Expressive Arts Group for Highly Sensitive Kids: Navigating Anxiety, ADHD, and More
At Toronto Art Therapy for Kids, we offer specialized Expressive Arts Groups designed to support highly sensitive children, including those experiencing anxiety, ADHD, OCD, ASD, and SPD. Our program is also great for any kid curious to explore their sensitivity and creative potential.
Empowering Kids to get Creative with their High-Sensitivity Super Powers…
Our inquisitive and playful approach to therapy invites children to make friends with their sensitive side and harness their unique creative potential. Through expressive arts, your child can channel their big emotions into empowering self-expression. This process supports the development of self-regulation, calm, focus, confidence, and joy.
Next session: September 2025
Our Expressive Arts Therapy Group is designed to support children with various sensitivities, including anxiety, ADHD, and more. Each group consists of up to 8 children within an age range of 2-3 years, guided by two Expressive Arts Therapists in training.
Initial Intake Session: Before the program begins, we offer a personalized online intake session with parents. This allows us to understand your child’s unique strengths, challenges, interests, and goals. We will also cover confidentiality and address any questions you may have to ensure that the group is a good fit for your child.
Therapeutic Art-Making: Our sessions use art-making to gently explore feelings, experiences, and inner resources. We start with creative warm-ups—like doodling, working with beeswax, abstract writing, or exploratory movement—to loosen up and inspire creativity.
Focused Art Projects: Children will then engage in more sustained art projects such as clay modeling, painting, mask-making, sound baths, mixed media sanctuaries, painting wish stones, weaving mandalas, and crafting collaborative stories. These activities are designed to foster creative self-expression and build confidence.
Reflection and Sharing: Each session ends with an opportunity for children to share their creations and reflect on their feelings and experiences. This balance of focused art-making and shared reflection helps build a supportive community and enhances self-regulation, calm, focus, confidence, and joy.
Our group sessions are crafted to create a nurturing environment where children can thrive creatively while developing valuable emotional and social skills.
Understanding High Sensitivity, Anxiety & ADHD
Highly Sensitive Children have a unique temperament that makes them particularly aware of their environment, emotions, and sensory experiences. This heightened sensitivity allows them to process information more deeply but can also lead to challenges when their environment is overstimulating or unsupportive.
High Sensitivity
This trait means that children experience the world more intensely. They are sensitive to sensory inputs like loud noises, bright lights, or strong smells, and they may feel emotions more acutely. While high sensitivity is a natural temperament rather than a disorder, it can sometimes lead to difficulties in managing these intense experiences.
Anxiety
For highly sensitive children, anxiety can arise as a result of their heightened awareness and emotional responses. They may become easily overwhelmed by their surroundings or their own emotions, leading to excessive worry or stress. This anxiety can affect their daily functioning and overall well-being, making it challenging for them to navigate situations that feel beyond their control.
ADHD
Although ADHD is a distinct condition, it can intersect with high sensitivity. Children with ADHD often struggle with attention regulation and impulse control, which can be exacerbated by their heightened sensitivity. This combination can make it difficult for them to focus, manage their emotions, and cope with sensory overload, contributing to increased frustration and stress.
Art Therapy & High Sensitivity
Art therapy provides a valuable tool for addressing these interconnected issues. Through creative expression, children can explore and process their emotions in a supportive, non-judgmental environment. Art therapy helps to manage anxiety by providing a safe outlet for feelings and promoting relaxation. It also supports children with ADHD by offering structured yet flexible activities that can improve focus and self-regulation. By integrating art therapy, we aim to harness the strengths of high sensitivity and mitigate its challenges, helping children build resilience, confidence, and emotional balance.
More Resources:
The Highly Sensitive Child – Elaine N. Aron, Ph.D.
ADHD and Children – ADDitude Magazine
Centre for ADHD Awareness, Canada – About ADHD
Canadian Mental Health Association – Children and Anxiety
Kids with Anxiety Need To Know – Hey Sigmund
“Hey Warrior” A Book for Kids about Anxiety
“The Whole Brain Child” – Daniel Siegel, M.D.
What is Expressive Arts Therapy?
Expressive Arts Therapy, or Creative Art Therapy is a form of therapy that uses various creative modalities—such as visual arts, music, movement, and creative writing—to help individuals explore their emotions and improve mental health. It is particularly beneficial for children who find it challenging to articulate their feelings verbally.
Benefits of Expressive Arts Therapy for Kids
Expressive Arts Therapy offers a range of benefits for children, especially those who are highly sensitive. It provides safe, structured ways to express emotions through creative outlets, reducing internal tension and promoting emotional clarity. Sensory experiences involved in art-making help children manage sensory sensitivities and enhance their understanding of different inputs.
How Expressive Arts Therapy Supports Children with Anxiety and ADHD
For children with anxiety and ADHD, creative art therapy offers a supportive environment to manage stress and improve focus. Activities like painting or music can serve as practical coping strategies, helping children develop resilience and confidence in their abilities.
Expressive Arts Therapy vs. Traditional Art Classes
Unlike traditional art classes that focus on technical skills and artistic techniques, expressive arts therapy emphasizes emotional growth and personal expression. It engages the right hemisphere of the brain, promoting empathy, emotional depth, and creativity, which are crucial for highly sensitive children.
Key Aspects of Expressive Arts Therapy
- Safe Emotional Expression: Allows children to process complex emotions through creative activities like painting or writing.
- Sensory Integration and Regulation: Uses various sensory experiences to help children manage and enjoy different inputs.
- Building Social Connections: Fosters a sense of belonging and enhances social skills in a supportive group setting.
- Enhancing Self-Esteem and Confidence: Boosts self-esteem through successful creative expression and positive feedback.
- Developing Coping Strategies: Equips children with practical tools to handle overwhelming situations and manage their sensitivity.
Learn More
Psychology Today – Expressive Arts Therapy