Your Therapy Source Blog » pediatric occupational therapy

Perceptual Reasoning and Handwriting

Administrator — Wed, 17 Nov 2010 18:15:00 +0000

Neurology has published research on a small study consisting of 24 adolescents, half with autism and half without autism. Using the Minnesota Handwriting Assessment Test, intelligence test and Physical and Neurological Examination for Subtle (Motor) Signs (PANESS), the researchers found that the adolescents with autism showed worse overall scores on handwriting just like younger children with autism exhibit. In addition, it was found that the perceptual reasoning skills were significantly predictive of handwriting skills where motor skills were not. One of the researchers, Dr. Bastian states:

“Our research suggests that adolescents with autism may be able to learn and utilize compensatory strategies that involve reasoning skills to compensate for their motor impairments.”

Perceptual reasoning is the ability to reason and solve problems when non verbal material is presented. Just like OT’s offer environmental modifications for handwriting such as pencil grips remember to consider how the material to be written is presented. Try modifying the work to assist a student’s perceptual reasoning by changing the font type or size, reorganizing material or reducing visual distraction on the page to name a few.

Reference:
Kennedy Krieger Institute. New Study Affirms Handwriting Problems Affect Children with Autism into the Teenage Years. Retrieved from the web on 11/17/2010 from http://www.kennedykrieger.org/kki_news.jsp?pid=9212

Planning a Therapy Session

Administrator — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 10:31:00 +0000

Therapists can follow in the footsteps of teachers and create lesson plans for therapy sessions. This can be especially useful for group sessions or push in therapy. When the lesson plan is written, provide a copy to the teacher or parent to inform them of your goals for the session. It is a great way to establish better communication between the special education team. Here is some information to include when creating a plan for a therapy session:

1. Goal: Establish the primary goal of the session.

2. Materials Needed: List the equipment necessary for the session.

3. IEP Goals Being Met: List the student’s IEP goals that are being addressed.

4. Instruction:

a. Explain to the children what the goal is of the session

b. Write down all the steps you will take to reach the goal

5. Evaluate: How will you evaluate whether the goal was reached?

a. Formal

b. Informal

c. Rubric

d. Test

6. Closure: Wrap up the session reviewing and/or summarizing the skills that were taught.

7. Modifications: List any modifications that can adapt the lesson plan for each child if necessary.

Not only will you be prepared for the therapy session, you will be prepared for documentation and planning for the next session.

Print out the form below to get started.

Peds OT and PT Help in Mexico

Administrator — Tue, 19 Oct 2010 16:20:00 +0000

Free Online Typing Games

Administrator — Fri, 24 Sep 2010 09:26:00 +0000

Learning to type can be boring after awhile and monotonous. How about try some games to motivate children to learn how to type? Here are a few suggested websites with free online typing games:

Simple, basic typing skills: Sense-Lang.org Typing games at http://www.sense-lang.org/typing/games/index.php?lang=EN

Easy, Medium and Difficult Typing Games:
Typing Web at http://www.typingweb.com/tutor/games/

A video game approach to learning to type at FreeTypingGames.net at http://www.freetypinggame.net/play.asp

Good animation with this spider typing game (thanks @OTKate from Twitter for finding this one) - http://funschool.kaboose.com/fun-blaster/games/game_super_hyper_spider_typer.htmlWhat is your favorite, free online typing game?

5 Ways to Get the Most Out of a Therapy Session

Administrator — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 02:50:00 +0000

Pediatric therapy sessions last for only a short period of time. A common frequency of pediatric therapy is visit per week for a 30 minute sessions. It is very difficult to make substantial change during 30 minutes. Therefore, during each therapy session, therapists should be offering carry over of skills to the classroom and home. Here are 5 ways to get the most out of a therapy session:

1. Teach strategies that are appropriate for the child’s level and the care giver’s level. Certain techniques require several teaching lessons for an adult care giver. In addition, once a technique is taught do not forget to review it in the future.

2. Children learn new skills through multiple practice sessions. Offer suggestions on how specific skills can be practiced over and over during the course of a regular day.

3. Provide visual directions and hand outs that offer more information on specific techniques or activities. This can provide predictability for the children and review for the adults.

4. Be very specific on your expectations and suggestions by setting realistic goals for the week until the next visit. Teachers and parents have other children that they are responsible for on a daily basis. Make sure the goals set are achievable. For example, “Johnny will practice putting his shoes on at least one time per day each day this week”.

5. Remember to allow children to be children. This might sound obvious but children enjoy playing and having fun. Boring tasks may result in non compliance or behavioural issues. Keep practice tasks fun and novel. Vary tasks when able and allow children to choose what activities to practice. Act like a child yourself and you may get better results. Follow the child’s lead. You may land up learning more than the child.

For simple activities to carry out throughout the day check out Therapeutic Activities for Home and School.

Plan a Therapy Talent Show!

Administrator — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 17:35:00 +0000

Why not try something different for the end of this school year or for during the summer programming? Plan a therapy skills show. Students can exhibit the skills that they learned in therapy over the school year to teachers, classmates and parents. Maybe showcase how to use a new piece of assistive technology or adapted equipment. Perhaps a child would like to demonstrate how they learned to cut out objects, walk across the room or drive his/her wheelchair up a ramp. Each act can just be a few minutes long. This would be a great self esteem boost for the children to show off what they have learned.

If you are working at a school don’t forget all the important steps to plan an event.
1. Request permission from school administrators
2. Schedule a convenient time and reserve auditorium
3. Ask for volunteers to help the day of the show
4. Make flyers to invite teachers, students and parents
5. Create a program to pass out the day of the show

Don’t have time to plan a show? Have the children complete the following statement and hang their responses on a bulletin board or make a digital slide show of the results – “The most important skill I have learned in therapy is…..”. Schedule a time for the entire school to view the slide show to promote how therapy can help children.

Fine Motor, Gross Motor and Visual Perceptual Activity

Administrator — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 14:50:00 +0000

Here is a video of a fun outdoor activity idea, Create, Hide and Lace, that encourages fine motor, gross motor and visual perceptual skills. The children can create paper circles, hide them outdoors and run to lace them on the ribbon. Looking for more sensory motor ideas? Try these electronic books:

Motor Magic: Turn Fine Motor Skills into Gross Motor Skills
Get Up and Learn: Incorporating Movement with Learning
50 Sensory Motor Activities for Kids!
$ensory Motor Fun on a Budget

Self Regulation as a Predictor of Academic Abilities

Administrator — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 13:48:00 +0000

Self regulation is the ability of a person to tolerate sensations, situations and distress and form appropriate responses to that sensory input. Simply stated, it is the ability to control behavior. In children, self regulation matures just like other developmental processes. Children get older and learn to think before they act. Research continues to develop in this area of self regulation and how much it effects other aspects of development. A recent article in Developmental Psychology reports that self regulation in children is a predictor of academic abilities. The researchers used the Head-Toes-Knees-Shoulders Task (HTKS) to evaluate 343 kindergartners ability to self regulate. The HTKS task measures the ability to listen, remember instructions and follow motor commands. It does not measure emotional responses. Children with higher levels of self regulation in the beginning of the school year achieved higher scores in reading, vocabulary and math at the end of the school year. The researchers concluded that improving self regulation in children can improve academic achievement and behavioral responses.

Now, for any therapist, teacher or parent who has knowledge of sensory integration knows how much deficits in self regulation effect behaviours, social skills and motor responses. We need to continue to educate school staff on the importance of this skill be developed in all children. Pre-kindergarten and kindergarten curriculum has changed it’s focus to reading, writing and math skills at an earlier age. There is not enough practice time to learn self regulation during these early formative years. Now it appears as if this hard core academic curriculum in the early years needs to slow down. This study provides significant evidence to support teaching self regulation skills.

Here are 5 simple tips to encourage self regulation in all children:
1. Therapists, teachers and parents should model good self regulation and self control. Use a calm tone in stressful situations. Model self control during disruptive classroom or home time.
2. Partner children who lack self regulation with children who exhibit better control to act as appropriate role models.
3. Play fun games that require children to wait for directions before they act (i.e. Simon Says).
4. Play fun games that require turn taking.
5. Keep activities structured and predictable.

Something to ponder for OT’s - Do you find that the majority of children with sensory modulation disorder exhibit deficits in all aspects of academic achievement? Does anyone know of any research on this topic? Would love to read it. Please comment.

References: Ponitz, Claire Cameron; McClelland, Megan M.; Matthews, J. S.; Morrison, Frederick J. A structured observation of behavioral self-regulation and its contribution to kindergarten outcomes. Developmental Psychology. Vol 45(3), May 2009, 605-619.

Oregon State University (2009, June 9). Self-regulation Game Predicts Kindergarten Achievement. ScienceDaily. Retrieved June 9, 2009, from http://www.sciencedaily.com /releases/2009/06/090608162547.htm

10 Simple Activities to Encourage Physical Activity in the Classroom

Administrator — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 14:43:00 +0000

Here is a great hand out to give to teachers to get students moving in the classroom. Just hit the print button!

Family TV Watching and Autism

Administrator — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 14:33:00 +0000

I came across this article on TV watching and autism on Twitter from @cozycalm. Eileen Parker is owner of Cozy Calm Weighted Blanket Store. I really enjoyed reading this article because it is written from her own experiences (she has SPD, high functioning autism and OCD). Her blog offers interesting reading and helpful tips. She has given us permission to reprint her blog post here on this topic. In my opinion, this article offers some great suggestions for parents and therapists (to pass this info along). Thanks, Eileen Parker for your insight and helpful information.

Family TV Watching and Autism
By: Eileen Parker on May 8, 2009.

You can help your child with autism lower their stress level with some simple rules about family TV watching.

As a child and now an adult with autism and sensory processing disorder, I know that TV can be stressful to the point of jumping, tears, anger, confusion, and other reactions. As an adult, I have learned to contain some of my reaction in front of others, but children don’t necessarily have that regulation built in yet. Also, while watching TV, I will start to feel upset. I often don’t realize what is bothering me early on, but I have learned to identify my own signs.

When my hubby and his kids are talking and watching sports, I have to leave the room, close the door, and go away because my aggravation from the sound continues to elevate until it boils.

A child may not know that they can leave the room to a quieter place. A family member may even tell the child to stay in that room or the TV may be audible throughout the house, so the child has no escape from the sound. With the noises from the TV, the child’s irritability can climb all day.

Here are some TV rules that could make your child’s life much more relaxed:

1. No talking while the TV is on. More than one source of sound is not merely aggravating; it feels like a hurt in the brain.
2. Mute the commercials. The sudden jarring sound of a blasting commercial bashing into the ears can make your child jump, sweat, breathe fast, or make sounds.
3. If your TV has the capability, lower the treble. The higher register noises are more painful.
4. Put the TV in an enclosed room and close the door so your child does not have to hear it.
5. If you are not watching the TV, turn it off.
6. Have your child look away from the screen during commercials so the fast-moving visual stimuli don’t make it worse.
7. Turn the volume down.
8. Learn to make TV more bearable for your child by doing a brushing protocol first. Your child can also lie under a weighted blanket while watching TV.

Visit www.EileenParker.com to view her blog or go to www.CozyCalm.com to check out her weighted blankets.