No matter what the weather, schools need to encourage recess time. Whether it be free play time outdoors on playground equipment, using loose parts (ie balls, jump ropes, etc) or indoor time on rainy, cold days, students benefit from the break for some of the following reasons: 1. Children learn self regulation and the ability […]
Here is a nice FREE app for little ones who needs some guidance with self regulation and motor planning. It is called Breathe, Think, Do with Sesame Street. There are 5 different scenarios that include showing a monster getting frustrated with completing a skill. The child has to tap, pop bubbles and more to […]
The European Journal of Pediatrics published research on whether there is an increased prevalence of generalized joint hypermobility (GJH) in children with voiding dysfunction. The participants included 226 children (5 to 14 years) including 113 patients diagnosed with voiding dysfunction and 113 sex/age/body mass index-matched normal children were recruited. GJH was evaluated in both groups […]
Pediatric therapy sessions last for only a short period of time. A common frequency of pediatric therapy is 1 or 2 visits 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 […]
At the University of Arizona there is the Embodied Games for Learning Lab. The lab is creating games for K-12 classrooms that include movement with learning. The researchers have found that students retain information better when they use their whole body to learn the information.One of the lead researchers, Mina Johnson-Glenberg, states that “Our controlled […]
Head over to https://www.yourtherapysource.com/freehightligher.html to get the details on 10 ways to use highlighters to help students.
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill has created an amazing report updating evidence based practices for children, youth, and young adults with autism. This document is over 100 pages and it goes into extensive detail on how each evidence based practice was included. I have perused the document and there is relevant information for all pediatric […]
Physical Therapy published a systemic review of available instruments to measure upper extremity strength in children with cerebral palsy. The researchers identified 6 different measurement instruments. Two test-retest reliability studies were rated as “fair” for the level of evidence. All other studies were rated as “unknown” for the level of evidence.The researchers concluded the following: […]
Play for young children is crucial to healthy development. Pediatric therapists who work in early childhood education know the importance of play and how to use it to reach IEP goals that are set for specific children. When a child is evaluated for therapy services, the therapist observes the child in the classroom setting. Therapists […]
The Journal of Autism and Developmental Disabilities published research that examined the relationship over time between behavioral functioning (autism symptoms, maladaptive behaviors, activities of daily living) and vocational/educational activities of 153 adults (mean age of 30.2 years) with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). The results were the following: greater vocational independence and engagement was related to reductions […]