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I was asked by a co-worker to make some lap weights for her students. Lap weights help students who have ADHD or autism to help them feel grounded. They lay on the lap of the student while doing desk work.

My co-worker forwarded me the link to the EarlyVention blog which can be found here. It included a tutorial to make the lap weights.  I’m including a bit more detail here, as well as the process is written out step by step for those that prefer that.

Supplies for Making Lap Weights

• The blog uses Skinneeez dog toys that are like stuffies for dogs, but have no stuffing – they are empty. They come in cute animals and are tough and strong as they are intended to be chewed on. Get the largest you can find – they come in various sizes. I found some smaller ones at the dollar store, but they are just too small. You can get these online or at some Pet Stores.
• River rocks – I got these from the dollar store.  Two bags made 3 toys
• Tea towels – old ones would work; they just cushion the rocks a bit. No one will ever see them so they don’t need to be pretty. You could also get cheap ones from the dollar store.
• Duct tape
• Sandwich bags – I used 2 per lap weight
• Essential oils (optional) – I used lavender as it is calming and soothing.
• Sewing scissors
• Glue – I use E6000 industrial strength glue. I don’t think my glue gun would hold up to this.
  

  

Step by Step Process to Make Your Own Lap Weights

1. Put rocks into sandwich bags. I filled mine about half full. Remove excess air and seal. Use duct tape to keep it closed. I prepared two bags per lap weight.
   

   

2. Lay the bags of rocks side by side laterally and roll up in the tea towel. Cut off any excess tea towel with sewing scissors – otherwise, it’ll be too bulky. Duct tape it closed – all 4 ends.
   

   

3. If using essential oils, add a few drops to the tea towel.
   

   

4. Cut open the Skinneeez dog toy. I used my sewing scissors to cut it at the neck (yes, it sounds gruesome). I removed the squeaker that was in the head and in the tail. It’s in a little mesh bag – simply cut it out. Through the opening at the neck, I was able to work the squeaker from the tail all the way up in order to snip and remove. This way, you won’t need to cut another opening.
5. Insert the tea towel wrapped rocks into the body cavity of the dog toy.
   

   

6. Close up the opening with glue.
   

   

My Thoughts and Review of the DIY Lap Weights

My finished lap weights ended up weighing 1 lb 12 oz – about 830 grams. The blog recommends 10% of a child’s body weight. These lap weights were pretty full – I don’t think I could add much more in there. Hopefully, these will be enough weight to help primary students feel grounded. The fox is supposed to be one of the largest at 24 inches but it doesn’t hold that much. The video shows a pig which wasn’t available on the Canadian Amazon site.

The video neglects to mention that the toy needs to be opened. This is an easy fix and that’s why I included sewing scissors in the supply list. Also, once it’s opened, you’ll need to close it up. The fur on the dog toy would make it somewhat challenging to sew so I decided the easiest would be to just glue it shut.

For those of us in Canada, the dog toys are quite expensive making this somewhat pricey – especially if you add in the cost of the essential oils which are definitely not cheap. I only found one local pet store that carried these toys – so you may need to shop around. Many pet stores had dog toys like this, but many were not large enough – you would need something long and thin that would lay across a lap.

I am thinking a large work sock would also work for this project as it needs to be long and narrow. It just wouldn’t be as cute. Despite the fact that they are filled with rocks, they are still a cuddly toy. The tea towel helps cushion the rocks.

The classroom teacher I made these lap weights for has been using them for a few months now and for some students, having this weight on their lap really does help keep them grounded.

Want to remember how to make your own lap weights? Be sure to save this to your favourite Pinterest board.