sensory issues

It is interesting to find out now that all of the oddball things that my son do could be due to "something" instead of just stubbornness. My newest quest is to try to find ways to help him deal with whatever sensory issue is causing the below...

1. noise issues - he hates loud places and school is proving to be very difficult, specifically the lunchroom. He has social skills issues so I want to try to do everything possible to make it so he doesnt stick out in the crowd, but I also don't want the solution to be that he eats alone with the teacher. It seems like the lunchroom is a golden opportunity for socializing if he #1 has the want and #2 can handle the noise. At first we allowed him to listen to his mp3 player during lunch, but then he said he didn't need it. However, he has again started to get irritated by the noise, which could be because they aren't able to go outside after lunch due to the cold. I have thought about getting him little earplugs that he could keep in his pocket just in case he needs them. Any other ideas?
2. messy eating - I would love for him to be able to eat/drink something without needing to use his fingers to touch it first...how great would that be! It would also save us on all of the uniform shirts that have gotten ruined this year -- I think we are up to 8 throw aways now! This isnt a big issue though, but could start to add to the social skills issues as he gets a little older.


Crisis occurring, will post more soon!