether you're trying to understand why a specific child struggles in certain environments, looking to build your foundational knowledge of sensory processing, or searching for a framework you can actually use in real moments, this course gives you a practical starting point.